VIDEO: Boksburg SPCA battles financial strain as abandoned pets pour in
Chairperson said the society continues to see greater numbers of farm animals, such as pigs, sheep, goats and poultry, as well as wildlife, coming into the society.
The Boksburg SPCA has so far received a grant of around R31 200 from the metro on a monthly basis; however, for the 2019/20 financial year, the grant will be reduced to about R26 824.
This was revealed by the Boksburg SPCA chairperson, Willie du Plessis, at the Boksburg SPCA’s AGM on July 24 at NG Kerk Libradene.
According to du Plessis, the financial pressures remain a problem due to the operational costs outweighing the society’s income.
“Economic hardships are being experienced by more and more people; therefore, donations are declining, especially from the business community, whether in the form of money or in good deeds through services and goods, which are an integral part of our income stream,” du Plessis said.
Other challenges he highlighted was the resignation of committee members who served for some time on the committee.
“The resignations created a challenging time for the committee in respect of its oversight and fund-raising roles, but the remaining member persevered and managed with the assistance of Boksburg SPCA, Maggie Mudd and the staff.
“We would like to thank our former committee members for their participation in the committee.”
Services
The following statistics show exactly how busy the society is, thus the need for this service is growing at an alarming rate.
Dogs: 1 119 brought in as strays and 1 639 surrendered, 469 homed, 183 reclaimed and 607 sterilised for underprivileged pet owners.
Cats: 745 brought in as strays and 711 surrendered, 47 homed, eight reclaimed and 382 sterilised for underprivileged pet owners.
He said these animals are then placed at facilities that can take care of them.
“Our outreach programme continues; however, due to limited resources it is not at a scale we ideally wish it to be. This is an important function that is performed in the poor areas/informal settlements where pet education and medical care is essential.”
Financials
Du Plessis said the operational income decreased by 22.6 per cent, while expenses increased with 18.3 per cent.
This resulted in a R851 995 loss (before Lotto, which was sued as allocated and municipal grants received).
“Lotto funds were used to acquire the mobile clinic, a vehicle and care packs. After taking into account the Lotto and municipal grant funds received, a surplus of R229 787 was generated, compared to an R862 543 surplus in the prior year after the municipal grant.
“The surplus generated in the current financial year is exaggerated due to the recognition of the Lotto funds as revenue in our financial statements, while these funds were primarily used to acquire assets for our daily operations.”
Du Plessis highlighted that their concern is that they continue to operate at a loss, which negatively impacts their service delivery.
The chairperson said for the 2019/20 financial year, they expect to break even due to restructuring and cost-saving initiates supported by fund-raising activities and strategies to be implemented.
For the 2018/19 financial year, the Boksburg SPCA raised R115 000 through their street collection, R467 000 through the second ‘chance’ shop, R894 000 through the medical clinic, R215 000 through new homes found, R437 000 through donations and R83 000 through boarding fees.
Maintenance
“During the past financial year, we continued to maintain the pound facilities, but had to do so more often from own funds because due to the economic situation, it was more difficult to garner support from local businesses to donate money, materials or hands-on assistance.”
Du Plessis said their vehicle fleet continues to age, and this is a challenge to the society.
“During the year, we purchased a vehicle together with the mobile clinic out of our Lotto grant and we received a donation of two vehicles which lightens the burden on us in this regard,” du Plessis said.
The Boksburg SPCA also presented its three long-standing employees who had been with the SPCA for over 10 years with certificates.
Four certificates were awarded to to volunteers, while numerous service providers were also awarded for having spent their time at the society ensuring that animals are fed and have clean blankets.
Dan Spengler, who is most often seen at various intersections in Boksburg raising funds for the Boksburg SPCA, was awarded with honorary life-long membership.
