By Dave Baumeister, County correspondent
A century ago this year, what is now the Sioux Falls Area Humane Society became incorporated to deal with stray and unwanted animals in Sioux Falls. It originally opened nine years prior as the Animal Shelter which worked in conjunction with the Children’s Home Society.
SFAHS Executive Director Kori Baade said the connection was that of “orphans,” as well as providing playmates for children in, hopefully, temporary surroundings. But it wasn’t long before the Animal Shelter became its own entity in 1919.
Over the past 100 years, that Animal Shelter has grown to the point where it offers services to people all over Minnehaha County and the region. The SFAHS currently has contracts with 29 communities in South Dakota.
According to Baade, the humane society provides services such as, assisting with animal control and dealing with abuse and neglect reports and prosecutions. But most of the work they do comes with finding new homes for the “orphans” of the animal kingdom…whether they be dogs, cats, parakeets, ferrets, emus, hogs or whatever wanders into their area.
Currently, apart from their adoption services, the former Animal Shelter, now the Humane Society for the entire area, provides Sioux Falls and other communities with, spaying and neutering, microchipping, vaccinations, education classes, and even a kids’ club. While the SFAHS is an “open shelter” that takes in all animals, they mainly work with dogs, cats and small animals (birds, rabbits, mice, etc.)
Baade told county commissioners in April that the organization has just implemented a program to see that all dogs and cats are spayed or neutered before they “go out the door.”
At that time, she said that this new program “will help with unwanted litters. It will help with animals running (loose) in the counties and cities.”
Along with helping to take care of the growing animal population, the SFAHS also has a program to help animals that already have home – microchipping.
