UPDATE: WE DID IT!!!!

We were able to get a used 40’ high cube plus prep work and storage shelves with the funds donated. THANK YOU TO ALL WHO HELPED!!

Original Post:

Our biggest issue right now is storage:

o Everything is currently housed in our founder’s garage, house and a small utility trailer;

o This our fourth storage area to date;

o First: was “sealed” outdoor storage in Uxbridge - but we were quickly overrun by mice;

o Then we moved to a garage in Uxbridge – but those volunteers moved (after they developed an ant infestation);

o Then we moved it out to a shed on our founder’s property. The mice got in, we ran out of space and the wet food was freezing;

o In 2020, we moved everything into our founder’s climate controlled double car garage. She then personally bought a 6’ x 12’ utility trailer to use as winter storage for dry food and to pick up & drop off donations during the other 3 seasons.

This is just not working for us anymore:

We’re completely out of space.

• In 2020, we were serving less than 400 animals per month; now we are helping double that. We need a lot more food to serve these animals.

• Also, a lot more of our food is going out through the food banks – so we have to store it longer. Rescues could pick up more food quicker – the food banks need much smaller / more frequent deliveries.

• Our low level of donations also means that our annual Christmas Auction needs to fund a year of purchasing. So we now have a significant amount of space taken up by fundraising items.

• Also, need to store giveaways items (like coats, collars and the supplies for our annual Christmas bags).

We are also losing the battle with the critters. Despite our best efforts to seal everything and put as much into bins as possible – we are losing our food to mice. They are chewing through our garage doors, our heaters, our exhaust vents, anything to get at the food.

This campaign is raise funds to  solve our storage issue.

We believe the best solution is to purchase a large sealed, steel shipping container and build a ramp to move pallets of dry food into it (a favourite target of the mice and the item that takes up the most room).

Any donations made to this campaign would be combined with monies pledged by the amazing 100 Women That Care Uxbridge group to cover:

• cost to prep the spot on our property to support a shipping container;
• A 40’ shipping container that is completely sealed to keep out mice and other pests; and
• Building of a ramp so that pallets can be wheeled directly into the shipping container.

This project is expected to cost between $7,000 and $9,000 depending on: whether we can negotiate a special deal on a good condition container and depending on the extent of the prep required.

Our goal today remains the same as the day we started the pet food bank – to keep pets in their homes with their families and to help rescues to save animals.

To do this, we need help.

Thank you!! 💙🐾