Can I bring dogs and puppies to the Center in order to find them a new home?
It’s very important to understand that in order to reach the priority goal – reduction of the number of stray dogs by TNR – the Center can’t fulfil a function of a shelter or a foster home for a long time. The scope of work planned by us can be realized only by concentrating efforts and resources. The Center will not accept animals for accommodation, small puppies that have not reached the age of sterilization, and dogs that require long-term treatment and rehabilitation. Our task is to work to prevent tragedies. Therefore, we look forward to an active cooperation with local communities in the field of animal protection, pet owners search and saving those who need special help.
Is it possible to sterilize a domesticated dog in the Center for an affordable price?
Sterilization of domestic animals for affordable prices is one of our top priorities. An unwanted get is an uninterruptible source of recruiting stray cats and dogs. The price of such operations in veterinary clinics makes them inaccessible to a large number of families. Therefore, we will do our best to offer the owners as low cost as possible or even to sterilize their pets for free.
Who will work at the Center - volunteers or paid employees?
We count on the help of volunteers very much but we understand that only paid employees with a high level of labor discipline and professional responsibility can guarantee a full-time work of such a broad-scale structure. There will be about 30 job vacancies in the Center’s staff list, and at the end of the year we will announce a tender for their replacement.
At what expense will the activities of the center be financed?
On the one hand, it’s obviously that the Center’s activities with the declared scope of work will require serious expenses. On the other hand, these money are quite comparable with the expenses that our community services incur now unsuccessfully trying to solve the problem with obsolete inefficient methods. One of the sources that can cover costs for sterilization and kennels of stray dogs can be funds allocated from the state or municipal budget – in case if we manage to offer better conditions, to win a competition and to become a contractor. However, first of all, we count on support of non-indifferent people, for whom humanity, civilization and efficiency are important when dealing with such a difficult problem. In addition, we count on the support of business communities which are interested in implementing the principle of social responsibility, in enhancing the image their own company and the whole city. The basis for our start was the help of philanthropists Tatyana Shishkina, who transferred her land and her building in gratuitous lease without date, and Sergey Menshikov, who donated 500,000 rubles for the launch of the project.
Does our city need such a center, if there is a municipal shelter on Portovaya street?
Municipal Public Institution “Municipal Control Center for Management of the Number of Stray Animals” has been functioning in our city for many years but, unfortunately, the problem has not decreased during this period. There are many reasons for that: lack of financing, formal bureaucratic approach, sluggishness of the state institution. In addition, unfortunately, we mustn’t forget about the corruption element, the risk of which often accompanies the work with budgetary funds.
The former leaders and the contractors of the “Municipal Control Center for Management of the Number of Stray Animals” currently are defendants in the theft of 7 million rubles, no wonder because the principle of operation “trapping without release” is an ideal scheme for stealing money from the budget, as no one is able to take into account how many dogs and cats actually were killed. All of the above does not mean that we can not believe in a bright future, and that municipal services will never be able to work well.
But until that happens, we believe it is necessary to take part in solving the problem, because we believe that a non-government initiative will be incomparably more effective if we organize them in a proper way.
Can we be sure that the project is really a charitable, not aimed at gaining by the founders?
Since donations should become the main source with the help of which the Center functionates, we believe it is necessary to remove all questions about the transparency and designated use of funds received. To do this, we are officially registered as an independent non-profit organization. This legal identity automatically means that all funds received by the organization must be directed only to the implementation of the statutory activities and can not be distributed among the founders. Besides, according to the Charter, the property of an independent non-profit organization, including assets transmitted by its founders, becomes the property of the organization and can be used only for the purposes for which it was created. Even the liquidation proceedings mandatory infers that the remaining property will not be returned to the founders, but it will be sent to charitable purposes.