Belleville Area Humane Society: Play Yard Renovation Grant Report
How did this grant help your organization and the pets in your care?
The grant money allowed us to purchase 1,000 square feet of turf to be installed in our play yard over the existing concrete.
This grant provided an improved play yard surface for the puppies and dogs in our care. The turf surface provides a way for us to decrease the injuries to paw pads that we frequently experience from the rough concrete surface as well as from the surface becoming very hot in the summer. The new turf was also installed over a drainage system that can be easily cleaned and sanitized.
How many pets did this grant help?
Fifty. This turf will be enjoyed by all of the puppies and dogs who come through our shelter!
Please provide a story of one or more specific pets this grant helped.
Penny is a 1-year-old, reddish-brown pittie mix. She is a darling girl — so affectionate and playful. After she spent nearly two months at our local animal control facility, she joined our population. However, her time on our concrete play yards was short-lived. Penny was playing too rough and has been diagnosed by our vet with two luxating patellas. We were so upset to find out this news for such a young girl; however, her sweet personality will win someone over and a potential surgery may be in her future.
Penny is one of the lucky ones who plays on the turf yard and absolutely loves it. While she needs to maneuver the yard slowly and carefully for the time being, we are so grateful for the quality-of-life improvement the turf has made. It provides shock absorption, is elevated on drain tiles and boasts a bright green color in the middle of winter to show off to the public as they drive by the Belleville Area Humane Society. The BAHS has been serving the community of St. Clair County for close to 70 years and has seen many improvements. The AstroTurf play yard has been a saving grace for many of our animals, especially during the cold winter.
The turf play yard is one of Penny’s turn-out areas. It is amazing how much she loves the feel of artificial grass. Just a week ago, we turned her out on the turf and went inside to observe; after she exerted a little energy, she was rolling and scratching her back on the turf; it was a lovely sight. Today, the sun was shining in Belleville and there’s Penny, just lounging around in the sun, scratching her back on the turf.
We realize the Play Yard Grant is for activity and stimulation, which it is of course also used for daily; however, we wanted to share Penny’s story and how much she enjoys being out on the turf. It is the perfect gentle surface for the injured, the older or the young and playful. We know we couldn’t have afforded this improvement without the Petfinder Foundation, and BAHS was due for a facility improvement. Thank you for making a difference in the dogs’ lives at BAHS and improving the quality of Penny’s life specifically.
In 2016 we adopted 694 dogs and are so excited for the dogs of 2017 to enjoy their new turf play yard! Meet Penny: www.petfinder.com/petdetail/37204865
