SALT LAKE CITY — March has brought a month of change for many Americans, especially these past two weeks.
Last week, Utah Gov. Gary Herbert announced a soft closure for schools to help stop the spread of COVID-19.
This week, restaurants and bars closed dining rooms and gatherings of more than 10 people were asked to come to an end.
Many businesses are struggling. The Utah Humane Society is one of them.
“Right now, we feel helpless. We can’t help a lot of the animals in the community that we normally would be helping,” said Deann Shepherd, Utah Humane Society Dir. of Communications and Marketing.
The normally loud and busy shelter was quiet Friday afternoon. They’ve had to cut back on clinic hours, cut down on the number of staff members and work to make a new plan. They are struggling, Shepherd said.
“That means a lot of donations and revenue that we daily see come in has been reduced and in that case we had to consider what we need to do to keep the lights on,” she said.
Only serious adopters are allowed inside the shelter right now, by appointment only.
What has been amazing during this tough time, has been the outpouring of support.
“We’ve opened up over one hundred boxes of donations today,” Shepherd said.
The non-profit needs monetary donations to keep their doors open, she said. No matter what happens the staff and volunteers are staying strong.
“We are here to do the job for the animals, that’s what keeps us going. That’s the point of it all,” Shepard said.
For more information on how to donate and the latest updates on their COVID-19 plan, click here.
