King was attacked by a pack of dogs and his face had to be sutured. Little Bit came in with a matted coat and needed major dental work. Badger and Meerkat were orphaned on day one of their lives and had to be bottle fed until they were ready to be adopted.
The Squamish Needy Animal Foundation (SNAF) rescued and cared for these animals. But now, the community needs to marshal their resources to care and rescue SNAF itself, say co-ordinators.
SNAF's funding has dried up because of the recession and the community needs to open up the coffers again, said one of the board of directors, Kandice Keith.
"Our funds are so low that we might not be able to help animals that we would like to," Keith said.
"We get no government funding whatsoever and this year, we have raised one third of what we used to raise every year. If we have two major incidents this year, we couldn't help more."
SNAF is a not-for-profit organization made up of local veterinarians who provide medical care for those animals whose owners can' afford it.
The organization offers only one-time help for low-income people who can't afford the high cost of veterinary treatment. With the help of local veterinarians, it has been successful in offsetting some of the costs, but with little funding, it might not be able to provide help with other crucial things like X-rays, surgeries and after care.
Some of the animals that are brought to the SNAF need immediate and sometimes expensive care. Recently, a dog was brought with a stick jammed in his mouth. The animal was in excruciating pain. He needed major dental work and after-care and that costs money.
There are several ways that people from the community can pitch in and help.
People can volunteer at some of the events that SNAF organizes, or make a donation or they can bring in their empty bottles at Return-it Depot on Queensway Road, said board of directors member Felicity Lowinger.
Lowinger said SNAF plans to organize several fundraising events this year to boost funding, like pet photos with Santa, Toonie dog walks, and arts show.
With increased funding, SNAF would also like to work with local veterinarians to euthanize pets, if they are untreatable, said Lowinger.
"There might be people who shoot their pets or the pet might just die a slow painful death. We would like to help there too."
