On Monday 26 April, our RSPCA NSW Port Macquarie Shelter closed to the publicindefinitely. While there will no longer be a physical shelter location atPort Macquarie, we have big plans to ensure we continue to grow and supportcompanion animals and people within the community through our proactive work.

You will hear more about our pop-up adoptions, education programs, foster carenetwork support, and community outreach days in the upcoming months.

RSPCA NSW did not renew our animal management contract with the local councilat the end of last year. The Port Macquarie-Hastings Council operates the PortMacquarie Animal Shelter. This facility is well-resourced to support companionanimals in the Port Macquarie region that are stray, which means that we areable to step up and help where it is now needed most in the region. We areplacing ourselves in a position where we can support, empower and educate thecommunity within its new animal welfare infrastructure. Improving animalwelfare is a joint responsibility between the community and council and wehope our close working relationships with both will continue through ourproactive initiatives.

We are incredibly fortunate to have an exceptional Port Macquarie Branch whowill continue to help people help animals. They have done so much to championour core values for almost 20 years, and we cannot emphasise enough howgrateful we are to have such a team. It is through passion and dedication thatthey have established a wonderful, strong presence in the community to supportour animal welfare work. This presence, along with our thriving foster carenetwork, will be the backbone of our efforts to promote responsible petownership in the region. Our Port Macquarie Op Shop will remain open and theirhours unaffected. Most importantly, funds raised from the proceeds of theproperty sale will stay within the community.

This is a big move for us as an organisation, and the decision was not madelightly, but we believe it is a step in the right direction. We want to thankeach and every person who has supported the shelter, including the PortMacquarie Branch, our foster network, our dedicated staff and volunteers andyou, our supporters, whose donations have helped to keep the shelter doorsopen over the years.

We strive to keep you informed about what’s happening in our organisation.Please visit our website for more information and updates and contact us ifyou have any questions or concerns.

We have plans to ensure that we can reach more and more communities that donot have a physical shelter location and we ask for your patience andunderstanding as we move into what we hope is an extraordinary year.

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