Ontonagon County Animal Protection
OCAP's MISSION STATEMENT:
It shall be the purpose of OCAP to protect and promote the health and welfare of domestic animals, farm and ranch stock, as well as animals in the wild, within the laws of the State of Michigan, and to educate and inform the public about pet and animal care.
OCAP shall maintain an attitude which is strictly non-sectarian, non-partisan, non-sectional, and non-racial and shall be dedicated to bringing together people interested in the ideals and principles of the humane treatment of animals of all kinds.
OCAP is NOT a NO-KILL shelter, however we have been very fortunate so far as to only humanly euthanize those animals with illness and unsociable behavior. All animals are loved and cared for until the right home is found. NO time limit is given.
OCAP members do their best to work with and to sometimes retrain some pets for a smooth transition into a new family. Our adoption fee is based upon the expense of spaying/neutering costs , deworming, frontlineing, and basic vaccinations.
Ontonagon County Animal Protection is an ALL volunteer group of concerned animal lovers who seek the well being of homeless, neglected, abused, and abandoned animals. We also try to help out situations through education, so people can have the best pet experience "humanly" possible.
Because we do NOT have the resources or capacity to absorb peoples' pets that they just don't want anymore for whatever reason, OCAP retains the right to turn away any animal at any given time. However, all situations are considered, and a solution is at least offered to an owner facing a desperate dilemma.
An owner must also realize, that state approved facilities such as ours, are limited as to how many animals it can have at a given site, so it is only fair to ask the owner to do whatever they can on their own to locate a suitable home for their pet before considering a shelter to take on their unwanted pet.
OCAP is more than willing to help advertise a dog or cat upon owner request, as long as it IS current on all vaccines and IS spayed/neutered. We will also help in any rehabilitation the pet needs to keep it in its current home.
OCAP is run strictly by people's personal donations. It is NOT government funded in any way. OCAP organizes a few fund raising activities during the year, but due to hard times in the area by both people's personal finances and business finances, we try not to be too pushy. Our county's private people and local businesses help out when they can, but raising money for a good cause is slow going.
As far as getting established in our newly purchased property, it will take time and money. For a county going through financial hard times, the people are very giving and supportive of our cause and dig deep in their pockets. We are a proud and caring people in this county, and do pretty well for being so strapped.
OCAP knows that the people want to see a building, and we are doing our best to fulfill that request, but remember this, wonderful donators, we have done a lot with the donations so far, and we continue to pick away at a problem many others do not want to deal with in our animal control situation. Please keep faith in our cause, and we will get there.
In the meantime, our temporary facilities are state approved and checked regularly by the state vet. We are well within code and do find good homes for the many unwanted animals in our possession, but we are not as well known as other shelters, so the turn over CAN be quite slow, sometimes taking as long as 4 years to place them, which is not really fair to an animal as far as having a quality life.
Please keep your donations coming. They are helping, and soon we should have a building to show for it!
BUILDING UPDATE:
Project "Ground breaking" is in its SECOND phase after purchasing a 20 acre parcel of land just outside Ontonagon (across from the Moyle Cement Plant).
Our current completed projects have included a well that was developed in early spring of 2005. This was drilled to 180 ft. We had it pumped on an as needed basis to clear up the water, roughly about a gallon per minute. The power was brought in underground the summer of 2005. The mound system for our septic system was installed during the summer of 2006. The last project for 2006 was to have our road widened, lengthened, and strengthened. Our road is now a 20 ft wide by 800 ft long crushed limestone road that was put in to sit over the winter, so when contractors came with their heavy equipment, the road could handle the load and have easy access to the site.
This developement also gave us the leverage to put the property up as collateral for a loan to construct our shelter. Our volunteers continue clearing the site, and we now have the building foundation and floor poured with geo-thermal heat installed in the floor.
We know we have to heat the floor this winter, so we need to keep moving. We have received a donation of logs for the walls, and hope to have a building shell up by fall 2007. That portion of the project was completed just as the snow started falling upon us. Our wall assembly is being done by our volunteers to help keep expenses at a minimum, but it does take longer due to everyones' work schedules. OCAP will gladly accept help from anyone who would like to offer their assistance. Please call (906)884-4227 for a schedule of events or to get the times to work.
ADOPTING A FRIEND:
We adopt to only those who consider a pet as part of their family which means as treating a new member as one of equal love, care, and compassion.
Come visit us! Our hours are by appointment. The shelter is currently run out of a private residence and the care takers are home at different hours of the day. We will do our best to work around your schedule as long as we know when you are coming to visit.
DIRECTIONS:
OCAP is located 5 miles East of town at 37357 Beck Rd. from points of common knowledge (Mobile and Holiday gas stations) turning left onto Parker Ave./ Firesteel Rd.
If coming from Houghton/Baraga way, continue driving on M-38 past Greenland's "Pat's Motorsports" (on the right) and "WasteManagement Landfill" (on left) count off 5 miles and look for Calumet Rd at the top of the hill. Turn right and go to the end of Calumet Rd (3 miles). Turn left at stop sign and drive 1/2 a mile to Beck Rd. on the right. OCAP shelter is the second driveway on the left.
Ontonagon County Animal Protection
PO Box 315
Ontonagon, MI 49953
Phone: (906) 884-4227 (k9 dept. or 884-6128 (feline dept.)
Email:
skslars@aol.com
Click here for a list of pets at this shelter
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