PENNELLVILLE, N.Y. (WSYR) — An animal shelter that has been caring for Syracuse’s stray population for years has decided to terminate its lease with the city government. Fellow shelters in the Central New York region empathize with the Syracuse shelter’s struggle — and call on the city to find a solution quickly.
Maria Limberg, the owner of B&R Bunkhouse, cut ties with the city last month, leaving City Hall in a scramble. Casey Newton-McLaren, the owner of the Forever Friends rescue shelter in Oswego County and who is close with Limberg, says that the influx of stray animals coming to shelters has exhausted shelter workers into a yearslong fatigue.
“I’ve been doing this for 26 years, and I’ve never seen the amount of animals coming into rescue as I did the last two years,” Newton-McLaren said.
Syracuse has approximately a month to find a solution to the city’s ongoing stray problem. Newton-McLaren said the surrounding shelters that are easing the city’s burden are in need of some much-needed relief. She calls on the city to take animal welfare as a higher priority, such as by investing in a pet shelter within city limits…