Pender County Humane Society out of a home

They are already in the market to find a good home, but now the animals at the Pender County Humane Society will soon lose their temporary home.

By the end of the year, the Pender County Humane Society is being forced to vacate its shelter.

Placing animals in good homes is the mission behind the humane society. Humane Society President, Gloria Johnson, said that mission has been disrupted ever since she found an eviction notice on the shelter’s doors.

The problem is the humane society sits on property owned by the Burnett Veterinary Hospital.
Hospital owner, Cynthia Burnett, said she has been asking for years for the humane society to relocate.

Johnson said she would have liked for a little more time before moving. “We had to agreed with that, but we would have liked to have Dr. Burnett let us stay until the March date for the finishing of the building. Now we don’t have a choice we have to go.”

Burnett said, “We all agreed that their facility would be built by the end of the year and they agreed to be out. They agreed that by the end of the year that would be more than enough time. It wasn’t an eviction, it was a court order.”

The humane society has basically been Burnett’s tenant since 1999. Burnett said she has not only donated her land but has also been paying for certain utilities for the facility. “I want to take care of the animals, but there comes a time where you have to cut your losses and especially in the economy that we are in.”

Johnson said they have paid for everything they have been asked for and the only thing they want is more time for construction on their new facility to be complete.

The humane society has already raised $100,000 to construct the new facility, but they still have an additional $50,000 to raise before they can move the animals in.

The Pender County Humane Society hopes to have the new facility complete by March. They blame weather delays for pushing back the opening date. The animals will be housed in an undisclosed site until the new facility is complete.