Bitter Root Animal Shelter hosts slumber ‘pawty’

by John Dowd

Last weekend the Bitter Root Humane Association participated for the first time in a national “slumber party” event. The Bitterroot shelter branded their event the “Slumber Pawty,” which opened the shelter to community members who participated to stay the night with the animals, among other fun activities. Between 12 noon Saturday and 12 noon Sunday, participants stayed overnight with the shelter animals, wore pajamas, played games and more in support of the shelter. 

Shelters all over the U.S. and even out of the country held the same event during the same 24-hour period. The event is a fundraiser for each shelter, and participants each work to raise funds to donate to their respective shelters. Individual community businesses also donated to the fundraiser, amounting to over $10,000 as of Saturday. 

There were over 35 participants of the slumber party, and a barbecue was held at noon on Saturday, welcoming all of the community to visit the shelter. 

Many of the participants that spent the night were kids. During the slumber party, participants took part in a “tortilla slap game,” a pie eating contest, twister, popcorn and movies, a tie dye shirt event and much more. 

Prior to the event, Charlotte Webb, volunteer coordinator at the shelter, said, “It’s going to be hectic, but it’s going to be fun!” Webb has been with the shelter since February, and was born and raised in the valley. She spoke on how she grew up participating with the shelter. For her, it’s “cool to be able to work here and give back!” She explained that the event is meant to socialize the animals with people, and give them the attention many of them desperately need. Participants and shelter workers also hope the event grows awareness of what they do. 

According to Gina Knepp, a board member and the one who brought the idea to the Bitterroot shelter, “I want the people of the Bitterroot to look at this as their shelter.” 

When speaking about the crazy games and fun during the slumber party, she said, “It’s just shenanigans!” But, said Knepp, these types of events are more than having fun and raising money. They’re important because, as Knepp likes to say, “There are two ends of the leash.”

She has been with the shelter for over a year. According to Knepp, the Bitter Root Humane Shelter is the only shelter in the valley, and they take pets of all kinds, and for all kinds of reasons. These can include deaths, arrests, standard pet drop offs and more. That first group of reasons stems from the shelter’s work with the county, which Knepp said makes them no money. 

In fact, Knepp said they receive no tax money from the state or the county at all. They are entirely funded by grants, monetary gifts and fundraising events, like the slumber party. This can be a huge struggle as she also explained that it costs them nearly $1,900 to operate per day, and the shelter is open seven days a week all year.

Even with this limited funding, they are the ones that receive pets from the county and municipalities following legal possession of animals. The shelter is hoping to work out some form of compensation for the work they do for the local government, which significantly adds to their cost of operation. However, according to Knepp, where else would those animals go?

The shelter has around 120 animals on the property at any one time. These include mostly dogs and cats, but can occasionally include farm animals and smaller pets. They employ 13 people, and partner with several vets in the valley for volunteer services. They also work with other breed-specific rescues to transfer animals where they are most likely to get adopted. 

Some of their pets have gone as far as Chicago, New York and Seattle. The shelter works to advertise their pets as far as they can to increase the chances of them finding worthwhile homes. 

This pet “shell game,” as Knepp described, is meant to further lower the need in the country for euthanization. Pets are moved all over the country through a network of shelters. According to Knepp, who has a strong foundation in this type of work, the United States is only 400,000 animals short of being considered a “no-kill nation.” Knepp works with Michelson Philanthropies, and specializes in educating shelters on “increasing last pet reunification.” Knepp got her start with an animal rescue in California, and now she travels all over teaching at animal welfare conferences.

According to Knepp, 30% of lost pets never find their way home, even though a large percentage of pets that end up in a shelter are just lost. 

The shelter has been in the valley since 1972, and has entirely operated on fundraising and donations. It truly is a “labor of love,” said Knepp. “You never catch up and you’re never done,” she added.

As for Tucker Chase, the shelter coordinator for the last two years, he hopes the event will bring more people out to visit and see what all they do. He used to work as an animal control officer, but switched over to the shelter side of the equation when he joined the Bitter Root Humane Association. “I really enjoy what I do,” said Chase. For him, it makes it all worth it finding animals homes, especially when some of those animals have been with the shelter for a long time. “Cool stories like that really make a difference,” said Chase. 

The shelter’s goal was to raise $20,000 by noon on Sunday, and by noon Saturday they already had $12,000 raised. “The generosity has just been overwhelming,” said Knepp. If they reached that goal, it would be the biggest fundraiser the shelter has ever participated in. This may still be the case, as by Sunday evening, they had raised nearly $17,000.

For Bitterrooters interested in participating with the shelter, helping out or adopting, the shelter recommends coming in to visit them. They are located at 262 Fairgrounds Road, in Hamilton. Interested parties can also visit the shelter website at bitterroothumane.org.