Calico cat napping at the Animal Welfare League (Photos by Marc Eshleman)

WARSAW — Almost a year ago, the Animal Welfare League of Kosciusko County announced a building campaign in a effort to attract donations for the purchase of property and the construction of a new building to contain the rapidly expanding enterprise. The offices and kennels of the League had grown full of papers and pets, creating a clean but crowded environment for human and animals alike. Today, the situation is much the same.

Due to unexpected costs, the project has lingered undone and is in need of further donation. “We had about $700,000 dollars raised, but we had to use quite a bit of that to buy the new property,” the Executive Director of the League, Darla McCammon, said when asked about the history of the building campaign.

“The probable cost for the new building is $1 million… We’re about half way.”

The new building will stand on a 5 acre plot and offer 6,500 square feet of space, as opposed to the 2,500 square feet that the current shelter uses to house people and pets both.

The new building will also have dozens of new features that the current shelter lacks; namely an indoor walking track for dogs, more medical space, and an education wing for school field trips and pet related presentations.

More than just space, the pets will also get a little more peace and quiet. “It will be a more calm atmosphere for them because we’re going to be putting in more things that buffer sound. The cats in particular are very sensitive to the dog noises here, and we do everything we can to keep them to a minimum, but the new building will help us dampen the noise,” McCammon stated.

When questioned about when renovation will start on the new building McCammon was adamant that the process would not start until they had all the money they needed. “I’ve seen other not-for-profits get started building before they had the money and they never seem to get that last piece done… So we’re waiting to get all our ducks in a row first,” she said.

“It is my goal to make this new building a community center…. We’re trying to be as fiscally frugal as we can and as responsible as we can, yet create something that is worthy of this community.”

The AWL is seeking community support for both their new building and day to day costs. Click here to donate. To volunteer call (574) 267-3008 and for more general information concerning the League, go here.