HSCO helping Puerto Rico ‘sister shelter’
Two representatives from the Humane Society of Central Oregon left Bend for Puerto Rico on Monday to visit with its “sister shelter,” Centro de Proteccion y Adopcion de San Juan, to provide mentorship, support and hands-on problem-solving and skill-sharing.
Karen Burns, operations director, and Crystal Bloodworth, DVM are taking part in the project.
In an effort to assist overwhelmed animal shelters of Puerto Rico, The Humane Society of the United States and Maddie’s Fund® established the Sister Shelter Project to pair each shelter with a thriving shelter in stateside U.S. Other participating shelters are located in Colorado, Virginia, District of Columbia, California, Massachusetts, Texas, New York and New Jersey.
This is the first time a program like the Sister Shelter Project will be carried out on this scale. It will set a precedent where rural and underserved communities in all states have resources and support from strong, knowledgeable animal shelters and animal welfare professionals.
The project is part of a larger program of The HSUS called Humane Puerto Rico. The HSUS has been working in Puerto Rico to address the crisis of a staggering 300,000 street dogs and embed animal welfare into the fabric of the commonwealth.
