The journey of a heart begins with one act of kindness. Our story is one of such a journey, when ordinary people like you and me saw the plight of a homeless mother dog and her babies, took pity and banded together to find her shelter. Little did they know that one act of kindness would be the first step on a long journey that has become the Heart of the Catskills today. In 1968, hiding under the boards of an old barn in the Sherwoods area of the rural, agricultural town of Delhi, New York, a little frightened terrier tried her best to protect and care for her new puppies. With no food and little shelter, she was in a helpless position. Thankfully, neighbors Ken and Charlotte Knapp saw her plight and acted. Approaching The Delaware Valley Humane Society for refuge for the family, they were told there simply was no room. When asked what they could do, the shelter suggested they start a shelter themselves. Armed with that advice and one hundred dollars “seed money” donated by that shelter, a group of townspeople actively took the first step toward this goal. The next step in our Heart’s journey came when Phil Newman, a farmer on Peakes Brook Road, fixed up his sap house, found some old kennel runs and temporarily took care of the family. Thus began the first animal shelter in Delhi. They not only housed this family of dogs, but some others as well.
David Smith volunteered to find a permanent space for a shelter. The Delaware County Historical Association stepped up and, for one dollar, sold the group an acre of land on which to build. With the hard work of friends Leona MacDowell, Evelyn Dickson, Alice Thompson and Mary Aird, the shelter became officially incorporated under the name of The Humane Society of Central Delaware County, Inc. The small but active group raised funds by having bake sales, auctions, and a membership drive, and began public meetings to raise awareness. They also discussed the plight of stray cats, of which there were many in a farming community like theirs. Vaccinating and neutering cats was seldom heard of at that time. Some of the founding members housed a few cats until they could be adopted, so the shelter also had a strong commitment to felines from the start.
With the support of local attorney John Crocker, Delhi Animal Hospital veterinarians Dr. Walter Collins and Dr. Ingraham, Dr. Westbrook and the SUNY Delhi College veterinarian program, the “work of heart” began in earnest. Many misconceptions had to be fought: this was a “dog pound”; cats don’t need to be neutered or vaccinated; the college used the dogs for “experiments”; and more. The facts were that without the assistance of Delhi College students, the shelter would not have had enough volunteers or staff to survive; Delhi Animal Hospital and SUNY Delhi were instrumental in the growth of the Humane Society, willingly donating their time, valuable advice and medical care advocating the needs of cats and dogs.
There were challenges along the way, including a fire in the attic, outbreaks of diseases, lack of proper facilities as the numbers of homeless pets increased, and shortage of staff. But having heart means fighting the battle and meeting the challenges “heart on.” Surrounding towns such as Stamford donated money to rebuild the roof; college students volunteered to groom more than eight flea-infested dogs brought in at once; and a number of managers served through the years--one even staying ten years in a high stress job just to make sure the shelter survived.
Serving more than 70% of Delaware County and some surrounding counties, we sometimes crawled and sometimes leaped on our journey, but the staff and volunteers never turned back. As this journey of the Heart continued, the HSCDC became nationally recognized, twice mentioned in ASPCA’s Animal Watch publication. What the shelter lacked in facilities and finances, we more than made up for in creativity and compassion for the pets entrusted to us. And the quality of care our pets receive was formally recognized by Ms. Julie Morris, Vice President of ASPCA’s National Shelter Outreach Division in 1998. After visiting shelters coast to coast, Ms. Morris stated, “After I left your facility, I kept thinking that for some reason you had the best animals in the state for adoption. I’m more or less immune to ‘falling’ for animals in shelters – that is, I usually can restrain myself from wanting to ‘take them home’ and adopt them. However, that wasn’t the case at your shelter. I couldn’t figure out exactly why that was true. Then, I realized the ‘secret’ was your relationship with the animals – your obvious and good citizenship program. The animals show it – they don’t have that desperate ‘get me out of jail’ posturing, but are able to project their true personalities and really look like they’d be great fun to have at home.” Through our Project Dog Program, cat socialization, Play Groups and nature trail walking, we make sure this remains the case today.
As other paths opened on our journey, we evolved. The Friends of the Shelter Volunteers were organized; Humane Education programs are offered to local schools; a beautiful cattery and reception/grooming/adoption area were donated; additions and upgrading to the original building continue; Senior Pals and a formal Foster Program began…until, in 2005, the journey of heart was formally recognized when we adopted the name Heart of the Catskills Humane Society.
We continue to care for those who cannot speak or care for themselves. We educate our community, defend the meekest, teach humane treatment for all living creatures, foster a compassion for the weakest, heal the broken trust of the abused, and link the lonely with a four-legged companion. Whether it’s an unwanted German Shepherd or a tabby whose guardian has passed away—no matter what the reason, we take them. And we will until we educate every person in our community that spaying and neutering animals is the only humane thing to do, that owning a pet is a commitment for the lifetime of the pet, that abuse or neglect is unconscionable and illegal. And we will try to match every adoptable pet with a loving home. Every day. As we continue our journey of a Heart.
All programs run by the Humane Society are supported by people like you.
