Cedar Valley Humane Society opens expanded shelter

CEDAR RAPIDS — When walking into the Cedar Valley Humane Society’s new canine area, it’s easy to think you’re seeing double — or even quadruple.

First, you’ll see Jack, a 4-month-old terrier mix with one spotted ear pressing his paws on the kennel door. Then there’s Winnie — the only girl in the motley crew of large paws and puppy dog eyes.

Clint and Bobby round out the canine quartet with matching white chest markings and wagging tails. All four are different colors, but it’s immediately clear that they’re a matching set.

  Buy Photo

“These guys just came back today,” shelter program director Hannah McFarlane said, gesturing at the kennels. “They came in as a litter, so we got them all spayed and neutered, and they just got back.”

The pups are some of the first to enjoy the Cedar Valley Humane Society’s new and expanded shelter space that opened earlier this month in rural Linn County. The expansion marks phase two of the society’s $10 million-plus renovation.

The move expands the nonprofit’s ability to shelter dogs and cats that come from Linn and Benton counties. The new space can house 65 dogs and 100 cats, up from the 35 and 46 spots, respectively, in the former setup.

It also includes additional visitation rooms for potential adopters, a new check-in area and expanded animal exercise and play areas.

“We’re just very excited for us and the animals,” said Lonnie Viner, executive director of the Cedar Valley shelter. “We had outgrown the space we were in, and we were having to turn folks away for owner-guardian surrenders. This will allow us the necessary space to keep up.”

  Buy Photo

Nonprofit serves 7,000+ animals each year

The Cedar Valley Humane Society, established in 1901, now provides animal care and adoption services to more than 7,000 animals each year. It’s been in its current facility at 7411 Mount Vernon Road SE since 1968, with minimal updates since then.

Viner said a shelter renovation has been in the works for at least a decade as the nonprofit solicited and collected donations through its “Expanding Our Pawprint” capital campaign.

Phase one kicked off in 2022 with construction of a new community room, which opened the following year. The space is available to rent for small gatherings to bring in extra revenue for the nonprofit. It’s also used for the society’s fundraisers and volunteer training previously done off-site.

  Buy Photo

Construction of the shelter addition — which almost triples the shelter’s footprint, from 7,000 to 18,000 square feet — started last year.

McFarlane said the space was designed with animal welfare in mind, which can be seen in small details like how the canine kennels no longer face each other. Instead, the kennels face the walkway and windows so the dogs can see outside.

“The (new) accommodations for the animals are really the most exciting” part of this, McFarlane said. “The windows, the sunlight and the soundproofing, we really want this to be a less stressful environment for them.”

The space remains in a “soft opening” until phase three of the renovation is complete later this year, although the new shelter is open to the public.

The final phase calls for renovation of the original shelter area into a service center where visitors will go for things like vaccination appointments or visits to the shelter’s animal food bank.

  Buy Photo

In the past two years, the shelter has helped more than 8,000 animals through its low-cost vaccine clinics and free pet food bank.

The final phase also will allow for the renovation of general staffing areas and the creation of more dedicated isolation spaces for animals that come into the shelter with infectious diseases. The shelter does not euthanize animals because they’ve “been at the shelter for too long” or similar reasons.

Once phase three of the expansion project is complete, a grand opening celebration will be held, VIner said.

Comments: grace.nieland@thegazette.com