In continued efforts to provide the highest quality animal care and safety efforts, Victoria County Animal Services (VCAS) received and applied for multiple grants totaling over $25,000. The grants and application were approved by the Victoria County commissioners’ court at its July 14 meeting.

 

The Department of State Health Services Grant Agreement for the Zoonosis Control Animal Friendly Spay and Neuter Grant Program is a grant VCAS had received in the past, but had been dropped for some time. 

 

Mark Sloat, VCAS director, has spent considerable time working to make the grant more accessible and easier for communities to implement. The grant will give VCAS $9,707 to be put toward animal spay and neuter costs. The grant is completely state funded and does not require a match from the county.

 

The Victoria County commissioners’ court also approved a VCAS application for the ASPCA The Rescue Effect Campaign Grant. This grant would provide animal services with $20,000 to be used for a number of crucial services.

 

The services that could be funded using the grant include spay and neuter costs, surgeries, microchiping, vaccinations, testing, underwrite waived adoption fees, marketing and advertising costs, adoption promotions and volunteer and foster home recruitment. 

 

The grant would give VCAS the ability to enhance all of the listed services and improve its operations. Sloat took the initiative to find the ASPCA The Rescue Effect Campaign Grant opportunity, and to push for animal services to submit an application.

 

In addition to the Department of State Health Services Grant Agreement for the Zoonosis Control Animal Friendly Spay and Neuter Grant Program and the ASPCA The Rescue Effect Campaign Grant application, VCAS had additional funds approved by the commissioners’ court from the relocation project.

 

The VCAS Relocation Project will combat overcrowding and limit kennel space with the relocation of the department headquarters to a building on Profit Street that was donated to the county in 2024. The 12,500-square-foot warehouse building will be fully renovated to accommodate the growing needs of VCAS and serve as the department’s permanent facility.

 

VCAS has received a number of previous grants to benefit the new facility through an expanded number of high-quality kennels, allowing the department to take in more animals and reduce the number of animals that are euthanized due to a lack of space.

 

Approximately six items were modified during the construction of the relocation project The modifications amounted to $10,273.77 in additional project funds. The commissioners’ court approved the change order. VCAS will be moving into the new facility sometime between late September and October of this year.

Michael Milliorn is a news reporter for the Victoria Advocate. You can reach him at michael.milliorn@vicad.com.