Hard-Luck Animal Shelter Must Raise $17,000

MENTOR, Ohio -- There are more problems for the animals at the Lake Humane Shelter in Mentor.

First, the building lost heat and now the sewer system is backed up, but that's only the beginning of what the nonprofit organization is going through.

In the midst of these problems, workers discovered some animals that had been dumped on the property in freezing conditions.

The people who run the shelter had no choice but the close the doors again after the heater stopped working a few days ago, forcing them to put animals in offices and other spaces not designed to house them.

After getting a $17,000 bill to fix the furnace, the shelter had more bad luck.

"We're not a government agency, we get no government funding. We don't get any United Way funding. Everything you see, everything we do is funding by private donations," said the shelter's Gail Keegan. "These animals need to be fed, they need to be kept warm, and our very first priority is our animals."

When shelter workers found a dog and two cats dumped on the property in the middle of the heating and sewage crisis, their hearts were broken.

One of the cats and a dog survived, but the other cat didn't, freezing to death in an icy puddle.

But the people who run the shelter refused to give up, and they finally got some good news: a check from the invisible fence company.

Little by little, the shelter has been getting donations, but it's still far from the $17,000 goal.

To help, go to www.lakehumane.org.