MAMAS animal shelter ceasing operations in January to become more of a foundation to support spay/neuter

A small group of local people concerned about animal welfare in the county formed the Mary Ann Morris Animal Society, or MAMAS, in 2001. The shelter is located at 254 Slow Pitch Road in Bamberg.

MAMAS Executive Director Ruthie Rish said the nonprofit organization has an annual budget of approximately $350,000 and found it increasingly hard to keep up with expenses, including veterinary care and building maintenance. Also, pet adoptions have been down, particularly following the COVID-19 pandemic, and there are less people willing to foster dogs.

“This decision did not come lightly. A lot of factors went into the decision,” Rish said.

“There’s been a lot of pressure put on shelters in recent years to be no kill. Everybody loves the idea of being no kill, but in this society, it’s not realistic to be no kills because what happens, if shelters are going to do that, then they have residents constantly calling them saying, ‘I have this dog that has wandered into my yard. Can you come and pick it up?’ They’re told, ‘We’re full,’” she said.

Rish continued, “So nobody is addressing these stray dogs that are out there roaming around continuing the breeding cycle, making more puppies, getting sick, getting injured, or being nuisances to residents.”

“It’s a wonderful thing to strive for, but right now you can’t. So what’s happening is adoptions have dramatically dropped, funding has dropped…. The fosters are tired, and they’re not as inclined to help us and foster dogs. Everybody is just tired,” she said.

She said MAMAS will now focus on becoming more of a foundation to support the spaying and neutering of dogs and cats, which she said is the “real problem” contributing to the high population of stray animals.

“That’s where it has to start. Our focus is now shifting to stopping the problem as much as we possibly can, preventing those new litters from ever hitting the ground and growing into more dogs or cats that nobody wants,” Rish said.

She said MAMAS had become more of a rescue rather than a shelter following the county’s hiring of an animal control officer in June of 2023, but a renewed focus on prevention will offset the need for that, too.

“We will remain Mary Ann Morris Animal Society, but instead of a rescue, now it will be a foundation. We’ll keep our same 501-C3 and all of that,” Rish said.

She continued, “We will now turn our attention to raising money to help the community be able to get their dogs spayed and neutered. Veterinary costs have absolutely skyrocketed, and it’s hard to get appointments as well. We’re in a nationwide vet shortage. So if you can get an appointment, then the cost is prohibitive to a lot of people.”

A new website will be created with a focus on the organization’s new mission.

Rish said MAMAS had its first six cats under the new program, Community Cats, go in to be spayed and neutered on Dec. 7.

“There will be six cats that will not be contributing to cat overpopulation anymore,” she said.

“Our goal is to find spots for all the dogs that are now in our care. We’re down very low right now. So that’s first and foremost. We have to fulfill our commitment to the dogs that we have taken in,” the executive director said.

The removal of records and other items is among the other work that is being done at the shelter.

“We’re just not going to walk out and leave everything the way it is. We’re not going to leave assuming the county takes over this facility. We think they will, we hope they will. The dogs that they’re bringing in need a better facility than that city pound (on Spring Branch Road in Bamberg),” Rish said.

Bamberg County Administrator Joey Preston said the county had increased its funding to the shelter, but it was not without eventual hardship.

“The county increased their funding from $32,000 to $40,000 the year they asked for it in 2023. Since 2022, the county has provided an additional $19,000 in cash. Also, since June 2023, the county has provided an additional $9,000 in maintenance and operations at the shelter and constructed two new kennels at their request at a cost of $2,250,” Preston said.

“This comes to a total of $30,250 since their initial request in 2023. Also, Bamberg County allowed MAMAS to operate on County property at no cost rent free,” he said.

The administrator said the county had increased its funding for the shelter from $29,000 in Fiscal Year 2022 to $40,000 in Fiscal Year 2025. He said the additional funding was being provided even as the number of dogs they took in from the county to be adopted or placed declined.

“At the request of the sheriff, the county hired an animal control officer and started enforcing the current county ordinance and state laws on May 15, 2023. From June 1, 2023, to December 31, 2023, MAMAS accepted 151 stray dogs from the county to be adopted or placed,” Preston said.

The administrator said MAMAS, however, accepted only 18 stray dogs from the county to be adopted or placed from August 2024 to the middle of November while receiving the additional funding.

“This created a hardship on the county. So in June of 2024, the county partnered with the City of Bamberg and placed a county-owned kennel system at the city kennels because MAMAS would only accept stray dogs that they could easily adopt. Again, since August of 2024, MAMAS has received 18 strays from the county that were easily adopted,” Preston said.

“Animal Control takes a few strays to ‘For the Love of a Paw’ (in Elloree) and ‘Palmetto Paws (Animal Rescue in Charleston).’ Currently, all strays are taken to the city/county kennels. None are being taken to the MAMAS shelter,” the administrator said.

Rish said, “Our emphasis and our focus will be on spay and neuter and primarily for Bamberg County, but we hope to be able to help beyond Bamberg County.”

“We hope to be able to help with more things like heartworm treatments for dogs. If there’s a dog that’s been injured that needs a surgery, we’d like to be able to expand it to help out with those kinds of situation,” she said.

Rish said she’d also hope for continued funding from the county to help MAMAS with its new mission.

“I’m hoping that Bamberg County will continue to fund us in some way to help us some with those things. If they don’t, then the only way that we can make this work is through donations from our supporters who believe in our mission and fundraisers,” Rish said.

For more information on MAMAS, or how you can help, email mamas.rescues@gmail.com. Donations can be made via PayPal at paypal@mamasanimalshelter.com or by check to: MAMAS, 254 Slow Pitch Road, Bamberg SC 29003.