The year-old labs sweet

disposition seemed to shine

through his happy face. By all
accounts, the black lab, Teddy,
would have been the perfect,
adoptable house-hold dog,
were it not for the red puppy
collar embedded an inch deep
into his neck and the old scars
peppering his face.
This is how Marilyn Paarmann

STEVE SMEDE PHOTOS

The Snake River Animal Shelter aims

to help more dogs and cats find their
furever homes
BY NIKKI SIEGEL

30 IDAHO FALLS MAGAZINE MAY/JUNE 2015

first saw Teddy three years ago, when

her daughter, Heather, brought him to
Paarmanns house straight from the Idaho
Falls Animal Shelter.
He was in a really bad situation, the
young black lab, and his collar had been
on so long that it was stuck to his skin,
Paarmann said.
They immediately took Teddy to the
emergency vet, fearing that an infection
may have set in and it would be too late.
The surgery, originally quoted at $400,
cost almost $800. Paarmann, being unable
to supply the funds herself, contacted the
Humane Society of the Upper Valley, who
was able to use a Cinderella fund to foot
the bill.
With Teddy well on his way to recovery,
Heather posted his information online,
trying to find him a new home. Within a
month, a friends relative, who had recently
been diagnosed as cancer-free after a yearlong struggle, adopted Teddy.

Facility Facts

SRAS Fundraisers

Marilyn Paarmann

As they are a non-profit, the Snake

River Animal Shelter holds several fundraising events to support the building
and, soon, upkeep of the shelter. These
events include their annual Fur Ball
Disco Event at the Shilo Inn, an annual
Rummage and Bake Sale and the annual Mutt Strut at Snake River Landing.
Every little bit helps,
Paarmann said.

The SRAS is 7,300 square feet

and has the capacity to hold up to
72 dogs and puppies and 50 cats
and kittens.
Different rooms inside of the
shelter include the Cat Flat, which
houses the Cat Condos; the puppy
palace, which houses up to 24
small dogs or puppies; and the
two Mutt Huts, which each contain
24 kennels for the bigger dogs.
Greg Shook, the contractor
for the SRAS, said the shelter
is meant to strongly resemble
a barn, with large steel beams
and a special metal siding that
is designed to rust. He said that
the site itself was a little tough to
work with, but there have been no
problems as far as construction
has been concerned.
Later on, Smith said they hope
to build an outdoor play area for
cats called the Cat Corral, which
will look like a small silo.
On the same 16-acre property
also rests their dog park, which
has been open since 2011 and is
the first off-leash park in Idaho
Falls.
Smith said they hope that in
time they will be able to beautify
and develop the area so it is a
place people want to spend time.
She said they hope to tie into the
existing greenbelt at some point,
and add benches and walkways
for people to enjoy.
IDAHOFALLSMAGAZINE.COM 31

Thank you

Gerti, one of Paarmanns English

Bulldogs, is the first dog to
have set paw in the Snake River
Animal Shelter.

She said, I need that dog. Im getting

a second chance, and I am going to give
that dog a second chance, Paarmann said,
adding that the woman took Teddy back to
Hillsboro, Oregon, to give him the best life
he could have.
Teddys case is more extreme than most,
but he was given a second chance in life
which is more than some animals housed in
city shelters can claim.
Every year, hundreds of domestic animals
are euthanized in the Snake River Valley,
according to animal shelter statistics. The
majority are due to health or temperament
issues; however, many of these dogs and
cats run out of time before they are ever
offered their second chance simply because
of the lack of shelter space.
The Snake River Animal Shelter intends
to help those numbers drop.
Our mission is to promote those adoptable animals and help them find a home
when they just need a little bit more time in
the shelter to be able to do that, said Cami
Smith, the executive director of the SRAS.
The SRAS is a 501c3 nonprofit charity
that started with a small group of people
seven years ago and has transformed from
one womans dream into a 7300 square foot
building with room for up to 72 dogs and
puppies and 50 cats and kittens.
We want people to be able to come look
at animals in our shelter and feel good
32 IDAHO FALLS MAGAZINE MAY/JUNE 2015

about it, not like if they dont take that animal home it will be put down, Smith said.
She said this shelter will not only give the
animals more time, but also offers educational services to potential adopters. These
classes, which will be held in a designated
room in the shelter, will cover everything
from spay and neuter to what it means to
buy and own an animal.
[They need to understand] that animal
is forever, said Paarmann, who has been on
the SRAS board for seven years and has fostered and adopted several English Bulldogs.
Its not just a two-year animal, not a cute
Christmas-time animal that dog or cat can
typically live from zero to 15 years.
To ensure each dog or cat matches well
with the adopting family and any pets that
family might already own, the shelter will
offer get-acquainted rooms in which families
and shelter animals can test out the waters.
As far as understanding the importance
of spay and neuter, Smith said spay and
neuter services help reduce the amount of
people dropping boxes of kittens and puppies off on the animal shelters door step.
Weve got to spay and neuter so we dont
have so many unwanted domestic animals,
Smith said, adding that the SRAS will try
to work with area vets to facilitate those
services.
Although the shelter will house several
animals, they will also work with volunteers

Deep gratitude goes to the many

donors, who made this project
possible and to the SRAS Board
Members who worked so hard.
Special thanks to Bill Maeck and
the Bill and Shirley Maeck Family
Foundation who put the funding over
the top so construction could start
and to Sylvia Medina, President of the
SRAS, who led up the construction of
the facility, supported operations and
contributed to the building facility.
Cami Smith,
SRAS Executive Director

to foster animals. Smith said animals often

do better in foster care than in a shelter
environment.
Foster homes still offer a wonderful
opportunity to get those animals where
they are relaxed, Paarmann said. They
become more socialized; they become more
charismatic because they are not terrorized;
theyre not afraid.
Sylvia Medina, the woman who came
up with the idea for the shelter originally
and has fostered 300 animals personally,
said the people who foster animals have
the kindest hearts because they open their
homes up to animals without knowing what
they are going to get, but they take the
chance anyway to show them the love the
animals might not have had before.
We are able to maintain animals for a
longer period of time, foster them out and
make it a place where it feels good to walk
in, Medina said of the shelter.
As a non-profit, the SRAS is completely
run off of donations and contributions.
We just do it because it matters, and its
also something we can do on a local level,
Paarmann said. Other times you give your
money away to big charities and you cant
see where your money is going, but you
can here. IF