The Iowa City Animal Care and Adoption Center has announced plans for a 1,500-square-foot addition to the building, planned for 2025.
According to an announcement from the Friends of the Animal Center Foundation — the Iowa City center’s fundraising group — the addition will be located on the south side of the building. The new space will be used primarily as a training area for dogs, but will be able to be easily converted into overflow space for sick or contagious animals, as well as any future animal hoarding cases and puppy mill rescues.
The fundraising page shows that over $219,000 has already been raised of the project’s $1 million goal.
The project comes after the Animal Center rescued 131 puppy mill dogs in August 2023, with few open kennels and resources available at the time. As stated in the Animal Center’s announcement, donations after the intake covered temporary rent costs for a warehouse, but the setup was “less than ideal.”
The announcement states that the addition will create a much safer environment for rescue emergencies.
“While we’ve long recognized the need for more space, the 2023 puppy mill rescue — one of the largest cases we’ve faced — highlighted just how critical this expansion is for our mission,” the center stated in a newsletter announcement. “This new addition will allow us to respond more effectively to emergencies and provide better care for animals in need.”
