Notice of Upcoming Closure – RSPCA NSW Blue Mountains Shelter

RSPCA NSW has made the decision to permanently close our Blue Mountain shelter, through a phased approach over the coming months.

The closure of the site will occur in two key stages:

• Stage 1 – RSPCA NSW shelter operations including adoptions will cease.
• Stage 2- The management of stray animals and the facilitation of the community’s impound services will transition back to the Blue Mountains City Council.

It’s important to note:

• The dates for these cessations are yet to be determined and the community will be informed once they have been confirmed.
• All RSPCA NSW staff and volunteers have been given the opportunity to be redeployed within our organisation once the services of the site have ceased.
• Our community outreach initiatives and inspectorate work will remain present throughout the region and will not be impacted by this closure.
• Our organisation will continue to support the Blue Mountains as we have always done, independent of a bricks-and-mortar shelter, just like many other communities around NSW.

The decision to close the site comes after careful consideration, taking into account the community’s long-standing views on how the site should operate.  It is clear that members of the Blue Mountains community want a secure place for stray animals to be cared for.

Over the years, our shelter has served as a valuable resource for the local community, providing care and support to the animals of the Blue Mountains. During this time, we have observed a positive transformation in the community’s approach to animal welfare.

“It is evident that the Blue Mountains are a community who prioritise the wellbeing of their pets, which has subsequently led to a significant decrease in the number of animals coming into the Blue Mountains shelter. This is a testament to the community’s unwavering commitment to positive pet guardianship and clearly shows that animals within the community are regarded as cherished family members,” said RSPCA NSW CEO Steve Coleman.

The strategic decision to close our Blue Mountains shelter and exit from the council pound management will enable us to reinvest our resources into areas with overwhelming need.

For RSPCA NSW to serve the changing needs of people and their animals across the state, it is imperative that we are nimble and redirect our finite resources and expertise to where they will be most impactful.

In the last year, there has been a notable 350% increase in requests for support through our domestic violence, aged care, emergency boarding and homelessness programs. We have also seen a huge increase in people requesting subsidised veterinary treatment for their pets.

“We recently conducted a report to calculate the long-term impact our community services have on areas in need. This method of reporting measures values that are not traditionally assessed such as social, economic, and environmental factors.

“The findings showed that collectively, our community programs generate $7.97 worth of social value for every $1 we invest. This reiterates what we have been saying for many years, that RSPCA NSW’s greatest impact is focusing on prevention, early intervention, and education, with the ultimate goal of keeping people and their pets together and animals out of shelters,” added Mr Coleman.

We want to express our gratitude to the Blue Mountains community, whose unwavering support and focus on lost, injured, and neglected animals has played a large role in the Blue Mountains being the positive animal welfare community it is today.