Combine two things that Brandon Boyd is passionate about – cars and animal welfare – and the result is overwhelmingly positive. And that’s just what happened Saturday, July 31 at the annual Classic Car Cruise-In event in Henderson.
Folks came in from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. to the show at 284 US 158 Bypass in Henderson to see classic cars and to learn about Ruin Creek Animal Protection Society. Boyd told John C. Rose Monday on Town Talk that people came from all over to admire the cars. Attendance estimates range from 3,200 to 3,500 on the lot at one time, he said. “It was absolutely fantastic!” As visitors milled about, they also got a chance to see and hear about RCAPS and its mission to find homes for adoptable animals, and also to educate the public about caring for pets.
He said he would love for RCAPS to be able to go in to schools to talk with students about being responsible pet owners. That responsibility includes spaying and neutering pets.
He hopes to one day be able to provide an affordable spay and neuter program in Vance County. “That’s been a vision of the team at Ruin Creek,” Boyd said, adding that perhaps through grant funding or other means, RCAPS can help reduce pet overpopulation.
“There are so many things that we can do, that we want to do,” he said. “I think the people of this area are going to see some really great things” from RCAPS in the future.
Throughout the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, pet adoptions nationwide spiked, he said. Now, however, with loosened restrictions on travel and people getting out more, those dogs and cats that were such a good idea a year ago are now finding themselves in shelters.
And the Vance County shelter is no exception.
From the Carolinas to California, Boyd said shelters are loaded with animals that people adopted. Now, those pet owners have the mentality of ‘let’s take him to the shelter and someone else will take him,’ Boyd said.
“They’re overrun by animals as a result of this problem.”
A pet owner has responsibilities to care for, to look after these animals. From proper veterinary care, to spay and neutering, to discipline, the responsibilities are many.
That’s one reason Boyd wants to start early and introduce pet owner responsibilities to school children. “I don’t want to just find fault,” he said. “I want to correct the fault.”
He said RCAPS enjoys support from a wide base of donors from all 50 states and from 13 countries. Because of this support, RCAPS can keep transport vans on the road that take animals from Vance County up the East Coast, from Virginia to New York, and everywhere in between.
Boyd said the RCAPS staff deserves much credit for being good stewards of donor funds. “We’re so proud that people trust us to that degree” to send money to support the cause. “It speaks volumes to me…and I’m so very proud of it.”
Visit www.rcaps.org to learn more.
Listen to the full interview with Brandon Boyd here.