What would it take?

This is only a Hypothetical Question before anyone thinks that this is what i'm planning on doing!!!!

What would it take to open your own shelter? I was thinking about this, (especially after the frosty reception I got at my local shelter! Which isn't really that local! Over 30 miles away!),
today as I was brushing down the horses (It's been beautiful weather and I couldn't stand to be indoors!!) I have 5 Acres of land and I have planning permission to put a house on some of it! My neighbours are only there in the summer as it's their holiday home! And the neighbours to the other side, are white, a bit smelly, have huge horns and produce milk! (Cows).
I was just wondering what it would take?!! Any Ideas?!!

That's an interesting question! Certainly sounds like you've got the room for it. Guess you would need some kind of gov't permit or something? I wouldn't think zoning would be an issue if it's already farmland. What was the chilly reception at the shelter all about? Like they're afraid of getting competition with saving animals? Geesh...

Would it be a no kill shelter?

Oh, well to cut a long story short, I went up there to volunteer as i'm waiting on the building work to be finished here before we can open again, and they said even though they needed help they didn't want me!! Meanies! I have no Idea why!!!!

And of course it would be a no kill shelter!! I have trouble killing small beasties in my house!!

What building work are you doing and what are you opening? Wonder what the deal is with those stupid shelter people!

Sorry, I really must lern to give people more details! We are renovating an old resturant into a Brasserie/Pub. The resturant had been shut for 3 years as the previous owner had commited suicide, not in the resturant or the house above thank goodness! The house/resturant was in a terrible state of repair, we've had to replace almost everything. But we're doing it all in reclaimed materials because it's a beautiful granite stone built building and is about 400 years old! Putting modern things in would be just wrong!!

Also the previous owner, had taken it apon himself to "modernise" if that's the right word! The building, blocking up fireplaces, plasterboarding over the lovely exposed stone walls, covering up the beams! So we've had our work cut out just trying to peel back the layers and make it look as original as possible! Doing this on a tight budget means that we've done alot of the work ourselves, but what's left, is "man's" work! Moving staircases etc!

Ooooh... that sounds SO COOL! And WHAT was the previous owner THINKING!? Destroying the beauty of a 400 year old building! I just love my travels to Europe -- all the old stone buildings, cobblestone roads, beautiful old castles. I go to Germany mostly, but have also been to Spain, Hungary, Sweden and England. This summer I'm going to Athens!

I know! He was some sort of nutter from what all the neighbours say about him! He was a member of some sort of Cult or something! Whatever it was he was very bizzare!!

The building however is really turning into a labour of love!! I have to keep myself in check else I start boring people, with the joys of handmade roof tiles!!

There's a pic of my village on this thread, half way down ish!!

http://www.chazhound.com/forums/showthread.php?t=3649&highlight=computer

try checking out this site..http://www.mshoogys.com they are a great shelter on a huge scale, but they also have huge hearts and my guess would be if you contacted them they would be full of information. I found this story in the paw prints paper that i posted about earlier. if you can't find it that way the article is in www.pawprintskc.com ..they have all the issues there and if you can't find it there then i will try again. i can't find my copy, i know it is here somewhere darn it.

I've seen that pic of your beautiful village. Simply gorgeous! You ought to post some before/after pics of the progress on the building you're restoring. I'd love to see them!

If you are thinking of opening a small shelter PM me and I can PM you the e-mail address of the person that runs the shelter that I go to.

It sounds like you've got the room for it . That's one of my dreams--to open up an animal sanctuary. I can't wait till it actually happens, lol!!!

Good luck!!!

I will do when I sort everything out!! I've been keeping a sort of picture diary, and one of these days I will write the comments to go with it!!

Smkie thank you for the links will check them out in a mo.

And thanks Scob but it was just a Hypothetical question! I really don't think i'll have the time when we're up and running in the Brasserie! Which is a real pity, because it's such a lovely idea! Maybe when I retire! In about 35 years! Lol! But I was just thinking that there's enough land up there and there's loads of kids here hanging about with nothing to do and it would be a nice youth project for them to get involved in! Something worthwhile!