If you haven’t had your fix of shoveling snow, Annie’s Orphans dog shelter needs help digging out to get to its animals.
Annie Anderson said Tuesday morning that her regular volunteers couldn’t make it to the shelter about 10 miles south of Durango off U.S. Highway 550 because of the weather conditions.
The rescue is located at 1630 County Road 214.
A snow gauge in Durango reported more than 10 inches of new snow in the past 24 hours, as of 11:30 a.m. Tuesday.
As a result, Anderson couldn’t open the gates to get to the dogs, snow is building up on the roofs of some kennels and travel isn’t possible up and down the property’s steep driveway.
Annie’s Orphans is run by Anderson and her husband, Bill, who are in their 70s. The shelter is the Four Corners’ oldest no-kill rescue, operating for about three decades.
Anderson said anyone willing to help shovel or bring a snowblower would be of great help.
“We have an awful lot we need to get done,” she said.
Dogs at Annie’s Orphans are kept outside in kennels. Most of the dogs have heated homes, but with all the snow, it’s hard to get to the animals and care for them, Anderson said.
Annie’s Orphans usually caps the amount of dogs at around 60, but the shelter recently received about 20 dogs from the ASPCA in Sacramento, California.
People interested in helping can call 759-8811.