Our New Shelter

The Homeless Animals of our Community Needed a New Shelter

Thirty animals a day! That's the number we've been turning away, every day. The number of animals we haven't been able to help. That's seven thousand animals a year! Bide Awhile's Board of Directors committed itself to increasing the number of animals we rescued. When we discovered that this wasn't possible in our old location on Eaton Avenue in Dartmouth, we started planning for the day when we would open a new Shelter.

Well that day is here!

We are thrilled to report that our new Shelter is virtually completed with only a few finishing touches left to add. The home we've dreamed of and worked so hard to create is now a reality. Staff and animals are getting settled in and our new Shelter is open to the public on April 1, 2008.

While the new Shelter is almost complete, our work in raising the required funds is far from over. Our "Building a Better Bide Awhile Campaign" continues as we seek financial support from members, past contributors and corporations. Our public appeal for donations to our building campaign will take place later this year (but contributions to our campaign are welcomed at any time!).

We need a total of $650,000.

In a most remarkable act of generosity, Quantum Communications has donated $100,000 to our Building a Better Bide Awhile Campaign. donalee Moulton, a former Board member, is Principal of Quantum, and our new building is being dedicated to her parents, Fred and Myrtle Moulton. donalee and her parents, as long time supporters of the Shelter, know the importance of our undertaking and wanted to give their full support to our campaign. To Quantum Communications and to donalee, we extend a very heartfelt thank you!

This has been Bide Awhile's most ambitious project in our almost 40 year history and we're well on our way with more than $480,000 raised! Bide Awhile's Directors, staff and volunteers look forward to successfully completing this campaign with your support.

Why we needed a new Shelter:

• Our Shelter was in urgent need of very major repairs.
• Due to poor heating and ventilation our building was unhealthy for the people and animals using it.
• Our isolation building was a serious bottleneck and prevented us from rescuing more cats.
• Zoning prevented us from expanding.

67 Neptune Crescent, Dartmouth, is the site of our new home.


RCS Retail Construction Specialists, a local general contractor, partnered with Bide Awhile as our construction manager. We’re honored and very pleased with the level of professionalism and knowledge that RCS has brought to our project. They enthusiastically pursued discounts and donations from their contacts in the construction industry in the form of materials and reduced labour rates from various trade contractors.

RCS has also used their contacts in the local consulting industry to retain architectural design services at a much lower rate than we expected to pay and three local engineers have donated their time to design the mechanical, electrical and structural components of the building.