CARTHAGE, MO.- An online community lent a helping paw to the local animal shelter with a utility bill. 

Carthage Humane Society’s utility bill was two thousand dollars. Renay Minshew, the director of Carthage Humane Society, went into crisis mode when she saw the large bill. “How are we going to pay this bill? Last month, our bill had jumped from 600 to a thousand, and that was difficult. But then it doubled to 2000,” said Minshew.

Minshew thinks the high utility bill is the result of extreme summer heat. The shelter must keep safe temperatures for the animals at all times. 

However, Minshew reached out to the shelter’s Facebook followers for donations to help pay the utility bill. “We’re in crisis mode here. And I went to our faithful followers and the community and I ask for help to meet that need,” said Minshew. 

The shelter asked for two thousand dollars but received three thousand dollars from the community. “We’ve got a thousand to apply to next month also. Yeah, it was a great blessing,” said Minshew. 

The leftover money will go towards animal food, cleaning supplies, and next month’s utility bill.