SQSPCA head will chair state association

Susquehanna SPCA Executive Director Stacie Haynes takes on another role this year as Board President for the New York State Animal Protection Federation, a statewide organization formed in 2010 to safeguard the well-being of all animals through legislative and policy initiatives in the state.

Ms. Haynes has served on the Federation’s board since 2019. The group is the voice of New York’s animal shelters, humane societies, and animal welfare organizations, and a trade/educational resource for its member organizations working to maintain high standards in animal welfare and care.

“When I started at Susquehanna in 2015, there were no opportunities to network, no playbook for best practices for shelters,” she said. “The Animal Protection Federation has grown a lot in the past few years to become what we are now, and what excites me the most is that we can do some great work for shelters all around the state.”

“We’re in there fighting and helping other shelters,” she said. “It’s incredibly meaningful work that, in the end, is best for our animals.”

Ms. Haynes said the Federation’s 2022 agenda includes shelter and rescue standards, stopping a puppy mill pipeline, and strengthening animal cruelty laws. She’ll be advocating in Albany alongside fellow Federation members and its executive director, Libby Post.

“Stacie is the best example of who and what animal shelter professionals are supposed to be and do,” Ms. Post said. “As a Board member and the Federation’s treasurer, Stacie’s leadership and business acumen have kept us focused and moving ahead. I look forward to a great partnership that advances our legislative agenda and enhances the state of animal welfare in New York.”

As Executive Director of the Susquehanna Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SQSPCA) since October 2015, Ms. Haynes was the driving force behind its $5 million ‘SHELTER US’ capital campaign and the resulting state-of-the-art animal shelter on Route 28, just south of Cooperstown. She spearheaded the formation of Otsego County’s Animal Cruelty Task Force in 2019 and in 2020 was named one of the nation’s Top Ten Animal Defenders by the Animal Legal Defense Fund.

She tells The Freeman’s Journal/Hometown Oneonta she is eager to work on the Federation’s legislative agenda while staying hard at work at SQSPCA. The organization is planning its annual ‘lobby day’ for March 2022 at the state Capitol.

“Animals are bipartisan,” she said. “We get a good reception in any office when we go in to talk about protecting our companion animals. We meet with our shelter’s representatives when we’re there, but every state legislator in Otsego County has been to our shelter — Assemblymembers Salka, Tague, and Miller and Senator Oberacker. Their support is important to us.”