The life of a shelter animal can be rough at times, but recently the dogs at the Pearl River County SPCA received a couple of late Christmas gifts.

Due to donations from the community and extended family of the shelter’s Board members, every outdoor dog kennel at the PRC SPCA now has a dog house to keep them warm during the colder months ahead.

“Imagine if you were a dog living outside during the winter with constant 30 mph winds hitting you,” PRC SPCA Director Judy Wheaton said. “These igloos are exactly what we needed for these dogs.”

Before the recent donations, the animal shelter had only six dog houses for over 25 dog kennels. Now they have 25 brand new igloo dog houses, which replaced some of the old ones, giving each dog a warm bed to sleep on in every kennel at the shelter, Wheaton said.

“Of course our plan is to adopt out as many animals as possible, but we want their brief time here to be a good one,” Wheaton said.

The igloo dog houses came in two sizes, either large or extra large for the above average sized dogs they have and also to house more than one small dog at a time, Wheaton said.

Each house is insulated and is heated by the dogs’ body temperatures, she said. These igloo dog houses can cost as much as $130. Many of them were purchased from the Tractor Supply in Picayune, Wheaton said.

Also, tarps were placed on one side of some of the fenced kennels to prevent wind chills from getting to the animals.

“These houses are not cheap and we can’t thank the people who donated them enough. They are truly making a difference in each of these animals’ lives and hopefully they will find their forever homes soon,” Wheaton said.

The PRC SPCA holds fundraisers sporadically throughout the year to collect money for needs like the dog houses, but they also set aside money for emergency cases too. For example, recently a puppy came in with a broken leg, which was already starting to heal improperly, Wheaton said. The money they set aside for emergencies was used to help this puppy recover, which ended up costing around $500.

“All of the donations we receive go toward a great cause. We never spend money on things we don’t need and every dollar helps,” Wheaton said.

To help with future projects of the PRC SPCA or to contribute to the emergency funds, people can donate by calling the PRC SPCA at 601-798-8000 or click “Donate” at the top of the PRC SPCA Facebook page.