County Announces Animal Shelter Improvements

Improvements are continuing at the Douglas County Animal Shelter, according to a press release sent out by Wes Tallon, the County's communication director and the County Commissioners. The improvements were instituted after Douglas County received recommendations from an independent evaluation conducted in 2012 by LifeLine Animal Project. More are planned within the coming months. Recent improvements include the following items.

• Animal are being separated into areas that keeps sick/diseased animals from healthy animals, thereby helping to prevent the spreading of the illnesses.  (LifeLine Evaluation recommendation of separation of animals)

• Dogs and cats are now separated and no longer housed in the same areas.  (LifeLine Evaluation recommendation)

• All old wire cages have been replaced with safer and more sanitary stainless steel cages.

• Puppies have been moved to the puppy room renovated last year by Leadership Douglas (capacity of 15), and the old puppy room has been renovated to be a cat room. All cat cages have been moved out of the hallway. The window in the new cat room is now unblocked so that the cats can enjoy sunshine and can view outdoor activity.

• The old cat room is currently being renovated to house sick cats and nursing cats with kittens. A consulting veterinarian has told the County that the Shelter is not set up to house sick cats with respiratory illnesses due to there not being a separate ventilation system for this area and respiratory illnesses being airborne. The County is evaluating its options.  (LifeLine Evaluation recommendation of separation of animals)

• Two office trailers have been moved on to the site and retrofitted with ADA-accessible ramps. The Shelter Director, Road Officers, and Field Supervisor have offices in the trailer. This has allowed more room in the Shelter lobby for public visitation and adoptions. (LifeLine Evaluation recommendation that lobby relieve  overcrowding)

• An ADA-accessible emergency shower and eyewash has been installed in the office trailer. (LifeLine Evaluation recommendation)

• The laundry room has been cleaned and organized and a second laundry appliance pair is being installed in the office trailer to keep up with the large volume of daily laundry used in cleaning. (LifeLine Evaluation recommendation)

• Kennel Techs and staff spend each morning cleaning the Shelter, the kennels and cages, and interacting with the animals to give each one some personal attention. The Shelter opens at 1 p.m. each day (except Mondays) and because the cleaning and personal interaction occurred in the morning, the Kennel Techs are available in the afternoon to work with the public and to give them personal information about each animal, thereby aiding the visitor in their adoption process. (LifeLine Evaluation recommendation to allow more time for cleaning)

• The courtyard area is being transitioned into a visitation area where animals and prospective owners can have off-leash and interactive time and space. This area formerly housed Shelter dogs who have now been moved to areas where the public can see them more readily. (LifeLine Evaluation recommendation)

•  As the cat room cages are cleaned, the cats are transferred to boxes only when necessary. (LifeLine Evaluation recommendation)

• The animal’s assigned identification tag number is now placed on the animal to avoid any confusion - formerly placed on the cage. (LifeLine Evaluation recommendation)

• Dividers have been installed between the outdoor dog kennels to reduce exposure and disease, and to keep the dogs from spurring each other to aggressive behavior.  (LifeLine Evaluation recommendation)

• Animal Control received one new field vehicle in 2012 and recently acquired another new field vehicle with a new transport body.  (LifeLine Evaluation recommendation)

• Hand-held microchip scanners have been purchased for the Field Officers to more readily identify the ownership of stray animals.

Office operations have also changed. Regular staff meetings are now being held. Policies and procedures for staff have been established, including that response to citizen complaints being the top priority. (LifeLine Evaluation recommendation) A new two-way radio system has been purchased for more timely dispatch to reported problems. A new telephone system will be installed within the next month. (LifeLine Evaluation recommendation)

Additional staff has been added: Secretary/Dispatcher and Field Officer.  Interviews are now being conducted for Field Supervisor and Kennel Supervisor.  There are a total of 5 Field Officers and three Kennel Techs. Arrangements are being made with the ASPCA for staff training.

The Douglas County Animal Shelter is an open admission shelter. The Shelter is open six afternoons a week for adoptions. The Shelter staff works with individuals, families, rescue organizations and other groups to adopt out as many animals as possible. Shelter staff is also working with local veterinarians to establish a pre-release spay/neuter program. Sponsorships of animals are welcome as long as no conditions are placed on the sponsorship; sponsorships can pay for the spay/neuter of a Shelter animal.

A list of Shelter animals who are “in urgent need of adoption” is posted on the Animal Shelter page of the Douglas County web site, www.CelebrateDouglasCounty.com, no later than Wednesday of each week.  These are animals who have been at the shelter for a prolonged period of time; who may be people- or animal-aggressive; and/or have other issues.  The list is posted so that these animals can be highlighted; it does not mean that they will be automatically euthanized if not immediately adopted.  The animals placed on the list are there upon the recommendation of three staff members who actively work with the animals. Euthanization is limited to feral, animal-aggressive, ill, kennel stressed/affected, rabies specimen, and no adoption interest animals.  From January 1 - March 15, 2013, 228 animals have been adopted (46 percent); 70 have been euthanized (14 percent); 131 have been rescued (26 percent); and 72 have been returned to their owner (14 percent).

Volunteers are welcome at the Shelter. Due to liability and insurance issues, all volunteers are required to go through a training class before they can interact with the animals.  Animal foster homes are also welcome.