Animal Shelter News | North Carolina

NEEDS OF ANIMAL SHELTER OUTLINED -
CATAWBA OFFICIAL PITCHES PLAN
LUNDY WANTS NEW EUTHANASIA CHAMBER, CREMATORIUM, 2 MORE SHELTER ASSISTANTS
Charlotte Observer, The (NC)
April 28, 2004
Author: HEATHER HOWARD, STAFF WRITER

Catawba County officials want to upgrade the county's animal shelter, a move they say would allow the county to deal more effectively with homeless animals.

Catawba County Manager Tom Lundy is proposing that the county buy a new gas chamber and a crematorium for the shelter, he said. He is also asking for two more assistants to help care for the animals and wants to expand the shelter to add more kennels.

County commissioners are scheduled to consider the kennel addition at their Monday meeting, Lundy said. The other proposals will go before commissioners during upcoming budget talks, he said.

The existing gas chamber, installed when the shelter was built in 1985, is inefficient and outdated, Lundy said. The newer model would be easier to clean and operate and would ensure that animals in the device are euthanized, said David Weldon, the county's emergency services director, who also oversees animal services.

From mid-November 2003 through mid-April, the shelter took in 2,562 animals, 1,861 of which were put to death, Weldon said.

Lundy also is proposing that the shelter buy a crematorium instead of replacing a vehicle that is used to transport animal remains to a landfill.

And he's asking commissioners for an expansion that would allow the shelter to put in 20 more kennel units. The extra space, Weldon said, would allow shelter workers to separate animals that aren't fit for adoption - aggressive or sick animals, for example - from the area that houses adoptable animals.

Such a move would help reduce stress on the animals and could allow the shelter to house the adoptable animals longer, Weldon said.

"We just want to try to make the area where we have adoptable (animals) more conducive to adopting," he said.

The gas chamber would cost $26,000, and the crematorium's price tag would be $54,550, officials said. Funding for the new staff positions would total just under $64,000, official said.

The county and its municipalities share costs for the shelter. The county provides roughly half the funding for capital projects and operation, and the towns contribute the other half. Towns contribute based on their populations, Lundy said.

County officials are talking with municipalities about options for paying for the proposed improvements, Weldon said.

The county would pay for the kennel expansion, Lundy said. Exact costs haven't been tabulated, but Lundy expects that project to run about $100,000, he said.

Heather Howard: (828) 324-0055; hhoward@charlotteobserver.com

Edition: TWO
Section: CATAWBA NEIGHBORS
Page: 1V

Dateline: HICKORY

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NEEDS OF ANIMAL SHELTER OUTLINED