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About Hermiston herald. (Hermiston, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 7, 2015)
A8 • HERMISTONHERALD.COM SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2015 FROM PAGE A1 INVESTIGATION: contracts with their respec- tive cities to take posses- sion of stray dogs and place continued from page A1 them for adoption, a direct Pet Rescue is once again comparison in the eutha- transferring dogs to other nasia rates cannot be made facilities to improve adop- because PAWS does not ac- tion chances through the cept aggressive dogs. Ad- Oregon Humane Society ditionally, although PAWS Second Chance Program accepts all but aggressive beginning this month, dogs from the city of Pend- which will reduce the shel- leton, when the shelter is ter’s euthanasia rate. full, some owners may also Transferring dogs to other have to wait before the shel- shelters was one of the sug- ter can accept a surrendered gestions offered by Suzanne animal. Whereas PAWS is a Phillips, who spoke at the no-kill shelter, Pet Rescue council meeting and later met is an open-door shelter that ZLWKFLW\RI¿FLDOVWRYRLFHKHU accepts all dogs, but the eu- concerns about the shelter’s thanasia rate in Hermiston euthanasia rate. Phillips said has been much higher than the Pioneer Humane Society in Pendleton. Pendleton Animal Welfare Pet Rescue Executive Shelter operates with a very Director Beau Putnam said low euthanasia rate and that Pet Rescue received 724 Pet Rescue could reduce its total dogs last year. He said rate. 61 percent were either re- deemed by their owners adopted, leaving a 39 BY THE NUMBERS or percent euthanasia rate. Although Hermiston’s Now that the shelter will Pet Rescue and Pendleton’s be transferring dogs to the PAWS shelters both have Second Chance Program EAT SHOP PLAY Exploring Pendleton, Milton-Freewater, Mission, Pilot Rock & Walla Walla Supporting local businesses, will also support members of your own community that pay taxes, serve on committees, teach our children, and serve our needs. when the shelter is full, the euthanasia rate should be drastically reduced, but Putnam said Pet Rescue ac- cepts all dogs, and aggres- sive animals will still be euthanized. Putnam said he did not have the numbers of euthanized animals that were either unhealthy or aggressive. In comparison, according to information from PAWS Board of Directors President Amy Baker, Pendleton’s shelter received 466 dogs last year and only euthanized three: a 0.6 percent eutha- nasia rate. Although PAWS does not accept aggressive dogs from the Pendleton Police Department, Lt. Bill Caldera said, in 2014, only three dogs were determined to be aggressive, which had to be euthanized else- where. Adding those dogs to PAWS’ numbers generates a 1.27 percent total Pendleton euthanasia rate, but this does not include any aggressive dogs owners tried or wanted to surrender in Pendleton. Baker said, in 2014, PAWS adopted out 259 dogs, returned 51 to their owners and transferred 132 to other no-kill shelters, pri- marily the Oregon Humane Society. Baker said PAWS will only euthanize aggressive or unhealthy dogs, follow- ing a veterinarian’s rec- ommendation. When the PAWS shelter is full, Bak- er said staff members will VWLOOKHOSRZQHUVWU\WR¿QG homes for their pets using social media and PetFinder. com. She said, if necessary, the animals are then put on a waiting list to bring into the shelter until space be- comes available. Baker said the city of Pendleton currently pays $1,300 per month to PAWS to take possession of all but aggressive dogs after a ¿YHGD\KROGLQJSHULRGDWD police department facility. She said PAWS received 78 dogs from the city in 2014. Assistant City Manager Mark Morgan said the city of Hermiston pays $2,750 per month to Pet Rescue, but the contract also in- cludes help apprehending the animals, if requested by the police department, and feeding and lodging WKHGRJVIRUDUHTXLUHG¿YH day period to allow owners to claim them before they are placed for adoption. He said Pet Rescue also refunded $3,415 to the city for impound and licensing fees collected for a total cost of $29,585 in 2014. According to Hermiston animal control statistics provided by the city, Pet Rescue processed 204 dogs from the city and eutha- nized 41 in 2014 and pro- cessed 285 dogs and eutha- nized 87 in 2013. CITY RECOMMENDATIONS In the report he will pres- ent Monday, Smith offers three areas he would en- courage Pet Rescue to ad- dress: utilizing programs to increase animal adoption, such as the Second Chance Program; using volunteers and donations as much as possible to care for the an- imals and better tracking of volunteer hours; and in- creasing the level of online advertising of the animals for adoption. He noted Pet Rescue is meeting the requirements of the city’s contract and does not recommend the council take any further ac- tion. Smith said, if the council believes changes are neces- sary, the contract could be put to bid again, but doing so could cause the price to increase. Get Unlimited Everything. Plus $50 back. Switch to a Simple Connect Prepaid Plan for just $45/mo. with Unlimited Data, Talk and Text, including 1GB of high-speed data. Plus, for a limited time, get a $50 U.S. Cellular® Promotional Card to use toward the latest accessories or your next month of service. 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