St. Louis County hears sworn testimony after parvovirus outbreak led to 19 euthanized animals at county shelter

St. Louis County’s Committee of the Whole heard sworn testimony June 26 from Dr. Douglas Pernicoff, the veterinary director who worked at the county-run animal care and control (ACC) facility following the county’s February 2025 takeover from the Animal Protective Association (APA). Pernicoff said a parvovirus outbreak in April forced staff to euthanize 19 animals after the facility lacked isolation space, staffing and supplies to treat them.

Why it matters: The council is investigating whether procedures, communications and procurement failures contributed to animal deaths and whether county oversight since the takeover met public-health and animal-welfare standards. The hearing included testimony about missing equipment, a large document production to the council and public comment urging changes to shelter funding and operations.

Pernicoff, who said he began working at the shelter on Jan. 21, 2025, testified under subpoena that the first clinically positive parvo case he identifies as “patient 1” was in a large kennel (referred to in testimony as kennel 500) in general population and could not be isolated because “there was no place for legitimate isolation and quarantine of that animal.” He said staff implemented personal protective equipment, boosted vaccinations around the affected cage and monitored exposed animals, but that the shelter lacked the capacity to provide intensive, one-on-one hospital care.

Pernicoff told the…