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Evansville BPW approves Foster-to-Adopt program to free kennel space at Animal Care and Control
Summary
The Evansville Board of Public Works on May 22 approved a Foster-to-Adopt program for Animal Care and Control designed to allow adopters to foster animals until required spay/neuter surgery and reduce shelter crowding, officials said.
The Evansville Board of Public Works approved a Foster-to-Adopt program for the city’s Animal Care and Control on May 22, allowing prospective adopters to take animals home until their required spay or neuter surgery and become the animals’ official owners after surgery.
City staff presented the policy change and said it is intended to reduce kennel crowding caused by delays in securing spay/neuter appointments. "This will allow us to be able to create some space in the empty kennels so we don't have to put any animals down," Mr. Robertson, an Animal Care and Control staff member, told the board during the meeting.
Board members and staff said the program follows recommendations from a Best Friends representative working with the shelter and reflects industry practice observed in other municipalities. Because state or local law requires animals be spayed or neutered before release, the program lets an adopter foster the animal until the surgery date, then return the animal to the shelter for the procedure; after the surgery is complete, the foster becomes the official owner.
Officials said the program addresses a local shortage of available surgery appointments that can delay adoption by up to one or two weeks. Robertson told the board that staff will include penalties in the written policy to address people who accept a foster but do not follow the policy; he said staff also plan to pursue shortening stray hold times to reduce shelter stays. "We're trusting that everybody who who enters into the Foster to Adopt program is also wanting to be an actual official pet owner," Robertson said.
Board members asked how the program will limit risk that a foster owner might breed or otherwise misuse an animal before it is altered; Robertson said the written policy will include remedies so the city can reclaim animals if adopters do not comply. He also said rescue groups currently help reduce occupancy by pulling animals or arranging fosters and that the city’s Bridal (Animal) Control Commission meets monthly and is open to the public.
The board voted to approve the program after discussion. The meeting record shows the motion and a second followed by unanimous assent, recorded as "All in favor? Aye. Approved."
