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Animal services requests two staff additions and a transport van to ease shelter operations
Summary
Animal Services proposed adding an animal control associate and an assistant director to address turnover and workload, and requested a van outfitted for safer animal transport; staff emphasized that animals transported together would be selected based on compatibility and safety.
Animal services staff requested two new positions — an animal control associate and an assistant director — to reduce staff burnout and improve retention, and asked for funding to purchase an outfitted transport van.
The department said kennel workloads and 24/7 operations strain current staff: workers may need to feed and clean dozens of kennels alone when someone is on leave. The animal control associate would provide Monday–Friday coverage to reduce that burden. The assistant director position would handle higher-level contract and vendor decisions and free the director to focus on strategic work, especially as facility construction moves forward.
On equipment, the department described plans to buy a van that has been modified by rescues into multi-crate animal transport vehicles; presenters said the vehicle would ease loading and reduce handling stress on animals. Commissioners asked about animal safety when transporting multiple animals; staff emphasized they would never transport animals together that are not dog-friendly and said the outfitted vans would primarily carry animals already housed together or sized to be transported safely.
Staff also noted a loss of a $30,000 private grant that previously supported medical costs and requested $20,000 from the general fund to make up part of that shortfall. The commission said it would consider the staffing and capital requests during the preliminary budget review.
