Maddie’s Fund consultants tell Jefferson County a shelter alone won’t fix animal-control problems; urge data, spay-neuter and safety-net approach

Maddie’s Fund consultants told Jefferson County and the city of Madras on Feb. 5 that the community faces the same sheltering challenges found nationwide and that a new shelter by itself is unlikely to solve the county’s animal control problems.

Dr. Sarah Pisano, a veterinarian and public-shelter director who represents Maddie’s Million Pet Challenge, said the first priority is understanding call and intake data before expanding services. "You have to look at your data," she told commissioners and the Madras city council. "You can't make a fiscally responsible decision...without knowing all your data." She said the county’s combined city-and-county calls include a relatively small number of serious bites — roughly 30 attacks cited during the presentation — and many general animal calls that mix species. That mix, she said, limits what enforcement alone can achieve.

The consultants emphasized prevention strategies that reduce intake and enforcement needs. "A shelter is not the answer. If you open your shelter, you're gonna fill it," Pisano said. Instead, she recommended expanding spay/neuter access, including high-volume programs and subsidies for pets of residents who cannot afford surgery. She also recommended creating a "safety net" field role — a service-oriented officer who works to keep animals with owners when problems are temporary, and reserves shelter space for animals with no other options.

Maddie’s Fund is providing pro bono consulting for a year to help the county and local shelters analyze data and develop options, Pisano said. She and colleague Heidi said they have toured local facilities including Ochoco (Prineville), Brightside (Redmond), Humane Society of Central Oregon (Bend) and Jefferson County operations and will provide more detailed recommendations later this week and in a planned April 2 briefing. "We are here to help in any way that we possibly can," Pisano said.

County and city officials asked procedural questions about dispatch data and coding. Commissioners and staff said dispatch currently records many calls generically as "animal" and that staff would work with dispatch to add drop-down dispositions for species and more specific dispositions so the county can analyze enforcement needs and costs. Pisano encouraged county and city leaders to have staff review 911 and animal-control logs line by line rather than relying on anecdote.

On workforce and facility planning, Maddie’s Fund noted a national shortage of veterinarians in shelter medicine and recommended planning spay/neuter clinic space that can be used flexibly rather than assuming high-volume surgical capacity will be locally available. The consultants said some funders and foundations (for example, Bissell Pet Foundation) can bring mobile high-volume surgical teams to communities and that partnerships with private veterinarians for part-time shelter work can help bridge gaps.

The presentation closed with an agreement to continue work: Maddie’s Fund will send a best-practice playbook and data slides, meet again with city and county staff later this week, and provide a remote briefing on April 2. Officials said they would use the incoming data to consider program and funding options; no formal county action or spending decision was made at the meeting.

The county and city repeatedly emphasized they want options that improve public safety while limiting new budget commitments until the data are clear. Maddie’s Fund’s consultants said their role is advisory — they do not provide funding — but they may help the county frame grant requests and policies that could attract funders.

For now, staff and commissioners said next steps include refining dispatch coding, reviewing assembled call and intake data, and holding the scheduled April 2 briefing when Maddie’s Fund will present follow-up slides and recommendations.