St. Mary's County shelter reports sharp rise in intakes, hires part-time veterinarian

Holly Snipe, animal services division manager for St. Mary’s County, reported at the Nov. 5 Animal Control Advisory Board meeting that 698 animals entered the county shelter between Sept. 1 and Oct. 31, 2025 (702 if four wild animals are included). Of those, 228 were dogs, 407 were cats and 63 were small animals or livestock.

"For this time period, we had 698 animals enter our facility," Snipe said.

Snipe compared those totals to the same two-month span in 2024, when the shelter took in 370 animals. Owner surrenders rose from 110 in 2024 to 253 in 2025, a jump Snipe described as a major driver of the overall 88.65% increase in intakes.

Outcomes for the Sept. 1–Oct. 31 period numbered 637 and included 309 adoptions, 25 animals that died in care, 74 euthanasias, 59 returns to owner, 33 transfers to coalition partners and 137 animals serviced out (including TNR cats). Snipe said a panleukopenia outbreak, which primarily affected barn or working cats, accounted for a large share of euthanasias: "I think 44 out of 50 were feral or unsocialized cats that had panleuk exposure and were symptomatic in care," she said.

Despite the outbreak, Snipe reported improved live-release rates: dogs 87%, cats 82% and small animals 96%, for an overall live-release rate of 84% during the two-month window. In October alone, cat live-release rose to 91%. Length-of-stay figures also improved: dogs averaged 14 days and cats 16 days, down from 23 and 29 days respectively during the same months in 2024.

Snipe reported significant activity related to feral-cat programs and community aid: staff and partners TNR'd about 134 feral cats and recorded three feral/barn-cat adoptions (137 total). Pet pantry requests rose to 94 in 2025 for the two-month period, up from about 50 in 2024; Snipe noted the documented number likely understates total requests because some residents take donations directly from the donation center or receive food from officers in the field.

The shelter also added veterinary capacity: "Dr. Sarah Mikeska joined our team…she is going to be working about 20 hours a week at our facility," Snipe said. Snipe said Mikeska has practiced at multiple clinics in the D.C.-Maryland-Virginia area and "specializes in high-volume spay neuter." The board discussed inviting Dr. Mikeska to the January meeting.

Board members commended shelter staff for handling a difficult period of illness, increased intakes and volunteer constraints, and called for continued community donations to the pet pantry and volunteer offers for appropriate outdoor homes for feral cats.

The board did not take formal policy action on the shelter report during the meeting.