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Council presses staff on animal-shelter records and weekend dispatch access
Summary
Council questioned gaps in the animal shelter's reporting and a spike of 38 euthanized animals in February; interim animal-control manager said he left blank months he could not verify and agreed to provide corrected month-by-month breakdowns. Council also raised concerns about being unable to reach a nonemergency dispatch line over a recent weekend.
During staff reports on Dec. 17 the City Council pressed shelter staff for clarity about missing or incomplete entries in the animal-care logs and about a reported February figure showing 38 animals euthanized.
An unidentified councilmember asked, “There was 38 animals that were euthanized. Can you explain to me why such a high rate there?” Interim animal control manager Trailer Cobb said he was not at the facility in February and that he had left the February numbers blank where he could not verify their accuracy. Cobb said that disease outbreaks—particularly contagious feline illnesses such as parvo or upper respiratory viruses—can cause very high euthanasia rates among kittens during outbreaks.
Cobb told council he recently submitted requisitions so veterinarian services continue; staff confirmed Dr. Barker had been performing surgeries and was current as of the previous Tuesday. Council asked staff to provide an itemized follow-up showing counts by species (cats vs. dogs) and by month.
Separately, council members and staff discussed difficulty reaching the nonemergency dispatch number during a recent weekend. Chief Bobby Lane said he would investigate and consider options including posting a contact number on the shelter door and making a phone available to on-duty supervisors to reduce caller confusion.
Next steps: staff will provide a month-by-month breakdown of shelter intakes and euthanasia by species and will report back on dispatch call-routing issues and options for an on-site weekend contact method.
