San Angelo shelter reports 275 arrivals in October; staff outline adoption, capacity and rehab plans

San Angelo — City shelter staff reported 275 new arrivals at the animal shelter in October and outlined steps to boost adoptions and address capacity concerns. Amanda Wheedles, identified in the transcript as the presenter and listed as the shelter manager, said in the meeting: "For the month of October we had 275 new arrivals at the shelter."

Wheedles told the meeting the monthly report showed 135 adoptions/transfers on record for October but clarified that number omits animals still housed at the shelter awaiting spay/neuter surgery. "We actually had 47 adopted, total for the month," she said, adding that some adopted animals remain in the building until their surgeries are completed and therefore are not always counted in month-end totals. She said the shelter had a 60.42% release rate by the end of the month and 309 animals remained in custody.

The presentation included the report that 111 animals died during October: 70 dogs, 40 cats and one other. Wheedles gave the euthanasia and mortality breakdown: "19 were euthanized for aggression, 55 for sick or injured, 29 for capacity, and 8 died in custody," and noted that some nursing kittens failed to thrive.

Field services volumes were also described: 361 calls in October, including 176 stray calls, 75 enforcement or rechecks, 70 wildlife calls, 17 bite investigations, eight transports and 15 owner-release/seizure intakes. Wheedles said the shelter was awarded custody of 27 dogs from a cruelty seizure earlier in the month.

On enforcement, the shelter reported municipal court issued 34 citations: seven for at-large animals, three for failure to microchip, 12 for failure to spay or neuter, 11 for failure to vaccinate and one for small animals too close to a residence. Wheedles said municipal court typically works with people who show good-faith compliance.

Member Speaker 5 raised concern about capacity-related deaths and volunteer capacity, saying "29 of them, unfortunately, had to die because of capacity," and proposed hiring a paid volunteer coordinator and holding adoption events off-site. Wheedles said the shelter is developing both a foster program and a structured volunteer program and expects staffing needs could be included in the next fiscal budget. She said the shelter has been in touch with PetSmart and Petco about adoption-partnership opportunities and is increasing social-media outreach.

Wheedles also stated the shelter is experiencing a two-week backlog for spay/neuter surgeries; adopted animals are held until their procedures are completed, which delays the formal adoption count. On facility needs, she said there are active weekly meetings about repairs and a longer-term plan for a new building; she could not share details at the meeting but said quotes have been gathered and future city-council presentations are possible.

The meeting concluded after a motion to adjourn passed.