Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Animal Shelter topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Volunteers urge Lewistown officials to fix animal-shelter gaps after rescue accounts
Summary
Volunteers described repeated animal neglect cases, a mother dog with 12 malnourished puppies and limited local shelter capacity, urging the city to restore or identify short-term holding facilities and strengthen enforcement of animal-control ordinances.
A volunteer with Saving Animals from Asia told the Lewistown City Commission that recent rescues highlighted a critical shortfall in local animal-shelter capacity and enforcement.
"Mama dog couldn't produce milk anymore to feed her puppies because she was so dehydrated," the volunteer said, recounting a rescue of a mother and 12 puppies found in severe neglect. The volunteer said local responders can cite owners but often cannot remove animals because there is nowhere to hold them.
Peggy Butler and other community members said they continue to seek property and meet with city staff and police to explore options for temporary or permanent shelter space. "We found that and are working with Peggy and that group to get a meeting set up with the police department and myself," a city representative said.
Volunteers said multiple similar cases exist across the county, that fosters and volunteers are saturated, and that the municipal pound appears no longer to be used as an animal-holding facility except in very limited circumstances. "They're not using the pound as a pound anymore," one commenter said, describing confusion about what happened to prior pet-assistance funding.
City staff responded that they would follow up with police to clarify the pound's current status and that the city is drafting ordinance revisions (dog-at-large and vicious-dog provisions) with law enforcement and the city attorney to create stronger enforcement options. The city manager said she would follow up with the police department and report back.
Why this matters: witnesses described immediate welfare concerns for animals and volunteers who do much of the rescue work; lack of holding capacity can limit law-enforcement options and shift costs to unpaid volunteers. Commissioners urged coordination to explore city-owned alternatives and potential short-term solutions.
Next steps: staff committed to follow up with police to confirm the pound's status and to continue working with volunteer groups and commissioners on ordinance revisions and potential placement options. The commission discussed exploring city properties and coordinating with county partners.
