Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Animal Control topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Cowlitz County lets Humane Society sheltering contract lapse, shifts animal-control duties to county
Summary
After reviewing a multi-year contract proposal from the Humane Society and the county's in-house experience since 2024, commissioners said they would not renew the Humane Society's sheltering arrangement and will continue animal-control duties through the sheriff's office with temporary kennels and foster placement support.
Cowlitz County commissioners said the county will not renew a proposed multi-year sheltering contract with the Humane Society and that the county will continue animal-control operations handled since 2024 by the sheriff's office.
Commissioners recounted the history: in 2023 the Humane Society provided animal-control and sheltering services under a contract of roughly $363,000. When the Humane Society later ceased providing animal control, the county and cities adopted in-house animal-control coverage; commissioners said that animal-control operations alone now cost the county roughly $265,000'$280,000 annually. The Humane Society later proposed a sheltering contract that county staff estimated would raise combined taxpayer costs toward roughly $300,000 per year and escalate over three years, which commissioners judged fiscally unreasonable.
"We let the extension expire; there was no vote to terminate the contract," a commissioner said, correcting earlier media reporting. Commissioners described steps the county has taken since the Humane Society withdrew animal-control duties, including temporary kennels for initial custody (first 72 hours), use of foster homes for return-to-owner and adoption placements, and updated dangerous-animal and nuisance-animal policies drafted with counsel.
Commissioners and staff said they value the work of reserves, volunteers and foster-home operators who have come forward; at the time of the meeting staff reported three foster-home contacts. Some commissioners criticized the Humane Society's tactics and proposed terms, saying the county had tried to find alternate sheltering vendors via RFP and that the Humane Society's proposed pricing and contract language (including a requested ordinance change that would shift some liability to the county) were not acceptable.
Public comment included support for the sheriff's office handling animal control and criticism of Humane Society outreach tactics. Commissioners thanked county staff for their work and said they would monitor the program and adjust if outcomes do not meet legal or public-safety requirements.
Next steps: county staff will continue animal-control operations, finalize temporary kennel and foster arrangements, and report back to the board if additional contracting or ordinance changes are needed.
