Animal Rescue of Carroll seeks $10,000 from city as adoptions, costs strain shelter

Dr. Mike Davis, veterinarian of record for the Animal Rescue of Carroll, asked the Carroll City Council for $10,000 to help sustain shelter operations, saying the group has seen adoptions fall while intake and care costs remain high.

Davis told the council that through mid-November the shelter recorded 84 intakes and 166 adoptions combined and that the group partners informally with Carroll Veterinary Clinic to hold strays before transferring them to the rescue. "We are asking for $10,000 from you but we will take whatever you're willing to help us out with," Davis said, noting the shelter’s annual operating budget and private donations.

The presentation included budget figures the organization provided to the council: an annual operating budget reported as about $151,000 and private donations typically in the $60,000–$70,000 range in a recent 12‑month period. Davis said volunteers have decreased over the past year and that the shelter now pays roughly $44,000 in wages, with additional day-to-day overhead and medical costs for animals. He reported the city's contract with Carroll Veterinary Clinic to hold strays at approximately $650 per month.

Council members asked how county involvement and reimbursement work for large operations such as hoarding responses; Davis said the rescue has often been asked to assist without county reimbursement and that they sometimes accommodate large responses with help from neighboring organizations. He described the shelter’s intake process, foster network and efforts to place animals through adoption or rehoming services.

The council did not act on the request at the meeting; a council member said the item would be discussed as part of the municipal budget process.