Council presses contractor over late, unclear animal-control reports

Council members raised concerns Wednesday about the timeliness and clarity of animal-control reports provided by the city's contractor, Forever Homes. City Administrator Jody Sanders presented the October report and said the shelter is a no-kill nonprofit contracted to hold animals on the city's behalf.

Councilman Horner said the reports arrive late and lack important detail, making it hard to understand which animals are being held under city custody. "This is a continual issue almost ever since I've been on council that these reports come in either late or they're inaccurate," he said, adding that the ordinance and the contract require timely reporting. Horner pressed staff for an explanation of why some animals appear to be in care for long periods and requested clearer flags for extenuating circumstances.

Sanders told the council that Forever Homes provides the shelter reports and financials and that some animals may be held longer because of ongoing cases, noting that the shelter's mission is to hold and care for animals. She suggested the council might find police/CSO incident-level reporting more useful for tracking animals taken in on the city's behalf. "They're providing the city a service for a set fee ... that's not related to the number of animals or the length of time," Sanders said.

Councilwoman Gannon and Councilman Jen Jensen agreed staff should produce a clearer breakout showing which animals were admitted at the city's request versus those that are shelter care. The council voted 7'to'0 to receive the report; no disciplinary action or contract changes were taken at the meeting.