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Supervisors press sheriff on animal‑control staffing and shelter capacity
Summary
Sheriff's office told the board about vacancies in animal control and kennel staffing and the operational burden of sheltering dozens of animals; supervisors sought strategies to increase licensing revenue and recommended evaluating contracting shelter services to NGOs.
Sheriff's representatives said animal control has an ACO leaving next month for military service and a kennel attendant position has been vacant for some time, leaving operations thin. The shelter faces rapid turnover — the sheriff said counts can go from 14–15 dogs to 45–50 within a week — and staffing requirements (two people on weekends) drive costs and safety concerns.
Supervisors asked about administrative citation revenue and licensing collections (the county budgeted $20,000 for licenses after $13,000 was collected last year). The sheriff suggested exploring the ShelterPro system's follow‑up features and stronger collection policies (e.g., higher fees for noncompliance). One supervisor urged the sheriff to present options to separate long‑term shelter care (adoption and boarding) from animal control's enforcement function, possibly contracting with NGOs or neighboring jurisdictions to manage sheltering operations.
