Changes coming to Boyd Animal Shelter
Boyd County Judge-Executive Eric Chaney views significant changes to the Boyd County Animal Shelter as 'extremely positive.'
The Boyd County Fiscal Court approved the shelter's amended policies and procedures during Tuesday's noon meeting.
The shelter is going from 'no-kill' to traditional, implementing safety measures, altering its hours and more.
By going more toward 'open admission' rather than 'limited admission,' the shelter is steering away from its previous 'no-kill' label.
Under Section 3 of the new manual, animals will be assessed for health and behavior upon intake. There is a holding period of five days for stray animals before they're eligible for adoption — to give time for owners and pets to reunite if that's the case.
'Animals may remain in the shelter up to 90 days,' Chaney read. 'During this period, alternate placement options such as foster care or transfer to another facility will be pursued. After this period, animals may be euthanized if no placement options are available.'
Chaney said prior to becoming a 'no-kill' shelter, Boyd County brought in 800 to 1,000 animals a year, and euthanized less than 10%. By contrast, the shelter took in only 234 animals in 2024 due to space limitations and animals staying for prolonged periods — including one named Polly that was in the shelter for two years before she was rescued.
'We brought them in and moved them,' Chaney said.
Chaney said the key word is 'urgency.'
When it comes to 'no-kill' shelters, there's no urgency from rescue organizations and the public to help move the animals out of the shelter, Chaney said.
'As we call rescues, one of the first questions is 'kill' or 'no-kill,' and as soon as you say no-kill, the sense of urgency is gone,' Chaney said.
PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) reported that too often animals in 'no-kill' shelters suffer miserable deaths.
Going forward, the Boyd County Animal Shelter at 1617 Fraley Lane will be open to the public from 4-8 Tuesday through Friday, and noon to 4 p.m. Saturday. It will be closed on Sunday and Monday, but Chaney said, rest assured, the animals will still be tended to and taken care of.
'We had a request from the public to be open in the evening,' Chaney said.
Volunteer hours will be Sunday through Friday from 4-8 and Saturday from noon until 4. The volunteer coordinator — a new position the fiscal court created — will be the point of contact for setting a weekly schedule.
Volunteers will be screened, trained and must sign a waiver. Any instance of misconduct or neglect will result in immediate removal, Chaney said.
Jailer Bill Hensley is leading the charge — through the inmate work program — on having inmates clean the shelter, let the animals get outside and allow them exercise time.
The public will not be permitted into the general area with animals for safety reasons.
'We don't yet, but we will have iPads on the wall when you come in, and you can scroll through pictures of the animals, and then we'll bring the animal to you,' Chaney said.
The mission statement of the Boyd County Animal Shelter is that it is committed to providing compassionate care to animals and ensure every animal finds a safe and loving home.
'Our goal is reduce animal homelessness and improve the quality of life for all pets in the county,' Chaney said.
One regular shelter volunteer called Chaney during the 'community comment' portion of Tuesday's Zoom meeting.
'As one of the volunteers, I wanted to ask for continued support,' she said. '… In order to keep animals safe and move them, we have to keep up the good work with socialization and training — keeping them out of the kennels as much as possible.
'(The changes, collectively) does not discourage us,' she added. 'People that volunteer there today, we know this change drives us forward. Thank you to the Court and we appreciate the opportunity to keep open discussion about these changes.'
Chaney said copies of the new policies and procedures are available to the public at boydcountyky.gov or anyone can contact him at (606) 922-7742.
Commissioner Jeremy Holbrook said if anyone is interested in volunteering, visit the shelter or its Facebook page to fill out a form and get started.
Holbrook also noted the manual will be reviewed annually.
'It's important we hear everyone's voices,' Holbrook said.
'Yeah, this is a working document,' Chaney reiterated.
The next Boyd County Fiscal Court meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, March 11, at noon.
(606) 326-2664 |
asnyder@dailyindependent.com
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