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o Effort to ensure spay and neuter before adoption and follow-up for compliance for <br />animals sent home on contract <br />o Trying to run a modern animal welfare program from a building that was not <br />designed for such a program <br />o Internal formal euthanasia training <br />o Temperament evaluations beginning to be conducted <br />o Initiated "breed party" to strengthen relationship with outside placement groups <br />o Provides after hour emergency animal rescue, behavior assistance to pet <br />owners, and other services to the community outside the contractual relationship <br />with the County <br />o Informative website providing needed information to the community and featuring <br />animals available for adoption <br />o Good working relationship with County Animal Control Officers <br />Recommendations in General <br />o When taken out of context are damaging and hinder progress <br />o Many hinge on others and should be considered in tandem <br />o Many cannot be implemented overnight -allow time for changes to be <br />considered and made -some may be years down the road <br />o Will need the dedication of time, energy, and commitment from shelter and the <br />County staff <br />General Discussion <br />o Shelter programming falls into two categories -reactive and proactive. The <br />proactive approach is recommended (i.e., humane education, outreach, changing <br />people's views, and spay and neuter} <br />o Limited admission versus open admission <br />o Conflicts between ability {budget, staff, and facility limitations} and desire to treat <br />treatable diseases often result in unhealthy general population and negative <br />public perception resulting in reduction of adoption numbers <br />o Weigh efforts against outcomes -hard to da <br />General Direction of Report Recommendations: <br />Facility Reality versus Desire <br />o Attempting to respond to the demands of the community to provide <br />serviceslprograms for which the facility was not built <br />o Strengthen and adhere to standard operating procedures to ensure facility is <br />used to its best ability and also to provide necessary accountability and oversight <br />Animal Management <br />o Streamline process -adoption, behavior, evaluation/selection criteria <br />o Promote healthy and behaviorally sound animals =increased positive public <br />perception <br />o Utilize agency vet to full capacity of talent: pediatric spay/neuter and disease <br />management <br />o Establish a euthanasia protocol based on the reality of the facility. Provide time <br />and space far those with stranger potential for re-homing <br />Management <br />o Increase accountability for staff <br />