Loading...
HomeMy Public PortalAbout2019-12-17 minutesMinutes Animal Shelter Advisory Committee Meeting Tuesday, December 17, 2019 Members Present: Dr. Greg Boyer, Chair Lt. Chad Stieferman Dr. Melissa Bolden, Vice Chair Captain Derek Heislen Chief Roger Schroeder Lori Blatter, Shelter Manager Dr. Crago- Committee Member Dr. Jessica Thiele, Shelter Veterinarian The Animal Shelter Committee met for a regularly scheduled meeting on Tuesday December 17, 2019 in the Conference Room, Jefferson City Animal Shelter, 2308 Hyde Park Road, Jefferson City Missouri. The meeting was called to order by Dr. Boyer, Chair. Approval of Minutes Dr. Crago moved to approve the minutes from the previous meeting and Dr. Bolden seconded. Staff Reports Shelter manager Lori Blatter submitted some statistics for the committee to review. She highlighted that the number of held strays has increased 33% from the same time last year. It was suggested that the public perception of the shelter is becoming more positive and the public feels more comfortable turning strays in. The number of intakes has increased by 4% as well. The wait list is currently caught up around a 2 month wait time. We are currently working through the wait list as quickly as we are able to, and plan to be caught up soon. Dr. Thiele reported that since the last advisory meeting, the shelter has had two outbreak incidences. One was with an upper respiratory infection in cats, but thankfully not many cats were affected as we were managing our population levels well. The second was with minor sneezing episode s in about 10 dogs. Because any outbreak occurrence in dogs is highly unusual for the shelter, diagnostics were performed and testing confirmed pneumovirus in the 3 dogs that were tested. There is no available vaccine for this virus, and we have managed that situation where it is no longer spreading in the shelter. Written Correspondence There was recently some written correspondence regarding a dog which had been adopted from the shelter and several months later the individual wanted to return the dog and was put on the waiting list. The citizen was upset that it was taking too long. This issue had been resolved as of the time of the advisory meeting. Some discussion revolved around written correspondence and what actually constituted written correspondence and what needed to be reported to the advisory board. Minutes Animal Shelter Advisory Committee Meeting Tuesday, December 17, 2019 Old Business Lt. Stieferman stated the mold remediation process is progressing. The washer and dryer have been moved to the garage, the vents have been replaced and there is a noticeable difference on the building. All of the vents which were affected by the mold have been replaced. New Business Lt. Stieferman will be putting forth a memo to request approval for the shelter manager’s request for exterior kennel flaps in dog adoption and one of the dog stray holding areas. This would allow the adoption animals access to double sided -housing during business hours, which is considered best practice. Installation of the kennel flap should also help alleviate some of the heating/cooling issues the shelter experiences during extremely hot and cold weather as it will provide an additional barrier between the exterior temperatures and the interior space. Once these are installed the mold remediation will continue. This will consist of balancing the system and cleaning the remaining light fixtures. There was discussion regarding Animal Control Officers (ACO) giving vaccines after hours when no one is able to assist. Shelter manager was concerned with safety issues with animals we have no history on and only one person in the building. After discussion it was decided that the ACO’s would intake the animals, write that they were not vaccinated on the board and the kennel card and then ask for assistance the next day. The Friends of the Jefferson City Animal Shelter have recently received a large donation so discussions have again started about a possible agreement for them to replace the aging plastic cat kennels in the Vet and Intake areas with new stainless steel kennels. Since Shoreline had shipped 6 kennels that were incorrect for the rolling bank that was donated by the Jefferson City Heart of Missouri Humane Society it was discussed about the possibility to use those to reduce our cost. Dr. Boyer asked if the new kennels would be equipped with self-ventilation and it was indicated they would. He pointed out that the ones provided for the rolling bank didn’t have rear cutouts for the ventilation. Lori is going to research the cost of getting the modifications made to the 6 existing kennels to see if it is better to have them modified or not. After the discussion about the moving forward with this potential agreement there was not voiced opposition to it. Lori will get 2 quotes; first will be the cost of using the existing 6 kennels with modification, and second will be getting all new kennels and not using the existing 6. The shelter has revised the way it is performing rabies vaccinations for pets that are too young for vaccination at time of adoption. For pets that are adopted who are under 12 weeks old the new pet owner can return the shelter after pet reaches 12 weeks to receive their rabies vaccination since it is already included in the adoption fee. There will be no changes in the rabies vouchers that are issued for owner release animals where rabies vaccinations can’t be verified. There was a discussion about the $25 fee that is charged and it was decided that at this time that fee will remain the same. After guidance from the City’s Legal staff it was agreed that the local vet clinics are not obligated to provide the service $20 unless they want to. They are permitted to charge additional fees over the $20 if they feel the need to do so. Minutes Animal Shelter Advisory Committee Meeting Tuesday, December 17, 2019 The $20 voucher is a coupon off the cost or the services and not meant to cover the whole cost. If a vet clinic wants to waive the additional costs and perform the service for $20 they are allowed to do that as well. Shelter staff will start to instruct pet owners that the $20 is towards the cost of the service instead of telling them it will cover the entire cost. The Shelter is in the research phase of looking at installing a commercial dish washer where the old washer and dryer were. There was a discussion about the humidity levels and if that would just replace reintroduce the same issues. After talking with Central Missouri Plumbing they stated the dishwasher will produce much less humidity than the washer and dryer so it will be able to be properly vented. It will also allow for the doors to the room to be closed to prevent the spread of the humidity throughout the building. As this project moves forward we will work the Friends of the Jefferson City Animal shelter for a possible partnership. Meeting Adjourned at 1:28pm Next meeting Marc h 17 , 2019 12:30 PM Conference Room, Jefferson City Animal Shelter Respectfully submitted Lori A Blatter