Animal shelter volunteers needed as number of cats, dogs soar

An unusual breeding season has led to more puppies and kittens coming into the Macon-Bibb County animal shelter over the past several months.

With the higher intake, the Animal Welfare Department is in need for more volunteers to help take care of some of the daily routines — walking dogs, laundry, cleaning and answering phones — so shelter employees can focus more on adoptions and working with rescue groups.

The warmer months usually mean more animals are brought into the shelter. But this year more puppies and kittens than normal have come in, possibly in part due to a milder winter, said Bill Fickling, chairman of the Macon-Bibb animal welfare task force.

“We have volunteers down there daily and have had for many years, but for whatever reason there has been a bigger problem (this year) than we normally have,” he said. “Even if you have a couple extra hours during the day to volunteer, it would be helpful. It’s a case where if you share the workload it’s a lot easier to manage the shelter. Quite frankly (the employees) have been overworked because of the larger volume and so the volunteers have been overworked as well.”

The county will continue to monitor the Animal Welfare Department’s ability to handle adoptions and other services, including animal hoarding investigations, Macon-Bibb spokesman Chris Floore said.

In April, Saving Animals From Euthanasia, also known as S.A.F.E., ended its agreement with the county to handle animal adoptions and spay/neuter services. During the eight-month partnership, the county had an increase in the number of homes found for animals and reduced the euthanasia rates.

Last month, more than 400 animals were brought into the shelter and no healthy or adoptable animals were euthanized, according to a Macon-Bibb report. But in order to keep the number of strays coming into the shelter down, there also needs to be an emphasis on preventing them from becoming pregnant.

“I think the solution to this problem is ultimately efforting more pet owners to get their animals spayed and neutered,” Fickling said.

One of the best options for spay/neuter is through S.A.F.E., which now has a second van that can provide the services for a low price, Fickling said.

The county’s facility is also being examined.

“The county has asked us to look for a way to utilize the (Macon-Bibb’s) spay and neuter facility,” Fickling said. “It is there and needs to be used and will be reopened.”

This story was originally published August 17, 2016 at 5:51 PM with the headline "Animal shelter volunteers needed as number of cats, dogs soar."