Bloom Where You Are Planted, continued. Present ed byManat eeC e Coun ty in partnership w p with MCAS “We became strategic with popu- Over 100 Adoptable Pets


ADOPT-A-PALOOZA & PET EXPO


Fo please call Caryn Hodge


orr vendo a d ror ar nd rescue group pa ic pa ion 941.713.3105 | FOMCAS.org


ge att 94 05 participation,


lation management instead of reactive,” Sarah told her audience. “Everyone becomes numb to the ‘we are full’ plea. Listen to your community. They’re telling you what the needs are. Each community is unique and the best place for an animal is in a home.” Manatee County Animal Services


is now more about population man- agement and public safety. “We have assigned an officer specifically for community outreach and compliance; to help with education and resources. We’re no longer holding dogs hostage. We work with owners on fees. We’ve changed our hours to being open seven days a week to the public. We work on options to have animals not enter the shelter. We’ve started a pet retention hotline. We target spay/neuter programs by zip codes of intake. We’ve taken a pro-active approach to lost and found. And, we give resources to those wanting to surrender their pets,” said Sarah. “We also make daily rounds of the kennels to determine the best path for each animal.” In spite of these successes and


processes in place, Chief Brown and her staff do not rest on their laurels. First, there’s no time. Second, everyone is aware that one natural disaster or one hoarding case can send the shelter into the danger zone of being over capacity again. Processes continue to be updated as necessary. In the meantime, though, maybe


it’s okay to bring out the letter from UF Maddie’s Shelter Medicine Assessment Program on occasion. We all need reassurance that what we’re doing is right, and that we really are making a difference.


U Y


Manatee County Animal Services 305 25th Street West, Palmetto. 941.742.5933


MyManatee.org/pets


For more information on Maddie's Shelter Medicine Program at the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine: ShelterMedicine.vetmed.ufl.edu


30 THE NEW BARKER www.TheNewBarker.com


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