Levy County Animal Services Director David Weatherford stares at a photographer as he explains to commissioners problems connected to a spay and neutering grant. File Photo.
By Terry Witt – Spotlight Senior Reporter
Levy County Commissioners remained silent at their Dec. 4 meeting on whether Levy County Animal Services should be opened on Saturdays to give working people a better chance to adopt animals.
Animal Services currently operates from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays which is about the same as bankers’ hours, only a little better.
The subject was raised at the meeting by Spotlight Founder Linda Cooper and she received the silent treatment from the board. Commissioners offered no comments on whether to open animal services on Saturdays.
Cooper commended the board for building its new air-conditioned and heated dog kennel. Philanthropist Bob Echols donated $220,000 to make the new kennel possible. Commissioners donated the time of its construction staff to work on the facility.
Commissioner Lilly Rooks said the opening date for the new kennel is expected to be March 20. The new kennel will eliminate the problems with the current concrete dog kennel, which isn’t heated or cooled and doesn’t have dog runs for the animals. It is a dark, cold facility during winter and hot in summers.
The animal services website says the public can adopt animals during business hours of 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays. Most working people can’t get away to spend time at the landfill-based facility during those hours, reducing opportunities for adoptions, according to Cooper.
Cooper has pushed the board to open on Saturdays, even if it means closing on Mondays and running the animal services office from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. The idea is to avoid spending extra money. Commissioners say the county can’t afford to add a day of operations.
Cooper said she doesn’t like going out to animal services because she knows what goes on inside the current dog kennel and it bothers her.
“Anytime I’m out there it upsets me when I hear the animals. I know what goes on behind the scenes,” she said. “I want to wait until the animals are moved over to the new kennel, so I don’t have that picture in my head of them in that concrete kennel.”
Cooper said the fact that a new kennel is being constructed doesn’t eliminate the need for opening animal services on Saturdays to allow people who have lost animals to look for their pet, or the need to allow for Saturday adoptions.
“It really is a disservice to the taxpayers that we can’t go there on Saturdays to adopt animals or see if their animal is there. I appreciate everything you’ve done. It has not gone unnoticed, but we have a long way to go,” Cooper said.
Cooper said she hates to hear that the kennel is full and dogs have to be euthanized. She accused commissioners of allowing their animal services director, David Weatherford, to establish policy and give them orders on how the facility should be run.
“One employee should not be dictating what our taxpayers are paying for. We want accessibility so we don’t have to see the animals suffer and we can give them homes,” she said.
Animal Services costs Levy County taxpayers about $400,000 annually.
Rooks, the commissioner who oversees animal services, asked Cooper is she knows how many pet owners give up their animals to the county animal services office. She indicated it was a growing number.
Cooper said Rooks was talking about a different subject than opening on Saturdays, and she added that there should be more spay and neuters. She said the trap, neuter and return (TNR) program at animal services doesn’t do enough to stop the birthing of feral cats. Animal Services sterilizes 18 feral cats per month through the TNR program. Cooper said more feral cats should be sterilized. The cats are sterilized and returned to the wild so they can’t reproduce.
“What we’re doing now is being reactive and not proactive,” Cooper said. “I think we can work so much better if we work together.”
The board members offered no comment on her suggestions for opening on Saturdays and increasing the number of TNR’s. Cooper said she has no intention of letting the issues disappear from public view.
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Board of County Commission Regular Meeting February 4, 2020; Posted February 9, 2020
