Pet adoptions down at Poplar Bluff Animal Shelter

As happens many times during the summer months, pet adoptions again have tapered off at the Poplar Bluff animal shelter.

“Right now, the adoptions are down; schools are out, people are going on vacation,” said Animal Control Office Mark Hastings. “No one wants to adopt animals, bring a new pet into the family” during that time.

Hastings said the trend is “kind of a repetitive thing that happens each year during the summertime.”

As her nearly 8-week-old kitten nurses, this calico cat hisses from inside her cage at the Poplar Bluff Animal Shelter.DAR/Michelle Friedrich

Animal Control officers, he said, are hopeful when school resumes for the fall, “more people are back to adopting animals from the shelter.”

As far as the shelter’s current pet population, “we’re holding our own,” Hastings said.

With some of the dogs not available for adoption at this time, “we’re full,” Hastings said. “Our shelter is running at a no-kill status; that is one of the contributing reasons the numbers are so high.”

Animal Control Officer Mark Hastings leads a 9-month-old male boxer mix from his kennel at the Poplar Bluff Animal Shelter on Butler Street. As a puppy, the dog was adopted from the shelter, but later returned because he got bigger than expected. The dog is neutered and available for adoption.DAR/Michelle Friedrich

To highlight the animals up for adoption, animal control officers have resumed featuring a “pet of the week” in the Daily American Republic.

“That does help when people see them” in the paper, Hastings said.

Some of the animals are also featured on petfinder.com.

The adoption fee for dogs is $10, and it’s $5 for cats, kittens and puppies under six months of age.

“They have to be spayed or neutered before the animal goes home with its new owner,” Hastings said.

The shelter, he said, works with the three veterinarians in Poplar Bluff.

“They do provide discounts for the spaying and neutering of animals adopted out,” Hastings said.

The policy requiring cats and dogs to be sprayed or neutered before they leave the shelter was put into place a couple of years ago, said Hastings, who indicated it “seems like it is helping.”

And, once adopted, the Animal Control officers urge the new owners to make sure their pets have identification tags.

For dogs, Hastings said, the city requires they also have a current city dog license tag.

“The biggest problem is when we get them in without tags or ID,” said Animal Control Officer Dan St. Lawrence. “They can’t tell us where they live.”

About 90% of the animals “we pick up don’t have tags,” St. Lawrence said.

Social media, he said, is used to “get the word out” to the owners, but they are not always successful in finding the owners.

Located on Butler Street, the shelter is open from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Friday and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday for adoptions.