Campaspe Animal Shelter will transition from a shelter to a pound over the next 12 months, with the express aim of delivering better animal welfare outcomes for lost or stray cats and dogs, as well as providing financial efficiency across the service.
Like many councils, Campaspe Shire is moving away from a shelter model where lost or stray animals are held for extended periods of time awaiting adoption, and instead will move to a pound service where animals will be placed in the hands of a rescue or animal welfare group after 8 days.
Campaspe Shire Council's Director Communities Jo Bradshaw said despite several adoption drives, and the best effort of the animal shelter, the number of animals residing at the shelter for significant lengths of time in a cage and concrete environment awaiting adoption was not in the best interest of the animal.
"Owners will still be able to claim their lost pet up to 8 days after their dog or cat comes into the pound, the difference is that stray animals will then be put in the hands of rescue and animal welfare groups who nurture, re-train and foster animals before placing in a forever home. There will be no adoptions from Campaspe. There are a number of animal welfare groups already operating in this area, who re-home animals across the state and interstate, opening up options outside of Campaspe for stray cats and dogs," she said.
Campaspe Shire Mayor, Cr Rob Amos said Council recently conducted a service review of the animal shelter that showed the current model is categorically not in the best interest of the animal, nor is it financially efficient.
"Our shelter has done an amazing job for many years, homing unwanted, lost or stray animals but the reality is, many are held in the shelter for extended periods of time which is not ideal. Not for the animal, and not financially either. Not many councils run the shelter model for those reasons," he said.
Mayor Amos said benchmarking as part of the service review showed Campaspe's cost to service per animal at the shelter was double that of like councils.
"Basically, we have been holding too many animals for too long – moving to the pound model makes sense for both the welfare and safety of the animal and from a financial point of view," he said.
Once the full transition is made over the next 12 months, members of the community who have their animal picked up by the ranger or taken to the pound will have up to 8 days to claim their pet.
"We will still scan for microchip and contact owners, however if the animal is not claimed after 8 days, ownership moves to Council, and we will be place the animal with the appropriate animal welfare rescue group. That group will have reporting responsibilities back to us, so we have visibility and transparency and are able to track the animal's progress from here. The only difference from a community perspective is that we will not be offering an adoption service from Campaspe after the next 12 months," Ms Bradshaw said.
Campaspe Council will work on the transition model over the next 12 months.
