Round Rock Edition | May 2023

Williamson County Regional Animal Shelter

Pugerville Animal Shelter

400 350 300 250 200 100 150

337

Williamson County Regional Animal Shelter has been overcapacity most months since May 2022.

278

254

The Pugerville Animal Shelter* has managed to stay under capacity.

Williamson County Regional Animal Shelter capacity: 260

Pugerville Animal Shelter caging accommodation: 106

*THE PFLUGERVILLE ANIMAL SHELTER DOES NOT TRACK CAPACITY THROUGH THE NUMBER OF ANIMALS,

BUT RATHER THROUGH WHAT IT CALLS “CAGING ACCOMMODATION.” THE SHELTER HAS CAGING ACCOMMODATION OF 106.

June 2022

July 2022

Aug. 2023

Sept. 2022

Oct. 2022

Nov. 2022

Dec. 2022

Jan. 2023

Feb. 2023

March 2023

April 2023

SOURCES: PFLUGERVILLE ANIMAL SHELTER, WILLIAMSON COUNTY REGIONAL ANIMAL SHELTERCOMMUNITY IMPACT

Regardless of what's causing the population jumps, local shelter ocials say more needs to be done. April Peier, Williamson County Regional Animal Shelter program coordinator, said despite a recent expansion of the facility, shelter spikes are keeping pace with and surpassing available capacity even though the WCRAS budget continues to increase. The budget rose to $2.8 million in scal year 2022-23 from $2.6 million in FY 2021-22. In 2019, the county shelter completed a $10.5 mil- lion renovation and expansion, adding a new adop- tion center in a separate two-story building with 64 additional canine kennels and 93 feline kennels. After the expansion, critical capacity for dogs at the WCRAS rose to 170 or higher, and a comfortable capacity became 110 or lower, she said. As of late April, the dog population at the shelter rose to 186. “I don’t know that we’ve ever gotten into trouble with cats in the same way we are with dogs right Peier said one reason it has been so dicult for the WCRAS to get below capacity, at least for dogs, has to do with the service area. Like Pugerville’s shelter, the WCRAS enforces geographical limitations on the animals it intakes, meaning sta works to ensure the animals taken in come from within Williamson County. However, the WCRAS service area is much larger than Pugerville’s and includes all of Williamson County minus Georgetown and Taylor, Peier said. The Pugerville shelter only takes in animals within the city limits. The Austin Animal Shel- ter services the city's extraterritorial jurisdiction and all other unincorporated areas within Travis County. The WCRAS services a small portion of the Pugerville ETJ in Williamson County. To help keep the WCRAS from going too far over- capacity, Peier said WCRAS sta and volunteers have ramped up eorts in recent months, spear- heading more adoption events and boosting com- munity outreach eorts, among other initiatives. Similarly, McLendon said the Pugerville shelter is constantly seeking new fosters, holding adoption events and running social media promotions. now,” Peier said. Finding solutions “So we’re managing our intake right now, but man, we can be in good shape, and then the next day we’ve got to do something because there are so many animals coming in,” she said.

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going away anytime soon. “We’ve been putting out a lot of asks to our com- munity, to our volunteers, to our fosters just to make it through, literally sometimes day by day,” Valenta said. Dening the problem Round Rock resident Summer Pavliska has fos- tered more than 30 dogs over the last 15 years. Pavliska said shelter capacity issues grew soon after COVID-19 pandemic restrictions started lifting. “Everyone was getting a dog because everyone was sheltering in place. The dogs would keep them company,” she said. “Then the world starts opening up, and they no longer want the dog, and they take them back to the shelter.” Other local experts cite additional reasons for the population spikes at animal shelters. Sheila Smith is the founder of Round Rock-based nonprot Shadow Cats, which maintains a sanctu- ary for special needs cats and helps control stray populations through trap-neuter-return programs. Smith said other reasons for shelter population spikes could include a reduction in aordable spay and neuter services. Valenta disagreed that COVID-19 is a major reason for the capacity issues, at least at the WCRAS, and said she believes the biggest reason has to do with families in crisis needing to get rid of their pets.

Williamson County Regional Animal Shelter scal year 2022-23 budget:

Pugerville Animal Shelter FY 2022-23 budget

SOURCES: PFLUGERVILLE ANIMAL SHELTER, WILLIAMSON COUNTY REGIONAL ANIMAL SHELTERCOMMUNITY IMPACT

Nonprot shelters are also working to diminish the number of strays in the Round Rock, Pugerville and Hutto area. Scan the QR code to learn more about local nonprot shelters.

On a larger level, in late March, Williamson County ocials approved an agreement with the city of Georgetown to conduct a $50,000 feasibility study on the viability of discontinuing the Georgetown Animal Shelter and expanding the WCRAS. If the study, which ocials said should be com- plete by summer, shows it would be practical for all of the participating entities, the city would call a bond election in November to acquire the funding. If the bond passes, a new agreement would be drawn up to allow Georgetown to formally join the regional animal shelter. “If [the study] nds that we can work together to build a building that would accommodate for every- one and accommodate for growth, then that would really help so many situations,” Valenta said.

When a shelter goes overcapacity, sta will take a number of actions to help manage the population. Those actions include:

Placing two or more animals in a cage

Ramping up adoption events

Increasing community requests for more volunteers

For more information, visit communityimpact.com .

SOURCES: PFLUGERVILLE ANIMAL SHELTER, WILLIAMSON COUNTY REGIONAL ANIMAL SHELTERCOMMUNITY IMPACT

ROUND ROCK EDITION • MAY 2023