 - The Riverton City Council approved a $20,000 funding agreement with the Paws for Life Animal League this week aimed at ensuring that municipal officials always have somewhere to place impounded dogs and cats.){kind=link}
(Riverton, WY) – The Riverton City Council approved a $20,000 funding agreement with the Paws for Life Animal League this week aimed at ensuring that municipal officials always have somewhere to place impounded dogs and cats.
According to the agreement, Paws will now be “responsible for securing and funding alternative housing” for impounded animals – even if the organization doesn’t have room at its own shelter facility.
“They have to have an agreement with a third party,” Riverton Police Department Lieutenant Eric Smits explained. “There must always be space available for newly impounded domestic dogs and cats which are impounded by officials of the city.”
Furever Found
Previously, when Paws was full, it often fell to local law enforcement officials to find alternative housing for impounded animals – and in recent months, many of those animals went to an organization called Furever Found in Fremont County.
During this week’s meeting, Furever Found President Mark Lewis told the council that his organization has taken in 29 animals from the City of Riverton since Aug. 11, including 13 dogs, five puppies, and 11 kittens.
Some of those animals required medical care, Lewis said, asking whether the city plans to reimburse Furever Found for those costs.
In response, Mayor Tim Hancock asked whether the organization had a contract in place indicating that the city would cover medical costs for impounded animals.
“No,” Lewis said. “We have no agreement with the city.”
Furever Found must have recovered at least some of those medical expenses when impounded dogs were reclaimed by their owners for a fee, Councilmember Karla Borders said, adding that she would like to see the organization work cooperatively with Paws moving forward.
“Would that be possible?” Hancock asked Lewis. “Because what we’re talking about with the contract would be that Paws would be responsible, and they could go through anybody else and figure out whatever they need to figure out. Do you see that working with Furever Found?”
Lewis replied that he isn’t opposed to “any agreement,” reiterating that, “right now, the only thing that we’re wondering is, where do we recoup our medical costs?”
“We do need to talk about that,” Hancock agreed. “That’s something we need to make sure we get addressed.”
Later, he asked staff to place the item on an upcoming council meeting agenda for future consideration.
Paws
Under the new funding agreement the city council approved this week, Paws Co-Director Devon Kellerhall pointed out that her organization would pay groups like Furever Found to house animals when necessary.
Paws will also supply its partner organizations with animal food and cover veterinary costs, Kellerhall said, expressing interest in working with Furever Found – and any group looking to help house stray animals in Fremont County.
That includes the City of Riverton, she added, addressing concerns Councilmember Karen Johnson had expressed earlier in the meeting about Paws’ plan to potentially move to a different location sometime in the future.
Even if Paws does move to a new facility, Kellerhall said “our intention is not to cut our relationship with the city.”
Instead, she said, “our intention would be to expand our capacity to serve the city.”
“The capacity of (our current) building just doesn’t satisfy what is out there right now,” Kellerhall explained. “We have brought forth some thoughts that might help … make things work, and it’s been told to us very clearly that will not happen. So, we are trying to search other avenues so that we can help the city in a bigger way.”