Montrose - Daily Press

MONTROSE �” The Montrose Animal Shelter boasted a 100 percent placement rate for healthy cats and dogs in 2009. That leaves the euthanasia rate for adoptable animals at zero for the first time in at least three years, says the shelter’s year-end report, released Monday.

The shelter adopted out, transferred or returned to owners 1,257 adoptable pets last year. It had to euthanize 49 dogs and 334 cats that were considered unadoptable or untreatably sick. Eighty percent of the dogs that had to be put down had failed temperament tests, and 56 percent of the cats put to sleep were feral.

In previous years, the shelter also was forced to euthanize some adoptable pets. In 2007, 68 dogs and 95 cats that would have made good pets were destroyed. In 2008, dramatic improvements were seen: Only 12 adoptable dogs and seven adoptable cats had to be put down.

Charlie, a year-old German shepherd mix, looks longingly at the camera, hoping for a new home. He is one of several adoptable dogs and cats at the Montrose Animal Shelter. COURTESY CITY OF MONTROSE Advertisement

And 2009 saw the best outcome to date, said Montrose Police Officer Mike Duncan, shelter director.

“Our transfers are one of the biggest reasons for our low euthanasia rates,” Duncan said, crediting volunteer Beth Jones for performing most of the transfer duties.

For the full story, see today's print edition. The online story may not reflect all relevant information that was reported. We encourage readers to obtain the full story by reading the print edition or our e-edition, To subscribe, call (970) 252-7081 or click on the subscription link on the main page.

Comments

Mark wrote on Feb 27, 2010 10:03 PM:

" You appear to be a little sensitive, Sean. My post wasn't intended to upset your fragile life.

Montrose already requires dog registration. At least when they are caught in traps, the trapper knows to whom the dog belongs and the city pound can properly deal with the mischevious animal.

Why are cats not required to be registered in Montrose? "




Report Abuse

sean wrote on Feb 22, 2010 1:45 PM:

" Mark seems to have an issue. Myself I don't see cat scat "everywhere", also not all cats are domestic. What I see is dog leaving their thing in our parks where our children play and they can't seem to pass up a pole or my tires. Mark, please, get a life. "




Report Abuse

Citizen wrote on Feb 22, 2010 11:27 AM:

" To add on to this person, I have been told there is a problem with people using traps and not returning cats. This is under investigation. I too am very concerned, but both dogs and cats are equally the same as far as roaming and other matters. We are growing and more people are bringing theirs pets, lets try and be kind and welcome the new people and not turn them away. "




Report Abuse

Mark wrote on Feb 21, 2010 11:22 AM:

" This may not be the proper place for this comment, but I'd like to propose that the city of Montrose enact a cat/feline registration program.

This proposal is based on the excessive amount of roaming domestic cats in the downtown area. They defecate everywhere, urinate with an awful scent and are frustratingly mischevious. "




Report Abuse

Feral Mom wrote on Feb 16, 2010 12:06 PM:

" Never ever take a feral cat to an animal shelter that doesn't have a TNR (trap/neuter/release) program. It's a guaranteed death sentence. Does the Montrose shelter do TNR, and if not, why not? Even the small shelter in Chaffee County has a barn cat/feral cat TNR program. Good work on your placement of adoptable pets! "




Report Abuse