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Animal shelters full; more euthanasia possible
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A puppy walks around its kennel waiting to be adopted at the Maricopa County Animal Care and Control East Valley shelter.
Tim Hacker, Tribune
Puppies wait to be adopted at the Maricopa County Animal Care and Control East Valley shelter.
Tim Hacker, Tribune
Maricopa County's animal shelters are full, and officials are facing the possibility of having to euthanize animals that, under normal circumstances, would not be put down.
"Maricopa County Animal Care and Control is seeing something it has never seen before," according to a statement from Aprille Hollis, MCACC spokeswoman. "Both shelters are full, with more than 1,000 animals housed in Phoenix and Mesa. These are numbers normally associated with busy summer months, not the middle of November."
The county is asking people to think twice about surrendering their pets to the shelter right now. Time is needed to move some of the animals out in order to free up some space, according to Hollis.
Linda Soto, a shelter manager, said the number of animals that had to be euthanized had been dropping, and officials don't want the trend to reverse.
"One of the reasons that we are full is that we are saving more lives," Soto said. "Our euthanasia numbers are way down. But those animals take up kennel space."
County officials are encouraging people to consider adopting a pet from county shelters. The East Valley shelter is located in Mesa at 2630 W. Eighth St.
"In order to continue to save as many lives as possible, MCACC needs the public's help to battle this crisis," according to Hollis. "If you have been thinking of adding to your family, this is a great time to do so."
The county also is asking current pet owners to get their animals spayed or neutered to help control the pet population.
For information, contact MCACC at (602) 506-7387.
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