By Dr. Ferrell Miller
JC Breakfast Optimist Club
Vanessa Gray, Director of the Junction City Animal Shelter, was the guest speaker at the JC Breakfast Optimist Club meeting on January 28 in the Hampton Inn Meeting Room. Vanessa has been the Director at the Shelter since 2017.
She told the Optimists that she met all but one of her five-year goals within the first year of her Directorship. She is still working on the last one, which is to either build a new Animal Shelter or expand the current one. “It looks like the expansion, is what will eventually happen. This expansion would be on the north side of the current building. The building we are in now was built to temporarily house 22 dogs. We now have a range of 40 to 70 dogs.”
Vanessa also shared that she and her staff “have a program titled Max’s Account in which applications may be made to offset the cost of neutering animals or provided behavior training for animals in need. Anyone is welcome to apply but can only do so two times per year.”
Trap-Neuter-Release is in reference to controlling the cat population and is done in partnership with Kansas State University. “Since 2013, 400 cats were involved in this program. Cats who have been trapped and neutered have one of their ears clipped, so the ear is flatter than the other and identifiable. Then the cat is again released”, Vanessa said.
Rent-a Pup is a program in which dogs are loaned out to businesses to provide some relief for the dogs at the shelter and gives the human participants an opportunity to spend time with a dog at work.
Vanessa also stated that during the cold months, “it is advisable to limit the time a pet is outside. Know your dog’s limits, wrap them in sweaters or if the animals are still to be kept outside, use straw for them to lie on.”
To learn more, be given a tour or consider adopting a pet at the Junction City Animal Shelter, contact Vanessa Gray at 785-238-1359.
JC Breakfast Optimist Club meetings are recorded and available for viewing on the JC Breakfast Optimist Club’s Facebook page and Youtube.