The City of Levelland Animal Shelter has gone through so many new changes this year and they are stronger than ever. As of right now there are eight dogs to be adopted and 21 cats. Macie Cole is Animal Control Manager at the shelter and is working tirelessly to get these dogs and cats a good new home. The Levelland Animal Shelter is a kill shelter so it’s critical to get these dogs and cats out as soon as they are checked into the shelter.
“We never have a set day we go off to put them down,” said Cole. “Let’s just say we have this nice dog and a Chihuahua that’s trying to bite your face off. We have to make the call to put the Chihuahua down first. We try to look out for the safety of our doctors and the community when it comes to scenarios like that.” Anyone outside of Levelland can also adopt these animals. The only limit they have as far as radius is surrendered animals and where they are picked up. The shelter does vaccinate on intake so all of the animals are vaccinated except for rabies which has to be done by a vet.
“They have 30 days upon adoption to have their animal fixed and rabies shot. We do follow up with the vets and will use citations on the owners if not done in the 30 day period,” said Cole. “We also have the right to take back the animal.”
The adoption process is different now with the website up but the one thing that hasn’t changed is you have to meet the animal before adopting it. The shelter does take walkins, but on Monday’s it’s by appointment only. The shelter has the right to tell you no on the circumstances of a bigger dog having no backyard or if the family had another pet not fixed.
“You may think it’s the cutest dog or cat but if you don’t click and the animal doesn’t like you it’s a safety concern,’ said Cole. “Safety is our biggest concern. We also don’t want more dogs being surrendered than necessary.” The shelter also has a foster system. There is a volunteer application you fill out and you have to have a valid driver’s license. The shelter is in compliance with the police department so the shelter does do background checks. The big news is the shelter is officially accepted into building a new facility. The facility they have now will still be in network when the new one is built but with the shelter only being able to hold 16 kennels with two kennels always open for incoming strays late in the night.
“We will finally have a quarantine station,” said Cole. “We are very excited that we can finally put it into motion.” If you want to donate any toys, food, or puppy pads the shelter would greatly appreciate it.