With the global pandemic, followed by several years of inflation, many families across the county have run into a hurdle. Trying to make ends meet has become a struggle, and decisions have come down to paying the electric bill, water bill and groceries, over providing for their four-legged friends. With that, there seems to be a rise in abandoned pets across the county, but the DeKalb Animal Shelter says there are options for people and their pets.
DeKalb Animal Control Officer Terry Phillips told the Smithville Review the Animal Shelter is at capacity as far as stray dogs and cats. “Right now, we are limited on our space. We have a new animal control building that holds eight additional dogs, in addition to the 20 that we also have here. Unfortunately, due the epidemic we had here with people dumping dogs, and people not spaying or neutering their animals, we now have an overflow of dogs.”
With the over population, Phillips said that the shelter has been taking steps to free up space and make it easier for a family to adopt a pet. “We are trying to combat that by reducing some of the population we have, so that we can take in dogs, by reducing the adoption fees by $50. We do pay for all the shots, microchips, spay and neuter, which all cost a lot of money. To get a dog out of here at $50, the price is way beneath what we (the animal shelter) have invested.”
“I do respond to all welfare or wellness checks on all animals, whether it’s cows, goats, dogs, cats, or whatever,” Phillips continued. “But, as far as an aggressive dog, one that shows up someone’s house and they don’t know where it came from, I would encourage citizens to try to get tag numbers of people dropping off animals so that we can hold those people accountable. Dumping an animal is illegal in Tennessee. It is illegal to abandon dogs in Tennessee, and it’s illegal not to provide food, water, and shelter, under certain standards.”
“I have had people tell me that because they live in the county that they are exempt from that, but that is not true. There is a leash law for the entire state of Tennessee. People need to keep their dogs under control, out of the roads, and on their property.”
Phillips said that he understands that many people are facing hard times with the state of the economy. Some believe that it comes down to a choice between providing for their pets or for their family. But Phillips said that there are options for people.
“They can come here and we can give them food. Every third Friday, we have the Friends of DeKalb Animal Shelter do a fundraiser, and various businesses throughout the county donate money to us. With that, we are able to provide food and different resources to families who have fallen on hard times, for free.”
“We also have a program for pets to be spayed or neutered, if someone can’t afford it. They can come here, fill out an application, and we have some funding to help with that. I want people to know, we’re here to help.”
The DeKalb Animal Shelter is located at 186 Transfer Station Road, Smithville, and is open Monday - Friday 8 am - 4 pm, and Saturday 8 am – 12 noon. You can contact them at dacshelter@gmail.com or call (615) 597-3647.
