10-day hold policy in effect for Animal Control

By Beverly Bryant/News Director

Ponca City Animal Control has started a policy of holding animals for 10 days, effective Nov. 1.

Police Chief Don Bohon, in a report prepared for the Animal Control Advisory Panel meeting Tuesday night, said local rescues that work with Animal Control have been notified of the new policy and the information has been posted at the Animal Control Center.

Beginning on Nov. 1, the cards for each animal will have a date that animal will be euthanized if it is not picked up by the owner, rescued or adopted, Bohon said.

“ That date will be determined by counting day 1 as the first full day at the center, usually the day after pickup or surrender,” he said. “The animal will be held 10 calendar days (counting weekends), and on day 11, the animal will be euthanized if not picked up, rescued or adopted. That will allow rescues time to look for placement and will make sure everyone knows an exact date to work with. If the 10-day limit falls on a weekend or holiday, the date will be the next day the center is open.”

There may be some exceptions to this based on cause, Bohon said.

“ Reasons we may euthanize animals prior to the 10-day limit may include illness, aggressiveness, and lack of space,” he said. “If you are working on placement for an animal, please let Stephanie know so she can make a note, or mark the card. If for any reason we need to euthanize prior to the 10-day limit for any of these reasons, I will ask her to contact you about that animal before it is euthanized prior to the 10-day limit.”

Holding for 10 days may be more difficult with cats due to space, he said.

“ We will make an effort to hold them for that long, but may see more need for shorter times with cats than we do with dogs. We will see how it goes and this may be an issue the board needs to revisit concerning cats,” Bohon said.

This limit on holding is an issue that was discussed by the Animal Control Board and voted on at the last meeting.

Deputy Chief Rogers led Tuesday’s meeting in Bohon’s absence due to a family commitment.

He said a new Animal Control officer started work last week.

In a report on the number of animals handled by Animal Control from January through October, comparing 2014 to 2015, Bohon said:

Dogs Handled 474 (2014) 698 (2015)
Dogs Euthanized 157 (2014) 251 (2015)
Percent Euthanized 33.12 (2014) 35.96 (2015)
Strays vs Surrenders 367 / 107 (2014) 547 / 151 (2015)
Percent Surrenders 23 (2014) 22 (2015)

Cats Handled 293 (2014) 419 (2015)
Cats Euthanized 239 (2014) 302 (2015)
Percent Euthanized 81.57 (2014) 72.08 (2015)
Strays vs Surrenders 201 / 92 (2014) 338 / 81 (2015)
Percent Surrenders 31 (2014) 19 (2015)