Idaho animal shelter cuts euthanasia rate

Associated Press

RUPERT, Idaho - South central Idaho officials said they have slashed the number of dogs euthanized at an animal shelter.

The Minidoka Joint Powers Animal Control only put down one of the 548 dogs brought into the existing shelter in Paul this fiscal year, The Times-News reported.

Last year, nearly 60 percent of dogs placed in the shelter were euthanized.

Officials said the decrease can be attributed to stricter rules surrounding putting animals down.

"The only way we euthanize is if they're injured, ill or vicious," said Joint Powers Animal Control Officer Ken Mort.

Rupert City Administrator Kelly Anthon said the region has come a long way from when officials used to euthanize dogs at a landfill using carbon monoxide from vehicle exhaust.

Today, the region relies on an interagency agreement developed in 1995 to help humanely house and care for animals in the region.

"Before the original joint powers agreement 20 years ago, it was an ugly scene," Anthon said.

However, the animal shelter still struggles with low adoption rates. Mort said he hopes that will change when a new shelter opens next month.

The current shelter in Paul holds only 20 animals.

The new facility, which will be located in Rupert, will allow as many as 55 large kennels and have a large fenced-in yard for animals to run around.