New management is sheltering county’s animals

Though Oct. 1 was the official first day on the job for Jennifer Nall and her Paws to the Rescue volunteers, it was not the first day Nall was on the scene helping Marion County animals.

Marion County Council voted in August to pass management to the Surfside Beach-based group. Paws to the Rescue, a volunteer group led by Nall, has previously worked with the shelter to rescue animals and prevent them as often as possible from being put to death. In August Nall said she was so excited about the vote to allow her to oversee the animal shelter that she didn’t know what to say. “We have a lot of hard work ahead of us, but we’re very excited,” she added.

She was right. On Sunday, before taking over the management on Wednesday, Nall and nine volunteers worked eight hours sanitizing and sterilizing the upper level cat room, filled with crates, and several of the dog pens on the shelter’s lower concrete floor.

This past week, Sandy Clark and Aletha Waters had been roped into helping her continue the cleaning. While she is cleaning the temporary homes for the cats and dogs at the shelter, she is taking in new animals and seeking good care and good homes for them.

Some animals arrive with names, others are no-named strays, but they all have stories that preceded their arrivals. From the dog named Swiss Cheese, who arrived and immediately needed antibiotics for infection caused by his numerous wounds, to the kittens who arrived, cared for and loved, but in need of a new home. Her work is continuous, a steady stream of activity surrounds the former barn that was turned into the county’s only animal shelter.

The move by council to contract out the management of the county’s animal shelter ended years of wrangling between groups and individuals regarding the proper care of animals at the shelter. The group will continue to use its connections and online resources to rescue animals from the shelter, keeping them from being euthanized and getting them into foster and adoptive care.

Paws to the Rescue is found online at http://www.petfinder.com/shelters/SC204.html.

County Administrator Tim Harper said the shelter’s costs run to more than $53,000 per year, with $2,500 per year each being assessed to the cities of Marion and Mullins. His recommendation to council was to award the contract to Paws to the Rescue. The group is responsible for manning and operating the shelter and caring for its animals and will receive $4,400 per month from the county.

The county will continue to be responsible for liability and insurance of the facility and its utilities. The group will provide for worker’s compensation. The county’s various animal control laws and enforcement means won’t be changed.

On Wednesday, Nall inherited some 20 dogs, seven cats and two kittens. Nall said she continues to have high hopes for the shelter. She said her to-do list just keeps growing, but she’s concentrating on the most important issues first.

“We’re focusing on the big things like spaying and neutering and emergency medical care to the little things like getting volunteers in to walk the animals, spend time with them, get them out of their runs, get them socialized and just spread the word that there are so many animals in the shelter,” she said.

Nall said she has been calling area veterinarians to check on their availability for services and has found that most are backed up by a month. She said she is making sure animals receive emergency care, heartworm testing and feline leukemia testing so adopters know an animal’s situation. Nall, a life-long supporter of animals, said she understands the importance of volunteers and community backing.

“It can be sad, but if everyone works together and does a little bit here and there,” she said. “Maybe we can’t save all of them, but we can make it better while they are here at the shelter.” Nall said she is excited about a “new, cool” shelter software package she is installing on a laptop for the shelter’s use. She is looking foward to keeping all the animals’ records on the computer for easy retrieval.

“We need money, to pay for vet care” she said. Hence the group’s upcoming fundraiser at the Dusty Hills Country Club in Marion. “We need volunteers. We need vet care. There’s only one in Marion County now ... oh, and we need an electrician and a plumber to properly install a dryer and washing machine,“ she adds.