Feeling the pinch, the animal shelter becomes Mexico-focused

By Alan Dale Editor-in-Chief

Animal overpopulation a book a punch to dogs from outside of Mexico.

Due to overcrowding and increased expenses, the only animals from Audrain County that will be accepted at the Mexico Animal Shelter, 101 South Morris, must have an address in Mexico. This includes strays, surrenders, and trapped animals.

“If someone is bringing the animal, they must have an address in Mexico,” animal control supervisor Christi Jennings said, noting that they still haven’t figured out what exactly to do with the stray animals they don’t. cannot identify the origin. “We will take stray dogs, but they must come from Mexico.

“We took them from Vandalia, Laddonia, Farber, Thompson and we’re full because of it. No one else has shelters.

Jennings couldn’t suggest where people in Mexico can take these animals, as most don’t have shelters or will only take them from their respective towns.

Jennings said pets imported from outside of Mexico are likely around 40% and “the majority are abandonments with people abandoning their own pets.”

Jennings said the funding is not there to support the extra money needed for the unfortunate creature overload.

Vandalia detains animals for a week and posts on social media a chance adopt for a fee and otherwise they regularly brought the animals to Mexico.

“Most people move out or the (animal) has gotten too big,” Jennings said. “You have to do your research. We get a lot because (dogs) do bad things or have bad manners. They need to be trained when they are young.

Other problems stem from people buying a breed of dog known for a certain trait – like a Beagle known to be used for hunting – and not allowing them to live by their nature.

“They’re cute when they’re little, then they get big and they can’t handle it,” Jennings said. “(Some races) break chains, jump fences and that’s what they do.”

For those who want a cat, it is suggested to take a trip to the cat room to see if they can get along with him and find out if one is allergic. Jennings says cats pale in comparison to dogs in terms of owner abandonment.

“We get a load of kittens every year,” Jennings said.

It is also recommended that you bring a current dog to the shelter to pair with a possible adoption of a new furry housemate to see if the canines get along well.

Now the costs are affected because many animals incur medical costs that the shelter must pay.

“They come in sick, with heartworms and we have to have them long before we can adopt them,” Jennings said.