The New Albany Floyd County Animal Control and Shelter would like to issue a sincere thank you to Feeders Supply for its generosity to our local animal shelters. Our local stores, with the support of our community, raised $36,000 for area animal shelters! We were thrilled to be one of the recipients of a portion of these funds, and our shelter’s population will benefit daily from your donations.

Together, we are all making a difference.

Thank You!

Volunteer Orientation for our location at the Green Tree Mall will be held Thursday, August 12th, at 7:30 PM  at the Pet Adoption Center.

Children must be 14 with an adult to volunteer, and 16 without.  Parents must attend orientation with any child under 18.

Volunteers help with cleaning and caring for the animals, educating the public, helping families find a new furry friend, and helping train and socialize the animals.

Our volunteers help us save lives!  Thank you so much!

Please email pawsatplay812@yahoo.com with any questions. You can also call (812) 292-6864 for more info.

Bella Jean, once named Glenda, was adopted from the shelter a little less than a year ago.  When she had come into the shelter she had a fractured leg.  When she was adopted, she was still recovering from her injuries.  The first little bit after the adoption was a little rough with her health. Her new owners refused to give up on their new little family member.   Bella Jean is now happy and healthy as can be with her new family. She is a momma’s girl and loves going everywhere that her momma goes.  Bella Jean is one blessed puppy to have received such a great home!

Bella Jean

As an employee at the New Albany Floyd County Animal Control & Shelter, I am faced daily with the repercussions of people not spaying or neutering their pets. Across this nation, millions of animals die due to the hard cold reality of pet overpopulation! This is not the fault of animal shelters, it simply is the result of animals being allowed to reproduce without looking at the ramifications of bringing more puppies or kittens into a world where there are already too few homes and responsible pet owners.

Yesterday, I had my heart broken (again) due to a pet owners choice to not alter their dog. I’m a softie for smooshfaced dogs, and when an older little clown came in, I fell in love. This little fella was microchipped, but his chip wasn’t registered. We contacted the dog’s breeder, but never heard back from them. I was disappointed on his initial exam when I discovered that he not only wasn’t neutered, he had a retained testicle. On his surgery day, the end result was what I feared, the word CANCER. His retained testicle had turned into a cancerous entity, eating away at his bladder wall, shortening his life every day. Our veterinary surgeon attempted to remove the tumor, but the attempt was futile and euthanasia became our only option. Alas, a dog that we could have placed in a home in a heartbeat was euthanized needlessly. In so many ways, his loving owner destroyed this dog: not registering his microchip, not neutering him, no identification, and allowing him to roam the streets.

If you do not have a registered dog or cat with responsible homes waiting, why breed them or allow them to reproduce? Every home your pet’s offspring takes, could go to a shelter animal. Every heat cycle that your female pet goes through increases her risk of mammary and ovarian cancer. Male dogs are susceptible to testicular and prostate cancer, especially if they have a retained testicle.  Older females that have not been spayed run the risk of getting a severe uterine infection called a pyometra. If the infection takes hold, the only possibility of saving them is surgery, and its very expensive and the risk of death is high.

If you cannot afford to have your pet altered, WE CAN HELP! There are many resources available to make spaying or neutering your pet affordable for everyone. PLEASE call us if you need assistance. We can direct you to the help that you need, and you can do your part and SAVE LIVES!

Theresa Stilger, RVT 

Animal Care Coordinator