Population growth in unincorporated Harris County has left animal shelters overwhelmed. With just one 15,000-square-foot shelter dedicated to all of the unincorporated parts of the county, the Harris County Veterinary Public Health department takes in nearly 25,000 pets per year. This number is more than double what the facility was originally intended to hold when it was built in 1986.
“We’re doing everything we can with the resources we have,” HCVPH Director Michael White said. “People abandon their pets for a number of reasons, but when the [human] population doubles, you’re going to see an increase in strays.”
Data based on ZIP codes show steady increases in stray animals coming to the shelter from the Cy-Fair area. Numbers peaked around 2012, at which point HCVPH adopted some strategies to make sure time and space was being used more efficiently.
“In the past, we would send an officer out to pick up an owned animal that a person no longer wanted and bring it back to the shelter," White said. "We also delivered cat traps for people to use to trap stray cats. We had to discontinue those activities in order to use our resources more efficiently. However, we still pick up and impound stray animals that people have confined. If an owner wanted to surrender their animal to the shelter, they could bring it in themselves.”
Several rescue groups have been founded in Cypress to help fill in the gaps as well. Members of Safe Haven Animal Rescue, which was founded in the Fairfield area in 2013, take stray pets into their own homes until they are able to adopt them out.
“Whether you’re involved with rescue groups or you’re just out in the neighborhoods, you can’t help but notice more strays,” Safe Haven founder Beverly Clary said.
Members of another group, Purr Paws Rescue, help shelter cats while working to educate people on the importance of spaying and neutering. Both groups adhere to a no-kill policy; they never euthanize any of the pets they take in. Although they charge an adoption fee, it often does not make up for the costs of food, hygiene and health care, Clary said.
For the county department, operating a no-kill shelter is not an option. With the shelter on Canino Road at maximum capacity and taking in anywhere between 70-80 pets daily, euthanasia is something that cannot be avoided, White said.
“As a municipal organization, we can’t just turn pets away,” White said.
However, euthanasia rates are down from 83 percent in 2010 to 70 percent in 2014 as county officials look for ways to address the burden. An $848 million bond that will be voted on this November includes $24 million for shelter improvements, including more shelter space and an adoption/education center at the existing facility.
“The problem won’t be solved until we get people to start being more responsible pet owners, but this would be hugely beneficial,” White said.
