Animal control struggles with staff, needs

PORTALES -- Animal control has become an issue in Portales as the city struggles with not having enough staff and facilities to keep up with demands, and help from local animal rescue groups has dwindled.

Some social media posts say dogs are running around in groups uncontained and one longtime, former shelter volunteer said people are dumping litters as well as adult cats and dogs.

Portales resident Linda Sumption, who formerly taught at Eastern New Mexico University, said after retiring she got involved with animal rescue and was a volunteer at the city animal shelter for several years before the pandemic restricted access there.

Sumption said according to one study she read, 10 years ago Roosevelt County had the highest animal shelter euthanasia rate in the state of New Mexico – 85 to 90 percent. Since then with the help of animal rescue groups, that rate declined. But now fewer animal rescue groups are active.

Portales public information Officer Matthew Velletta said the county has no animal shelter and does not address animal control issues in the city limits.

“Animals are getting dumped by owners regularly on the streets, on the highways, and in people’s yards,” Sumption said. “This is happening at a rate that is unconscionable in Portales.”

She said there are a lot of backyard breeders and ““I don’t know because they either can’t afford it or they don’t believe these ordinances apply to them.”

The city does have a sterilization ordinance, City Manager Sarah Austin said.

However, the sterilization ordinance applies only to animals adopted at the shelter, Velletta said. The city does not require all animals in Portales to be spayed or neutered.

The city does have an ordinance that requires all animals to be contained, fed and water provided to them, he said.

“The animal shelter is now at full capacity, but the city does keep vacancies for animals that are dangerous to the public,” he said.

The city will pick up any vicious, stray or ownerless dogs and cats and bring them to the shelter, he said. The shelter then tries to work with animal rescue groups to find them homes.

“This is not a no-kill shelter,” he said. The city will at some point euthanize animals who are unwanted or unclaimed who are at the shelter – “I don’t know the exact time frame for that now.”

Sumption said she thinks the “stay length” for animals at the shelter depends on the population at the facility at the time.

“The issue of all these suffering animals is that it is not on the city’s priorities,” she said. “We need the political leadership to solve this – we need this leadership in the city and the county to solve this.”

She said animal rescue groups are not the answer because the volunteers tend to come and go, move away.

“(There are) not any active animal rescue groups in Portales that I know of (at this time),” she said.

The News tried to contact animal rescue groups in the area but attempts were unsuccessful. Even the Eastern New Mexico Humane Society (Portales address) could not be reached because its phone number is “not in service.”

Velletta said the city animal shelter is under renovation. It has one animal control officer now. The city has a second position and a kennel technician position open, which have not been filled. The animal control officer has to do all the work until more staff are hired.

City Manager Austin said in response to a question about why the shelter no longer had volunteers: “The animal shelter is awaiting on clearances from the state and we cannot allow people in there before that is done. The city and county could not come to an agreement on many of our long standing Joint Power’s Agreement so the City has made some changes to safeguard itself and Animal Control Facility was one of them.”

Anyone wishing to adopt a pet at the shelter may make an appointment to come in and see the animals. Contact the shelter.

The city website is http://www.portalesnm.gov