Don’t delay, vote today
Dear Editor:
When Morgan County Animal Control seizes a dog, it is placed in a 3 1/2 x 5 feet indoor space at their facility located on Rt. 9. The dog becomes a prisoner and will be kept in this small space with no access to the outside. There is no quarantine area available, so every other dog condemned to this cell block will be infected by any other diseased dog that is added.
In the past year, many dogs have died at this facility due to lack of sanitary conditions. Dozens more were euthanized due to inaction by our elected officials. Even when our over-worked and underpaid Animal Control Officer can clean the cell block, these dogs still live in their own feces for the better part of the day and night as they have no space to avoid their own mess.
This miserable existence may last many months if it is an animal abuse case that must be prosecuted or it may be over in a matter of days when the dog is euthanized due to the fact that the facility is not open to the public who might be interested in adopting one of these dogs.
The Humane Society of Morgan County has offered their facility to the county for a mere $1 per year lease for the next 10 years. The facility has a quarantine building, larger kennels, an exercise area, an office building, and a space for perspective adoptive parents to meet and interact with the dogs. Humane Society volunteers have vowed to continue offering their time to assist Animal Control in exercising and socializing the dogs as well as offering to help run their adoption program.
The county commissioners, except Brenda Hutchinson, seem to be dragging their feet in accepting this generous and gracious offer. Every day this offer is not accepted is another day that animal cruelty is practiced by our county government. Acceptng this offer would put an immediate end to the inhumane housing and treatment of these dogs. The facility on Rt. 9 could then be sold and the funds made available to improve the level of care of the dogs placed in the care of our county officials. I urge our commissioners to not delay and vote today.
Amy Lane
Berkeley Springs
