by Kate Shunney
The house that once held Morgan County’s Animal Control offices and provided housing for animal control officers will get a new life as a facility to care for local animals.
Morgan County Commissioners last week voted 3-0 in favor of drafting a two-year lease agreement with a regional non-profit, Snip & Tip.
Commissioner Bill Clark led the effort to look into the partnership and use of the house along Martinsburg Road near Spohrs Crossroads.
During the January 28 commission meeting, Clark said he and representatives of the Snip & Tip group had toured the old Animal Control building and taken stock of what changes it might need to serve as a clinic for the group, such as changing flooring for a more medical environment.
Snip & Tip is a non-profit organizations that supplies low-cost spay and neuter services to animal rescues.
Loree O’Hagan told Morgan County officials that the group has a veterinarian on their board of directors who advises them on the DEA and licensing requirements for running an animal clinic operation.
“Hopefully we can start doing surgeries this year,” O’Hagan said.
Clark told his fellow commissioners they would draft a lease for two years that would make the non-profit responsible for utility costs over $5,000 at the property .
Commissioner Forney asked if Morgan County residents could bring their animals to the Snip & Tip kennel once it is operational.
O’Hagan said the group wants to start first by serving non-profit animal rescue organizations to keep operational costs down. She said the clinic would be more cost-efficient if they could avoid employing public-facing staff for now. She said animal rescues could serve as a funnel for animals needing spaying and neutering to keep stray animal populations in check.
Commissioners authorized Clark to work on the two-year lease and for Commission President Joel Tuttle to sign the document when it is complete.
Snip & Tip refers to the practice of spaying an animal and then marking the spayed animal by cutting a small amount of tissue off the tip of one of their ears. It is a practice in the Trap, Neuter and Release method of reducing feral cat populations.
