JAMES CITY, Craven County — Craven Pamlico Animal services plans to expand their facility this summer through $500,000 worth of renovations to provide better services to the animals.
During construction, the facility will close 16 out of the 62-dog kennels for adoption. The director, Dr. Tanya Osler, asks people not to surrender dogs to the facility during that time.
Dr. Osler said the biggest change will be the garage, currently used for storage. It will turn into an intake center to isolate and vaccinate new animals before bringing them into the facility. The renovation will add air conditioning, a washer and dryer. They will also replace the windows with new ones and divide the dog yard into two. They plan to build more shade in the yard for the dogs to stay out of the direct sunlight.
Dr. Osler said the expansion is necessary because of the volume of animals exceeding the limits of the facility. She said she took in 41 animals in one day.
She said the springtime is kitten season, the source of more animal surrenders. “Everyone’s having babies left and right,” she said. During the summertime, Dr. Osler said, “A lot of people are moving or adjusting their housing situation, so it makes it difficult and sometimes they do have to give up.”
Dr. Osler gives a warning to people who surrender feral kittens. “If you do find a kitten that’s maybe in a bush and a pile of grass – the best thing is to leave it where it is because mom often goes out to hunt and then comes back to take care of the kittens.”
While intake will be slower during the time of construction, Dr. Osler recommends people check out foster homes to surrender their pets instead of turning to a county shelter.