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San Marcos Animal Shelter celebrates highest live-release month ever

The shelter said it is encouraging residents who find a stray dog or cat to use the shelter as a last-resort destination.

SAN MARCOS, Texas — The San Marcos Regional Animal Shelter said it is celebrating its highest live-release month in it history, with a 98.2% live-release outcome reported for April.

The shelter has encouraged residents who find a stray dog or cat to use the space as a last-resort destination. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the shelter has been closed to visitors.

“A huge part of our mission right now is letting people know about options beyond shelter drop-off,” said animal services manager Jeanne Saadi. “By safely keeping and returning animals to their rightful owners, our community has helped us focus our resources and finances on the animals in the shelter.”

According to the a tracking record of lost and found listings on a local Facebook page, more than 55% of animals reported missing since April 1 have been returned to their families. The shelter’s return-to-owner rate is only 16%.

Saadi said the animal shelter has aimed to achieve a live-release rate over 90% since it implemented its “Pawsitives Outcomes Implementation Plan” in December 2018.

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“Our community is fortunate to have a large network of knowledgeable, passionate fosters and advocates who have made this possible,” said Saadi, Animal Services Manager. “We’ll work to continue this momentum so that these significant breakthrough results will become a regular occurrence.”

She said the animal shelter is learning from the results to strategize a better way to reunite pets with families moving forward.

All foster appointments and adoptions are being handled online while the shelter is closed to visitors. A “pay what you can” adoption fee special has been implemented to help keep open kennels during the pandemic.

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