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Mahoning, Trumbull pounds overrun with discarded dogs in fall
By LINDA M. LINONIS
For some reason, when the leaves fall and temperature starts to go down, the Mahoning County Dog Pound and Trumbull County Dog Warden and Kennel fill up.
Dianne Fry, Mahoning’s dog warden, said the pound is full. In 2014, the pound handled 1,478 dogs; so far this year, 1,067 dogs have come in; last year at this time, the number was 965. “We’re at the point we’re starting to set up folding cages,” she said. “The fall tends to be very busy, and this one is.” The pound has room for 48 dogs but has 70.
Gwen Logan, Trumbull’s executive dog warden, said that kennel handles about 800 dogs annually; it has 14 interior/exterior kennels and 10 exterior kennels. She said the kennel has a 96 percent adoption rate. “An 88 percent rate is considered a no-kill shelter,” she said.
Logan said 20 percent of dogs come from the Warren city dog warden; 34 percent from the public; 39 percent from county dog wardens; and 7 percent are owner turn-ins. Dogs leave the kennel with 27 percent reclaimed by owners; 36 percent go to inter-shelter and rescue agencies; 33 percent are individual adoptions from the kennel; and 4 percent are euthanized because they are sick or have bitten. The staff responds to 550 calls a year.
If the kennel has space, it takes owner turn-in dogs with a fee of $56. “People don’t want to pay. They say they found the dog as a stray,” Logan said. “The dog is scared to death and left at the kennel with no name ... they love their name.”
Fry said the surrender fee in Mahoning County is $60 for an unvetted and unfixed dog and $40 for one that is vetted and fixed. “There is no doubt when it’s an owner dog, the person says is a stray. The kids are usually crying, and the dog goes nuts when the person leaves,” she said.
About 80 percent of the Mahoning dogs are pit bulls and pit bull mixes. Rick Tunison, vet technician, said a pregnant pit bull recently gave birth to 13 puppies. “It’s just adding to the population,” he said.
Tunison said of the 1,067 dogs that have come in, 830 have been adopted or gone to a rescue and 73 have been humanely euthanized because of age, sickness or injuries.
“The terrier temperament is busy and high energy and then combine that with the power of a pit bull,” Fry said. In general, other breeds are held three days before being available for adoption; the pit bulls are kept for 14 days. “We want to get to know their temperament and animal or people aggression before they can be adopted,” Fry said.
Tunison said the pit bulls are experiencing what happened to Rottweilers, German shepherds and Dobermans when they surged in popularity. “People think they’re going to breed them to make money. The breeding contributes to the overpopulation,” he said. “When they can’t sell the puppies or dogs, they cut them loose and they end up as strays. That’s why we see so many young dogs.”
Fry added many people are uneducated about fixing dogs. “They have reasons they don’t want them altered. Some want the macho maleness of an intact male dog,” she said. “Others say they can’t afford it.” Fry said in the long run, altering male and female dogs makes them better pets and healthier.
To control population, the Mahoning pound alters all dogs up for adoption. Dogs also are vetted and heart worm checked. “The local vets are phenomenal,” Tunison said. “They really help where they can.”
Trumbull and Mahoning counties received state grants this year to pay for spaying and neutering, but those dollars have been used. People who adopt dogs do agree to spay or neuter but Logan acknowledged that “compliance is an issue.” Dogs are fully vetted and microchipped.
Logan said that under Ohio law, abandoning an animal carries a $750 fine and is a misdemeanor.
Fry said there are “hot spots” in Youngstown, where dogs often are abandoned. “People just move and leave the dogs. Owning a dog is a responsibility,” Fry said. “We can’t fix all situations, but we can fix how we handle them.”