Hanover County's chief of animal control says that his staff is deeply saddened by a county resident's loss of her 13-year-old pet Labrador, euthanized by the department two weeks after it had been reported missing by the owner.
"Some of my staff is undergoing counseling. It has been very tough on all of us," said Sgt. Kevin Kilgore, a 17-year veteran of animal control.
The owner of the pet could not be reached yesterday, but Kilgore said that the dog, named Hershey, was reported missing July 6, two days after it left home, and was with animal control by July 10, found about a mile from the owner's home.
Kilgore said the dog had no collar or identifying tags and was euthanized 10 days later, as allowed by state law.
He said the owner called several times to check on whether the animal had been located, but the absence of identification on the animal and staff shortages hampered making a connection.
In addition, the animal control department's Web site did not publish a picture of the found dog until July 20, the same day it was euthanized by inoculation.
The owner saw the picture and called to claim her pet only to learn the dog had been put down that same day. She was able to take possession of the body, Kilgore said.
Kilgore said his department is fighting overcrowding, staff shortages and limited access to rescue operations that can handle overflow shelter animals, especially older cats and dogs.
Even the faltering economy is adding to the problem. "We are seeing more pets being turned over to us because people can't afford to keep them. People are losing their jobs, losing their homes."
In addition, the county's leash law is only in place in the spring months of the year, meaning the county is beset with loose dogs in summer.
It still maintains a 75 percent placement rate with recovered animals, a contrast to some localities where almost all recovered animals are euthanized, Kilgore said.
Kilgore said Hanover euthanized 89 animals in May, including cats, dogs, opossums, raccoons and mice. The county shelter can handle about 175 dogs, he said.
Kilgore urged residents to keep their pets leashed and to keep identifying license tags on their collared animals.
"We all try to do our best, but this case has been particularly hard on us. It was a real tragedy," Kilgore said.
Contact Bill McKelway at (804) 649-6601 or bmckelway@timesdispatch.com.
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