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0 • <br />Animals that are stressed or recuperating from injuries or illness must have a quiet place to rest during their <br />recovery period. If kept awake, stressed, or forced to be on guard because of close proximity to barking dogs, <br />their recovery period may be lengthened or otherwise compromised. <br />*The n and se aration cone t of man the o ulation will rovide the staff with the s ace flexibility <br />isolation p p aging population P P <br />they need, protect the public from potential bites, insure a healthier environment for the animals, and protect the <br />agency from unnecessary liability issues. It would also allow staff to make better euthanasia decisions, and <br />allow the agency to present adoptable animals to the public instead of every animal without regard of its <br />adoptability. Even the smallest shelters can provide isolation and separation if the shelter is designed correctly. <br />The isolation and separation concept works as follows (flow charts are available): <br />Evaluation at intake <br />There needs to be a place where all incoming animals are triaged. It should be a priority to do health <br />examinations the day the animal comes in. After the staff examines an animal, he would be housed in healthy <br />hold, quarantine, isolation or euthanized depending on the outcome of his exam. <br />Healthy hold <br />Only healthy dogs and cats that arrive at the shelter would be placed in these areas, with the exception of bite <br />case animals. There should be approximately twice the number of kennels/cages for healthy hold than for <br />adoptions. <br />If healthy and possibly adoptable, the animal should be held in healthy hold for at least two days. The healthy <br />hold area would allow the animal time to acclimate to the shelter and time for the staff to observe and evaluate <br />the animal. The only exception may be for cats that are surrendered by their owners and are adoptable, healthy, <br />current on vaccinations, and preferably altered. These cats may immediately be moved to adoptions. Although <br />s exception can be made for dogs as well, it is preferable for cats because they do not generally need the <br />waiting period for a full temperament evaluation like dogs do. <br />Once an animal had been held in healthy hold for two days, evaluated and determined healthy and adoptable, he <br />would be moved from the healthy hold area to the adoption area If there is no room in adoptions, the decision <br />to euthanize that animal or an animal in adoptions to make room must be made. <br />If stray, healthy, and determined unadoptable, the animal would be held in healthy hold for the stray hold period <br />and then euthanized. If owner surrendered, healthy, and determined unadoptable, the animal would be <br />euthanized immediately after intake. <br />Daily evaluations should be performed on the animals in healthy hold in order to choose which healthy, <br />adoptable animals to move into the adoption area <br />Adoptions <br />Excluding the cat exception noted above, animals should not be housed in adoptions until they have spent a <br />minimum of two days in healthy hold. The adoption areas should be the only areas the public have access to <br />without staff escort. There should be approximately half the numbers of adoption kennels/cages as there are <br />healthy hold kennels/cages. <br />Daily evaluations should be performed on animals already in the adoption area, and those that are no longer <br />considered good candidates for adoption should be euthanized. In order to avoid "warehousing" animals, this <br />&valuation process needs to be performed daily (sometimes multiple times a day) and consistently. <br />PJ <br />