Newberry County No Kill Animal Shelter! That has a nice ring to it. Think about it. Ignore the voices that declare, speaking for all things County, “That’ll never happen.” Well, my friends, it is happening, right now, not as quickly as some of us would like, but nevertheless it is happening.

No Kill is not an exact term, but it is the one used and recognized nationally. To be recognized as a No Kill shelter, that shelter must save at least 90 percent of their inmates by local adoption and rescue programs which adopt them out of the area. Animals of unredeemable aggression, or animals suffering with injuries or illnesses that are not treatable, are euthanized.

The No Kill movement in Newberry actually started in 1985 when the Newberry County Humane Society was founded by Karen Short and friends, many of whom were women who had experience with animal shelters in other places. They created the first real shelter in Newberry by 1990. That shelter was turned over to the County in 2000 by three members of the Humane Society board in a singular act of betrayal.

The fate of the shelter, and the helpless animals who languish there, has had it’s ups and downs with the County. When I returned to Newberry about 2009, it was definitely down. The shelter had been shanghaied into Public Works for reasons having to do with the budget. The shelter staff was forced into a “euthanasia” program to correct all the “indiscretions” of previous leadership. They worked overtime and after hours, to reduce the numbers of dogs and cats. Nobody talked about “sentient beings” in those days.

In the year 2011, 1,836 animals were killed in the shelter. That’s an average of 153 animals a month. In December of that year, under the leadership of County Administrator Wayne Adams, Shelter Manager Leslie Jenkins, and a few members of the Humane Society, the County Council voted unanimously to support a low cost, spay/neuter program proposed by the brand new Pawmetto Lifeline Clinic in West Columbia. $40,000 was budgeted for the program.

In the year 2012, the number of animals killed at the shelter dropped by 624 to a total of 1,212. Last year, in 2018, the number of animals killed totaled 420. In six years time, the average number of animals killed each month has dropped from 153 to 35. All these figures were provided by the official records at the shelter.

In the fall of 2018, another significant milestone on the path to No Kill appeared with Pat Peters and Feral Cat Solutions. 331 of the animals killed in 2018 were cats. 89 were dogs. With the support, again, of Wayne Adams, Leslie Jenkins, and the Humane Society, Pat Peters has undertaken TNR on a county-wide basis. Feral cats are now trapped, neutered, and then returned to the area where they were trapped to form stable, non-proliferating colonies. The shelter no longer traps feral cats. The cats at the shelter are adoptable.

In the month of January this year, only five animals were euthanized at the shelter. Two were cats, one of which was sick and the other unadoptable because of temperament. Three were dogs that had been hit by cars and were recommended to be euthanized by veterinarians.

The creation of a No Kill shelter is always an act of political will and an announcement of intention. If Newberry County announced that beginning on Monday, March 4, the shelter would become a No Kill shelter, it would be so. A No Kill shelter costs no more to run than the shelter we have now. Maintaining and sustaining a No Kill shelter, however, requires the emotional support of the community.

County shelters are mostly considered hopeless because they are tax-supported, open admission shelters. Some of them are hopeless at present, but well-run shelters like Newberry County are only a step away from that achievement. The shelter has adequate financial support, volunteer support from the Humane Society and others, and good relationships with a number of accredited rescue organizations.

The remaining step for a No Kill status requires the enthusiastic help of the community. We need a community of fosters who will, in themselves, prevent the shelter from ever having to kill for space. A network of on-call fosters can step up when the shelter is full and help animals, one by one, find a new life in a new home. We cannot expect fosters to volunteer for animals that may be killed. Take away that possibility, and fosters will come. Communities embrace their No Kill shelters with pride and donations and celebrations.

We were all very pleased when the Travel Channel chose Newberry as one of the 50 most charming small towns in America. This recognition highlights the efforts of local government and the business community that have “owned” the Opera House and “owned” the downtown. Animal lovers must “own” the shelter, to make it their own, to dramatize the ethics of kindness in this community. It’s good for us. It’s good for the animals. And take notice Chamber of Commerce, it’s good for business.

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Jay Booth

Contributing Columnist

Jay Booth is a retired university professor, a retired newspaper columnist, and the president of the Newberry County Humane Society.