April Amadon
Record Vistas Editor

Some dogs and cats from the city of Roswell Animal Control are getting a second chance with Santa Fe's Animal Shelter and Humane Society.

The Santa Fe shelter entered into an agreement with Roswell's Animal Welfare Alliance to take up to 12 animals every month.

Judy Hathcoat, the alliance president, said the agreement will help lift a little bit of the burden off the Roswell shelter, where 4,000 to 5,000 stray, lost or homeless pets are put to sleep every year.

"By transporting these animals to other facilities, such as Santa Fe Animal Shelter and Humane Society, we can ensure that the animals get a chance at a life," she said.

Daily Record € April Amadon Animal Welfare Alliance President Judy Hathcoat encourages a dog to jump into a crate Friday morning in preparation for a trip from the city of Roswell Animal Control shelter to the Santa Fe Animal Shelter and Humane Society. The Santa Fe shelter has agreed to take 12 animals a month from Roswell.

On Friday, Hathcoat transported eight dogs and four cats to Santa Fe.
"This is 12 less euthanasias," she said, loading up the last of the dogs into its crate. "They get a chance at life."

The Santa Fe shelter has been revamped recently and is now a state-of-the art facility with an adoption center and an animal receiving and care center.

"They have staff veterinarians, technicians, even a behaviorist. Theirs is like the gold standard," Hathcoat said. "They have a very high adoption rate."

In Roswell, this year has not been as bad as years past, as 527 animals have been brought to Animal Control since Jan. 1, Hathcoat said. "That's a low number," she added.

She also expects the number to increase in the spring, when many litters of puppies and kittens will be born. One of Animal Welfare Alliance's main goals is to encourage spaying or neutering operations to curb overpopulation. The group offers discount spaying and neutering at clinics for pet owners in need.

"Right now I'm excited about what is going on in Roswell," Hathcoat said, estimating that 1,300 animals in Roswell have been spayed or neutered so far through alliance and Roswell Humane Society programs.

"Sadly, even at that rate, it will take a few years to see euthanasia numbers go down," she added.

Hathcoat said the Animal Welfare Alliance is looking for volunteers with sport utility vehicles or vans who would transport animals to Santa Fe once or twice a year.

For more information or to volunteer, call Animal Welfare Alliance at 317.7439 or visit www.animalwelfarealliance.org.