LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) – Lubbock Animal Services is at capacity following the Fourth of July holiday, with field officers continuing to bring in animals daily as fewer people adopt pets and runaway calls increase.
Director Steven Greene said the holiday consistently drives an uptick in intakes.
“Usually after Fourth of July, you have an uptick in intakes,” Greene said. “There’s a lot of dogs that get out, run away, get scared. And so you also have people that are at parties and what have you. And so animals might escape out the front door or something.”
Greene said a full shelter creates challenges that go beyond space.
“Even when we’re at capacity, our field officers are bringing in animals every day,” Greene said. “And so we have what we consider capacity, but what you get into in this industry is capacity for care. So you want to give Gold Star care. When you get too many animals, you start having more disease. You might have aggression. It takes longer to clean, sanitize, feed. And so that’s kind of where we get into a bind.”
Greene said microchipping is the most reliable way to reunite a lost pet with its owner.
“If you put a collar on a dog, even if you have a name and a tag and what have you, that collar can get lost, that tag can fall off,” Greene said. “So if you microchip your animal, that microchip is in there forever. And it’s registered through a national database and with our own database. And so anybody with a scanner can scan that and find out at least owner information and try to get that animal back home.”
Greene said owners should keep microchip registration information current. LAS said it receives animals with outdated contact information and is unable to reach their owners as a result.
“If you change cell phone numbers, change addresses, be sure you update it with us and with your registry,” Greene said.
Every animal brought into the shelter is given core vaccines, a rabies vaccine, flea and tick treatment, and deworming upon intake. If an animal is not microchipped, it will be given one as well.
Animals held through the full intake period will be spayed or neutered. Greene said LAS will offer a spay and neuter even when an owner comes to reclaim a pet.
Those treatments cost pet owners about $105 when they come collect their animal.
Greene said LAS can work with owners who are financially unable to pay the full fee, including waiving some charges or offering free spay and neuter services in lieu of the reclaim fee.
Greene said owners missing a pet should follow LAS on Facebook, where the shelter posts photos of every stray intake daily — with the exception of animals involved in bite investigations. Adoption photos are also posted each evening.
However, Greene said an in-person visit is the most effective step.
“A lot of dogs, a lot of cats look pretty similar,” Greene said. “And so even if you called us and said, hey, do you have a black and white cat? We might have dozens of them, so it’s best for you to come out. And that way we also can get proof that it’s your animal and we can get it back to the right owner.”
Animals without a microchip or identifying tag are held for a minimum of 72 hours before entering the adoption program. Animals with a microchip are held for 10 days, or 72 hours after contact is made with the registered owner. After those windows, animals become property of the City of Lubbock and enter the adoption program.
Greene said anyone who finds a stray animal should first call LAS and allow field officers to respond — particularly if the animal is in traffic or acting aggressively. He said knocking on nearby doors is also a recommended first step, as stray animals are often close to home.
If a person takes a stray animal in, they must notify LAS within 24 hours, per city ordinance. Failure to do so means the shelter cannot accept the animal.
But Greene said the shelter’s main priority is reuniting lost animals with their owners.
“That’s one of the great things is when you see a dog reunited with its family, both sides are so ecstatic,” Greene said.
As the shelter sits at capacity, Greene said dog adoptions are free through the end of July.
The shelter is open Monday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
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