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Bernalillo County commissioners this week approved $4.9 million to renovate and operate a center in the Northeast Heights that would work paw-in-paw with the county鈥檚 main shelter to educate pet owners and find animals their forever homes.

The Animal Care Services Adoption and Education Center on Montgomery, just east of Eubank, is expected to alleviate shelter overcrowding by increasing the county鈥檚 adoption rate an estimated 45%, using a home-like environment to reduce pet anxiety and option overload.

The center will also have classroom space to educate pet owners and teach crucial skills and a landing space for more than a dozen animal control officers who currently occupy a portable building when they are not in the field.

The appropriation passed unanimously on Tuesday. It was sponsored by Commissioner Eric Olivas, who was not present for the vote.

The center was approved for purchase in November with a $3.2 million appropriation. The county negotiated a sales price of $2 million for the building on Montgomery. The total investment came out to $9.1 million, with an estimated $247,000 in annual operating costs, funded through capital outlay and the general fund. 

The building will have an additional 7,500 square feet of space for future development.

County engineers presented commissioners with a Plan B that would demolish the older portion of the building, should they discover substandard conditions, like mold in the walls, for example. Everyone in the chambers hoped that wouldn鈥檛 be necessary.

In a statement, Olivas said the center will bring pet education, volunteer opportunities and low-cost or free veterinary services close to sa国际传媒官网网页入口 residents.

鈥淎s an added benefit, we will revitalize a building that has been vacant for a couple of years and bring new activity to the Montgomery corridor through adoptable pets and community engagement,鈥� he said.

The center will be in a 23,000-square-foot building that once housed a VCA Hospital. After renovations, the center will include overnight accommodations for 30 animals, group play areas, a classroom, veterinary surgery suite for spay and neuter and space for several staff members.

County officials said the South Valley shelter, which will funnel pets to the new center for adoptions, was initially built to serve 2,500 animals a year. Currently, the shelter serves 6,500 animals a year, caring for around 300 on a given day, a total that has increased steadily since the pandemic.

The county said added demand on the shelter has come from an increase in families becoming unhoused and a spike in the pet population, which is compounded by a lack of access to cheap spay and neuter services.

County Animal Care Services Director Misha Goodman said although the South Valley shelter is still the location for stray drop-offs, the new center will have 19 kennels for overflow if needed, should a hoarding case come in.

鈥淚'm sure we'll have people knocking on the door anyway, and then we'll transfer them,鈥� she said during an interview at the shelter on Second, north of Rio Bravo. 鈥淧rimarily, what it will be is an adoption center to flow from here into there for quicker adoptions.鈥�

Goodman said the idea is based on the philosophy of any sales business: fewer options can mean an easier choice. Additionally, placing the animals in a more home-like setting will allow them to act more naturally, with less anxious barking.

鈥淵ou know, when you're walking through these kennels, how loud it is, and it's like, how do you make a decision, right? How do you choose?鈥� Goodman said, gesturing around at the cacophony of barking and jumping dogs in kennels. 鈥淪o, the idea is that completely different environments, where they can be more natural in bigger rooms, or loose in playgroups where the public can see them interacting the way that they might at home, as opposed to in a cage.鈥�

She said the average shelter stay is around 23 days, and in a more populated area, with 124,000 residents within three miles, they expect that number to drop. The center will adopt out cats, dogs, rabbits and reptiles but 鈥� unlike the South Valley shelter 鈥� no livestock.

Goodman said another important aspect of the center will be education, a way to decrease people surrendering their pets out of frustration or lack of preparation. Even 鈥渟implistic classes鈥� can go a long way, she said.

鈥淪omebody's thinking about getting a pet, well, what's the right pet for you? I want to get a rabbit. OK, let's talk about what it takes to maintain a rabbit. What does that mean? Because people, again, don't always know the right diet or the right caging, or how they stink鈥� and all those things,鈥� Goodman said. 鈥淪o, even simple little classes like that can be very helpful.鈥�