Residents of Los Gatos and Monte Sereno will probably have to drop any strays or unwanted pets at a Humane Society Shelter in Santa Clara, rather than the West Valley pet shelter, in the future.
City managers Gay Strand and David Knapp are working on contracts with the Humane Society for their respective councils to approve. The two managers recommended finding a new shelter after Central Animal Hospital, also known as the West Valley Pet shelter, asked in March for a 50 percent increase in fees for sheltering strays and lost pets. The fee hike would have cost the five West Valley cities $30,000 more a year.
Shelter officials told the city that the increase is based on higher costs to run the shelter than they originally planned for. But, after two months of discussions, the cities decided that the Humane Society is a better deal because it provides better service, although it is slightly more expensive.
The proposed contracts will hire the Humane Society until June 30, 2000.
The Humane Society will cost about $9,450 more for Los Gatos and $540 more for Monte Sereno.
The Humane Society will continue to recover lost pets and pick up strays and dead animals and issue pet permits. The change applies only to the shelter facilities where the animals are dropped off and stored. The Humane Society shelter is open 24 hours a day.
This article appeared in the Los Gatos Weekly-Times, September 25, 1996.
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