Hi-Line Living: Handling animal control in Havre

"I think it is very important for having a safe place for animals to go," Havre Animal Control Officer Peter Federspiel said.

Federspiel took the job as animal control officer in May of 2016 after spending 20 years as a deputy sheriff with Hill County Sheriff's Office.

Federspiel said the job encompasses many things besides maintaining the shelter. He said as animal control officer, he goes out in the community, deals with the animals in the community and helps the animals that do come or don't come to the shelter.

"I thought this would be kind of something exciting to do and didn't think it would be as hard as it is and as much work. I guess it is what you make of it," he said.

Federspiel is the main and only employee at the shelter, though there is a staff that comes in to help on the weekends, to give him some time off and do some feeding and cleaning in the shelter.

The shelter does not take volunteers because Federspiel is out of the shelter quite a bit. He holds multiple responsibilities that only he can do, and, often, no one would be at the shelter to supervise, he said.

Federspiel said one of his goals for working at the shelter was to move toward having the shelter be in the no-kill category along with other changes to make the animals better, to make their stay better.

"I'll never call us a no-kill shelter, but I'll say that we fall into the no-kill category," Federspiel said.

Last year, the shelter took in 484 animals, 255 dogs and 229 cats, and had 203 adoptions last year.

Federspiel said he had picked up a lot of strays that were then reunited with their owners within a number of days, and the shelter had a very low euthanized-rate of animals that weren't adoptable.

He said 92 percent of the animals coming in are either being adopted or saved, which technically makes Havre Animal Shelter a no-kill shelter. 

He added that he believes the shelters that call themselves no-kill give the impression that, no matter what animal comes in, it will not be euthanized and he does not want to give the community of Havre that impression of the shelter.

"We try to only euthanize animals that are a danger to the community or who are sick or injured," he said.

Under Montana law, he said, if a stray animal comes in to the shelter he is required to hold it for four days - he holds them for five days. He will then they make them available for adoption. He added that some other agencies, after the grace period, euthanize them right away.

Federspiel said the majority of strays happen when people have issues with their fence and the dog wants to roam.

Some animals are surrendered to the shelter, dropped off at the shelter, mainly because their owners can't care for them anymore or are having issues with them.

If an owner brings in a surrender animal, they have to fill out a release form and sign it, assuring the animal hasn't bitten anyone, he said. He added that they also have provide other information regarding the animal, such as the animal's shot records and if it has been spayrd or neutered.

Any animals available for adoption are micro-chipped, spay/neutered and will be available to go to a home

When strays that are picked up by their owner have been in the shelter for more than two to three days, the owner has to pay a shelter fee of $20 a day before the dog is released. If the dog is not registered with the city, an added registration fee of $10 the first day is charged.

When an animal is released for adoption depends on three factors, he said. If a stray comes in and after five days has not been picked up, the animal will be available for adoption. If someone surrenders an animal, the shelter waits 24 hours, but if they are kittens or puppies they can be adopted once they are 8 weeks old.

When it comes to people claiming their pets, he added, "we're pretty trusting of anybody. If we do have an animal that comes in that is a stray, and people come say, 'That's my animal,' we release it to them."

He said he hasn't had any issues where people have picked up a dog that didn't belong to them

In the animal adoption process, if someone finds an animal they like, an application is available on the Havre Animal Shelter website at https://www.petfinder.com/member/us/mt/havre/city-of-havre-animal-shelter-mt105 and paper copies are available at the shelter.

Once the application is turned in. Federspiel verifies the information needed by the shelter, include vaccination record of other animals in the home that the new animal is going to, a probation officer's approval if needed and the landlord's approval, making sure the animal isn't coming back to the shelter after it has been adopted. The new owner has to sign a form at the time the animal gets picked up and goes home with him or her.

He said the shelter will keep an animal as long as it needs to be there.

"As long as it is a friendly animal and there is space, they can be there as long as they need to be," he said.

The shelter offers a spay/neuter/release program where feral cats are trapped spayed or neutered and released, and Federspiel said it seems to be helping in the community.

"It is," he said. "The first place we did the program was on the east side of town. So far I have found one kitten over there. There are no new kittens over there, and that's what we were wanting to see is no new kittens.

"The adult cats being over there are fine and even that population has decreased," he added.

The Havre community also plays a role. As of the end of July, Federspiel said, 80 percent of dogs and cats that came into the shelter were unaltered

"I think the lack of (spaying and neutering) is a huge issue with people bringing dogs back to us or bringing dogs in to us," he said.

He added that a lot of the animals that come in, especially the dogs, may have some issues with roaming. For example, when a male dog smells a female dog it is going to want to chase that female down, and those are the ones that end up wandering, he said.

"We are trying to promote more spay/neuter to prevent that from happening," he said.

In Havre, the local veterinarians are the frontline of the spay/neuter program for the shelter, and they can get the shelter on the schedule pretty quickly, Federspiel said. The shelter is hosting a spay/neuter clinic Sept. 7 and 8 at the Boys & Girls Club of the Hi-Line. People who had made reservations in July will receive the first opportunity in the September clinic and then the remainder will be open to anyone.

Another program being discussed for the shelter is called the PUP program, which is to prevent unplanned pregnancy. Under the program, when people surrender puppies to the shelter the shelter will spay/neuter the mother for free.

The Havre Animal Shelter also works with RezQ Dogs, P.A.W.S of Chinook, Maclean Animal Adoption Center of Great Falls and the Humane Society of Western Montana in Missoula.

Earlier this week, the shelter held 19 cats, including kittens, and 12 dogs, including puppies.

Federspiel said people who want to reach him should call the Havre Police Department.

"All animal control calls need to go through the police department," he said. "Even if you are looking for a dog, call the police department. I'm not up here a lot, but if you have an inquiry about an animal that is in the shelter you can call up here. I'm in and out so much that there is a lot of times that an animal can be returned sooner if they call the police department."