Marksville will reopen animal shelter soon

It won’t be perfect, but the Marksville animal holding shelter will be better than it was when the city temporarily closed it a few weeks ago, Mayor John Lemoine said.

Lemoine said a representative of the Louisiana Agriculture Department -- which is the office with responsibility over animal shelters -- “told us we were doing about as good of a job as we could with the resources we have.”

He said the representative told him an animal rights advocate “overstepped his authority” by implying the city was not in compliance with state laws concerning shelters.

“She told us that organization cannot write us up on any violations that may exist at the shelter,” Lemoine said. “She told me the only agency that could do that was the Ag Department.”

The mayor said the official “asked us to consider reopening the shelter because we had been doing a good job. She did mention we needed to upgrade the fence and be sure the area where the dogs are kept is heated during the winter.

“There are a few things that are not in compliance,” Lemoine continued, adding that the city will address those physical improvement issues.

“A main thing was to put a trough in the back of the pens to wash the waste into and carry it to a sewer treatment collection area,” he said. Lemoine said the physical improvements can be accomplished within the city’s budget.

“We will do that and resume picking up animals in the near future,” he said.

One major complaint the animal rights activist noted was that the shelter should vaccinate all dogs it picks up. Lemoine said that would cost about $200 per dog, and the city cannot afford that expense.

“The Ag Department provided us guidelines to follow,” Lemoine said. “She said the people who adopt the dogs are responsible to ensure they are vaccinated. We do not have to do that.”

Lemoine said the city tries to run as much of a “no-kill” shelter as possible.

“We only euthanize vicious dogs or those who are beyond medical care,” Lemoine said. “We take care of the dogs we pick up. About 90 percent of the dogs we pick up have been adopted.”

Lemoine said the city has also taken a tough stance on animal cruelty case, sending police officers to a training workshop on how to recognize, investigate and make arrests of those guilty of cruelty to animals.