MANSFIELD — Missy Houghton doesn’t have a “no vacancy” sign at her office.
But if the Richland County dog warden did have such a sign, it would be fully illuminated.
Houghton said Wednesday morning the local dog warden and adoption center at 810 N. Home Road took in 26 dogs during a three-day period that ended on Monday.
The total included nine puppies that were found discarded in the woods on Sunday near the Ohio Bird Sanctuary, according to Houghton, who said the shelter had 117 dogs as of Wednesday morning.
“They were just kind of huddled in a heap,” Houghton said of the puppies. “They stuck together (after being abandoned.) They were about 14 weeks old and not in bad shape.
“They had some ticks, but I don’t know how long they had been in the woods. They seemed really hungry,” she said.
The puppies, which Houghton described as some sort of Catahoula Australian mix, have remained together at the shelter.
“They like to be in ‘puppy piles.’ They are very bonded,” Houghton said.
(Below are images of the puppies found abandoned in the woods near the Ohio Bird Sanctuary on Sunday. Photos provided by the Richland County Dog Warden’s office.)
Another of the 26 was left tied to a tree at the dog shelter. Houghton said the female dog had slipped out of her collar and was running around the yard at the facility.
When Houghton arrived to work on Monday, she encountered the dog, which she described as “not super friendly.”
“She kind of charged me when I came in. Another staff member and I were able to get her to run into the building and we managed to catch her that way.
Residents bringing dogs to the shelter should do so during normal business hours.
“If you are going to leave a dog here, please don’t put our staff at risk. She was aggressive towards us and it took quite a bit of time to catch her safely,” Houghton said.
Last week, during a Richland County Board of Commissioners meeting, Houghton said the shelter population was down to 90.
“We thought 90 was a good number. We we happy about 90. Ideally, our high number would be 70. At that level, we would still have some open kennels the dogs could be moved into while we are cleaning.
“Right now, almost all of the kennels are full. We are using cage banks and pop-up crates. We also have dogs in the playroom, the food room and the clinic,” Houghton said.
As of Wednesday, the shelter had 78 dogs available for adoption and seven with adoptions pending. Another 32 are “on hold” since dogs that enter the facility are held for at least seven days before they are put up for adoption.
Are you looking to adopt a dog? The Richland County Dog Warden’s Office and Shelter had 78 up for adoption as of Wednesday morning. Fees are $50 for dogs who have been at the shelter for more than a year. Fees are $100 for those there over six months, $125 for those more than three months and $150 for dogs there less than three months. Fees include spaying/neutering, deworming, first round of vaccines, microchipping and a current year dog license. Call the shelter at 419-774-5892 for more information.
Houghton said the shelter’s all-time high of 143 dogs was set several months ago.
“I prefer not to break that record,” she said.
“We had had some dogs come in with licenses. We encourage owners who have missing dogs to reach out to us. We also encourage dog owners to make sure their dog’s license has current information and that the dog is wearing it.
“We will take a dog back home if we find it and it has a current license with current (owner) information, rather than bring it into the shelter.
“If you find a stray dog, please attempt to find the owner first. We had one brought into us that the owner lived just three houses away,” she said.
