Texas Border Business
Edinburg, Texas – Palm Valley Animal Society (PVAS) is asking people to avoid surrendering healthy pets, following guidance provided by the National Animal Care & Control Association (NACA). NACA is advising animal shelters to take extra measures to reduce shelter intake to mitigate the short and long-term effects of COVID-19.
Mike Bricker, Executive Director at PVAS, said adoptions, fosters, and rescues will continue at each of the organization’s two facilities, but owner surrender services will need to be adjusted.
“We’re asking owners who want to surrender their pets but aren’t facing an immediate crisis to hold off for four weeks and surrender at a later date,” Bricker said. “For pet owners who need to surrender immediately and have made an appointment, we’ll still take their pets at their scheduled intake time.”
CRITICAL NEED: PVAS is also looking for about 200 “on-call” emergency fosters, who can take home a pet if PVAS reaches critical capacity. The coronavirus may lead to increased animal intake and the possibility of staffing issues at the organization’s facilities, so moving animals into foster homes will help. PVAS will provide vet care and additional supplies while they last. Contact foster@pvactx.org or visit pvastx.org/foster for more information.
“Right now we’re focused on reducing the number of animals at the shelter,” Bricker said. “We’ve had higher-than-usual intake for the past two weeks and want to get ahead of any worsening in the trend. PVAS operates at or near capacity every day, and reducing intake and maintaining outcomes is essential to avoid overcrowding in the shelter.”
People who can’t adopt or foster can make a donation to PVAS at pvastx.org/donate. The organization hopes to raise funds to bolster outreach efforts, stock fostering supplies, and prepare to help families in need with boarding of their pets if needed.
Critical items can also be purchased directly from the PVAS Coronavirus Amazon Wish List and shipped directly to their Trenton facility.
Found a stray pet? PVAS is also asking people who find friendly stray pets to consider fostering them until the shelter can resume normal operations. Stray finders can take the pet to a vet clinic or to PVAS to check for a microchip, file a found report, and hold the pet to give the owner time to locate it.
Plan ahead: Pet owners are encouraged to make plans for their pets in case someone in the home falls ill. People should stock up on two extra weeks of pet supplies and identify a pet sitter who can help if the pet owner becomes hospitalized.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has released a statement saying there is no evidence that dogs or cats can be infected or could spread the virus that causes COVID-19.
For information about local impacts of coronavirus on humans and guidance for keeping yourself and others healthy, please follow the dedicated page on the Hidalgo County website: https://www.hidalgocounty.us/coronavirusupdates
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