Jill Schramm/MDN Laura Garcia, executive director at Souris Valley Animal Shelter, speaks to the Minot City Council Monday.

Despite its initial sticker shock over the proposed cost, the Minot City Council voted Monday to proceed with negotiating the terms of a one-year agreement with Souris Valley Animal Shelter for operation of a city pound.

SVAS submitted the only proposal to provide pound services, which the Minot Police Department has estimated would cost about $189,000 for a year.

The city’s contract with Minot Veterinary Clinic expires at the end of this year, and the clinic is not interested in continuing. Offering pound services for several years, Minot Veterinary Clinic has charged less than a third of the amount the city is looking at paying.

“Minot Vet Clinic has given us quite a deal. It’s well under market value. So, we’ve been getting by fairly cheap for many years,” said acting police chief Capt. Dale Plessas.

Plessas said the City of Grand Forks signed a pound contract for $198,000, which doesn’t include veterinary services as SVAS’s proposal does. The City of Bismarck budgets about $278,000 a year, he said.

He added the city could consider other options over the next year, including setting up its own pound.

“Really, what it comes down to is whether this is really financially viable for us in the future or would another option be the way to go,” he said.

The Minot Police Department annually takes about 800 animals into custody, according to information provided to the city council. Animals are taken to the pound if lost, aggressive or dangerous, feral or determined to be in the city in violation of ordinance.

SVAS is proposing boarding fees of $35 a day for dogs or cats; $15-$20 a day for rabbits, snakes, reptiles, rodents and birds other than chickens, depending on weight; and $85 for livestock, including chickens, subcontracted to Minot Veterinary Clinic.

There also would be fees for after-hours, weekend or holiday response as well as euthanization, although SVAS stated it seeks to adopt out or work with other organizations to adopt out animals rather than euthanize. The proposal also lists prices for veterinary services that would be provided at the SVAS clinic or subcontracted to another clinic with authorization from the police department.

The proposal includes a $1,000 a month fee for administration.

“We understand these costs may be more than the city has paid in the past for such services,” SVAS stated in the proposal. “However, the city ordinances establishing impound and license fees have not changed in a long time and are not consistent with the actual costs of impounding animals.”

Police Capt. Justin Sundheim said, currently, about 25% of the amount allocated for pound services comes back in fees when people claim their pets.

SVAS proposes raising those fees and also requiring any redeemed animal be licensed and microchipped. SVAS is asking to be deputized to issue licenses and retain a proposed $5 increase in the licensing fee. Licensing fees would go to $10 for spayed or neutered dogs and cats and $15 for other dogs or cats.

Plessas said about half of dogs that come to the pound are reclaimed by owners. Of about 400 cats that come to the pound each year, only about 7% are claimed.

Plessas said programs to reduce feral cat numbers and require microchipping could reduce the pressures on the pound. If the dogs that are claimed are chipped, they could be reunited with owners without going through the pound, he said.

City Manager Harold Stewart said the licensing ordinance is only as good as its enforcement. Having acquired a dog after coming to Minot, he discovered there is a breakdown in communication over where to get a license, with the vet clinic referring him to the police and the police referring him to the vet clinic.

“Secondly, I think we probably need to look at our ordinances and update those,” Stewart said. “With our ordinance right now, we impound for three days. If the animal isn’t claimed by ordinance, we are supposed to dispose of that animal, which is no longer typically socially or culturally acceptable.

“This is a challenge for us, both financially, culturally, and for the health and service of our animals. That’s going to take some time to talk through,” he said, “which is why I’m supportive of the recommendation of staff to issue this contract. We’ll have to accept the financial consequences that come with that, but we have some bigger picture conversations to have over the next 12 months on what services we’re going to provide our community with regards to animals and how we’re going to do that in a better, more efficient, effective way.”

The council also asked about the financial health of SVAS, which was in dire straits last August, needing $250,000 by the end of this year to continue operations.

SVAS Executive Director Laura Garcia said the shelter has adjusted its budget to get through this year and received substantial gifts to open a new community clinic at the start of next year, which will generate income for the shelter.

SVAS also has a boarding agreement with the Ward County Sheriff’s Department for dogs or cats that was extended last month for another year. It reports it has boarded animals for Minot Air Force Base and the City of Berthold.

The council voted 6-1 to proceed with negotiating a contract, with council member Scott Samuelson casting the only vote in opposition.