Rowan County Animal Control passes euthanasia inspection

By Shavonne Potts

spotts@salisburypost.com

The Rowan County Animal Control, a service of the Rowan County Health Department, recently passed an inspection of its euthanasia chamber.

Director Clai Martin provided the findings at the Board of Health meeting this week. The carbon monoxide chamber meets state requirements. A site visit was conducted in August.

"The facility and chamber were found to be clean and orderly," the letter said.

The letter makes a few recommendations like improving the ventilation system. The system's original fan has since been replaced and larger duct work was put in place.

The mention of the chamber led Health Director Leonard Wood to inform the board about what happens to animals that are euthanized if they are disease free.

Colleges and universities pay the health department to use the animals for medical training.

"There was some concern about the shelter selling animals to biological supply companies," Wood said.

Wood confirmed they do sell cats for educational purposes and the money received goes back into the shelter operations.

"It's a way for medical students and young veterinarians in the industry to have access to educational material," he said.

Wood said he wasn't so much seeking approval about the decision to sell the animals, but mostly to let the board know his position on the issue.

One of the requirements is that the animals not be diseased or maimed in any way.

Animals that are euthanized are placed in coolers for a short time and later incinerated.

The shelter does not sell random animals to make money, Wood explained.

"These are animals that have reached a point where they need to be euthanized," he said.

The board also heard from Allied Health Manager Steve Joslin about the Family Care Coordination Programs.

Family Care Coordination is an integration of Maternity Care Coordination and Child Service Coordination that supports at-risk families.

The North Carolina Division of Medical Assistance reduced the reimbursement rates for these services. This means if the program can't continue to be financially self-supporting, the department will have to make some cuts to services and or staff.

They were hoping for a 15 percent cut, but received a 36 percent cut for one program and a 39 percent cut for the other.

The Family Care Coordination staff has developed a plan to decrease the indirect costs associated with the care coordination and increase the number of billable units of service provided. The hope is the programs will continue.