Want a rescue dog? The Mendo Animal Shelter needs your help

MENDOCINO CO., 1/7/17 — Ever consider adopting an animal? The Mendocino Animal Shelter needs your help! The shelter recently took in 29 animals from three different addresses, and the facilities are now overcrowded. A recent outbreak of the highly contagious Parvo virus, detected Dec. 30, has put the shelter under a two week plus quarantine, but with so many animals being housed there, shelter volunteers are asking for immediate assistance with temporary fosters and adoptions in order to fully decontaminate the facilities, protect the health of the current animals at the shelter, and re-open to the public, say volunteers.

Finding immediate rescue homes from the animals will prevent further outbreaks of infectious diseases. Parvo can be easily prevented with the proper vaccines, but one dog has already died from the most recent outbreak and the shelter does not have facilities that allow for full isolation. Staff are continuing to care for the dogs during the outbreak, but they will not be allowed out of their cages during the quarantine to prevent infection. All lost dogs arriving at the shelter will be kept in the outside dog areas as space permits, but crowding is currently a problem. The shelter is not expected to re-open to the public in the dog areas before January 13.