With ongoing staffing shortages at the Redlands Animal Shelter and the rise of the COVID-19 Delta variant, the City of Redlands and the Redlands Police Department remains committed to the health and safety of our residents and to the employees who provide service to them as well as the care and welfare of pets and wildlife.
As a result, beginning Tuesday, Aug. 31, the front lobby and kennel areas of the Redlands Animal Shelter will be closed to all walk-in customers. Adoptions will continue to be handled by appointment only. This change will cut down on overtime and allow current staff to focus on cleaning, feeding, adoption appointments, phone calls and field services.
Hours and days of operation and adoption protocols will remain the same. Telephone hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays. Animal care services will continue seven days a week.
“Staffing at the Animal Shelter is currently at a minimum,” said RPD Operations Manager Shayna Walker, who oversees the shelter. “As dedicated as the Animal Control officers and kennel attendants are, it presents a challenge to keep the kennel functioning properly and respond to field calls.”
The Police Department’s Animal Services Unit currently includes three fulltime and one part-time staff, a 50 percent reduction in fulltime staff. Overtime for fulltime staff has increased an average of 20 hours each per week since the shelter reopened to the public on May 1. And while volunteers have assisted in providing services in the past, the continued risks of COVID-19 and the shortage of fulltime staff to provide supervision, leaves the use of volunteers currently unavailable.
Calls for service in the field can occupy an Animal Control Officer for several hours or more, Walker notes. “With the risk of COVID-19, let alone other potential for illness or injury, we can’t afford to have employees sick and out of commission. And a single exposure could affect every employee in the shelter.”
The City continues to recruit and interview to fill three fulltime vacancies at the shelter. Once the Animal Services Unit is fully staffed, normal operations can resume.
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