WAKULLA COUNTY, FL (WTXL) — Wakulla County is in early discussions with Wakulla Animal Group about a potential transfer of animal shelter operations — but no formal agreement has been made.
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The Wakulla County Animal Shelter is currently run by the county. According to Steve Cushman with Wakulla Animal Group, animal control reached out to WAG about a week ago to ask if the organization would be willing to explore the possibility of taking over shelter operations.
In a statement from Assistant County Administrator Somer Pell, the discussions stem from a broader review of countywide operations and concern over potential budget impacts if Amendment 3 passes in November.
Wakulla County has held exploratory conversations with Wakulla Animal Group (WAG) as part of an ongoing review of County-wide operations. No decisions have been made, no agreements reached, and the County has not transferred or committed to transferring shelter operations.
The review is driven by responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars and potential budget impacts if Amendment 3 passes in November.
Cushman said WAG is interested in taking over the shelter for the sake of the animals, but acknowledged that costs and manpower would be the organization's biggest hurdles.
"We're primarily a volunteer organization. We have zero paid employees right now, and we know that if we were to take that, it would require several paid employees. We would have to have a pretty hefty volunteer staff to be able to pull it off because that thing's — it's not like any other business. It's a 24/7 business," Cushman said.
Cushman estimated it would cost more than $300,000 a year for WAG to run the shelter.
"My guesstimate on it right now is it needs north of $300,000 to operate every year. That would be salaries, food, veterinarian care, maintenance on the building, utilities, all the stuff that has to be paid for to run that thing," Cushman said.
Cushman also said that if WAG does move forward with taking over the shelter, part of their negotiations with the county would include changes to existing ordinances and better enforcement of them.
"Ordinances that just don't really meet the standard of what we need today. So we, you know, part of the package that goes to the county is — we may request that some ordinances be rewritten and that those actually be enforced," Cushman said.
Pell's statement also addressed online claims about maximum animal holding times before euthanization, calling those reports inaccurate.
Our priority for shelter pets remains unchanged. As we stated publicly last week, reports of shortened holding times or any move toward euthanasia are inaccurate and have never been under consideration.
We will keep the public and our partners informed as the review progresses. In the meantime, follow the Wakulla County Animal Adoption Center and Animal Control pages for adoption events and volunteer opportunities.
Cushman said there is no timeline for a transfer of operations. Shelter operations remain with the county as discussions continue.
"If we don't have a shelter and we don't have adoption, there's nowhere to put all the animals that animal control ends up with," Cushman said.
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