CINCINNATI — It's been a challenging month for Cincinnati Animal CARE.
They've been trying to navigate an outbreak of Canine Distemper Virus (CDV) that has resulted in 35 dogs dying at the shelter. That's the most dogs to die in one month in the shelter's history.
According to the most recent test results, 71 dogs have tested positive for CDV since the start of the outbreak earlier this month. 118 have tested negative.
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In the meantime, 4210 Dane Avenue has become the new temporary intake facility.
“This where all new dogs are coming in so they don't get exposed to CDV at the shelter,” said Ray Anderson with Cincinnati Animal CARE. “We still have dogs in isolation there and it spreads very easily when dogs are in that close of quarters."
But the shelter is facing another hurdle. Its temporary shelter is filling up quickly.
“This facility cannot get full — that's the big message,” Anderson said. “If this facility gets full, this will turn a manageable crisis into a really huge problem."
The Dane Avenue shelter was always meant to be temporary and is not sustainable for the dogs long term.
"Without this, all the dogs would be getting exposed to CDV, and we would have a big problem,” he said. “So this has been a lifesaver, but like we say, it's not the life we want for these dogs."
The nearly 50 dogs at the temporary shelter are in metal crates and don't have much space.
For the first time ever, Cincinnati Animal CARE will host a foster-to-adopt “slumber party” weekend.
“We have a matchmaking team looking to find the best fit for your family,” Anderson said. “This weekend you can take a dog home for the weekend, see if it's the right fit for you. We're calling it a slumber party weekend, take a dog home for a slumber party."
If the dog is a match for your family, you’ll get a $10 adoption fee the following Monday.
None of the dogs at the Dane Avenue facility have been at the Colerain Avenue facility, so they have not been exposed to CDV. However, there are dogs at the Colerain Avenue facility that have tested negative for CDV and tested positive for antibodies — meaning they are immune to CDV and cannot carry the virus.
“This is not something that should affect the average pet owner if your dogs are up to date on their vaccines,” Anderson said. “They should have that immunity too.”
Anderson said the CDV outbreak has made volunteering very difficult.
“In terms of walking dogs, those medically cleared dogs, we can walk around, but the dogs that are positive right now, those are dogs that are going to start to suffer a little bit,” he said. “Shelter leadership is always checking on the mental health of a dog. If a dog is getting to a point where their mental health is affecting their physical body, that's when we start having to have harder conversations, and we don't want to get to that point.”
It’s still a battle for Cincinnati Animal CARE. They aren’t out of the woods yet. Anderson said they’re working on opening a third facility to provide more space. They hope to have the third facility up and running by next week.
“We still are going to have dogs that are going to need nearly around-the-clock care as they sit in isolation for up to four months,” said Anderson. “So, it'll be a while before we're 100% normal.”
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