Babe – photos courtesy of PAWS and More

Gibbs – photos courtesy of PAWS and More

PAWS and More Animal Shelter in Washington took in 261 animals from the county last year. Amber Talbot, director of the shelter, presented the annual funding request to the supervisors at their meeting Tuesday, saying the numbers went up a little bit, taking in 87 more animals. The formula for funding uses the 2015 activity figures to base the funding request which is about $28,600 this year. She added they have an adoption rate of about 87.6% and the average stay for a dog is one and a half months and about two months for a cat.

In addition, PAWS and More has been working with the Iowa Humane Alliance to have a low cost spay and neuter program in an effort to reduce the number of stray animals.