PULLMAN — When police respond to cases of animal hoarding in Whitman County, they rely on the local humane society to shelter, treat and adopt the animals.
That means March was a busy month for Whitman County Humane Society staff as law enforcement responded to major hoarding cases in Albion and Pullman.
For help, the organization has taken to social media to ask for donations of supplies for the influx of animals in their care.
The shelter’s director of operations, Annie Lindsey, said within 48 hours people across the country had sent supportive texts, emails and Facebook messages, along with numerous supplies.
“We got, I think, pretty much everything we asked for in terms of their (animal) care, so all of their basic needs are met,” Lindsey said.
She said a generous donor sent seven heat lamps to the Humane Society for new reptiles the shelter received from the recent Pullman case.
In response to a report of possible animal neglect at a College Hill apartment on March 16, Pullman police found numerous dead exotic animals, including a python, a bearded dragon, a gecko, a dog, three ferrets and four gliders. in sugar.
They found several animals still alive, including two dogs, two cats, a turtle, a bearded dragon, a gecko and two hedgehogs.
The animals were treated at Washington State University Veterinary Teaching Hospital and returned to the Humane Society, Lindsey said.
“This case was a little more traumatic than the others,” Lindsey said.
She said it was the first time she remembered her staff having to care for a gecko and a turtle. They had to buy new supplies to care for a variety of animals.
Because the animals are evidence in an ongoing police investigation, Lindsey couldn’t say much about them. She said that depending on how the case progresses, the animals could return to the owners or remain in the care of the Humane Society for adoption later.
This month police also responded to a case of cat hoarding in the small rural town of Albion. Whitman County deputies served a search warrant and secured 13 animals from a residence during the investigation.
Lindsey said this is the third time in nearly three years at the shelter that Humane Society staff have had to take in cats from that particular residence.
The cats are being cared for and will later be adopted, she said. On Thursday, Lindsay showed two tiny Albion kittens, less than two weeks old, sleeping soundly in a box with blankets.
Lindsey said animal hoarding is a bigger problem on the Palouse than people probably realize.
“Because we are surrounded by many rural communities and have relatively limited animal resources, it can get out of hand very quickly,” she said.
She said people in rural communities may not have easy access to spaying and sterilization services, or the money to pay for those services.
Lindsey said the Humane Society is grateful for the donations and support it has received from the public. With unknown medical costs for these impending creatures, she said the Humane Society is still encouraging people to donate money.
Those interested in donating can visit whitmanpets.org for more information.
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