Lincoln County Animal Shelter nears construction
SHOSHONE, Idaho – The permit application has been submitted and, pending approval from the state, a new animal shelter for Lincoln County could begin construction in the next few weeks.
The community has gathered most of the donations of money and materials, Lincoln County Sheriff Rene King said. And while the structure is still $20,000 short, they are ready to move ahead with building the main structure.
“We have the property, we have a contractor and we have donations and money that was donated, just shy of $30,000,” King said, “and our goal was about $50,000 for our first phase.”
The shelter will sit at 110 S. Fir St. in Shoshone. King said a permit application was sent to the state last week. The contractor is ready to go and just waiting on the permit from the state.
The shelter has been a long time coming. Currently, the sheriff’s office has limited ability to house loose dogs, and there is always a need.
The current facility consists of two kennels outside with a cover for rain. Being exposed to the weather in summer and winter makes the kennels unsafe for animals. The new structure will be 30 feet by 30 feet, with seven kennels, climate control and a washroom.
“This facility is going to allow us to house these animals all year long in a climate-controlled facility while we reunite them back with their lost parents or their new adopted parents,” King said.
The project has successfully raised donations for the project over the years – even with donation jars placed throughout the community. The county set up a Venmo page to accept donations electronically.
Shoshone requires dog owners to purchase license tags, which helps the sheriff’s office reunite dogs with their families.
The sheriff’s office adopts out strays posted on its Facebook page. Just this last week, an individual drove 110 miles to adopt a dog from the agency.
Commissioner Joann Rutler said the project is in its last stages but needs that last little bump to be complete.
“A lot of people in this community know that we do need an animal shelter,” Rutler said. “Not anything elaborate but something safe, that we can either return the animals to their rightful owners or rehome them.
“We just need a little bit more to fill in the gap and get it finished. If anybody feels in their heart to be able to help us out, we would be eternally grateful for that too, because we are very close.”