Pueblo animal shelter under fire for high euthanasia rate – KOAA.com Colorado Springs and Pueblo News

PUEBLO -

A local group is calling for drastic change at Pueblo Animal Services.

"it's something at least to aim for. When you have the city of Los Angeles going 'no-kill,' I think the city of Pueblo can handle it as well," said Suzanne Morgan, whose worked with various animal rescues for years.

Members of Stand Up For Pueblo Animals say some of the concerns they've had for years about the shelter were recently made public after a Pueblo man tried to adopt a puppy from the shelter--and was told she was going to be put down because she failed their behavioral assessment.

"It's kind of well known in the rescue community about our shelter here. Happy really got the word out there and had a lot of people join up and take notice," said one of the group's members Helinda Edwards.

Pueblo Animal Services is standing by their assessment, though, saying in a statement Tuesday:

"The evaluation is one tool we use to see if the animal exhibits behavior indicating they may be a risk to the safety of the community."

They go on to say:

"If a dog doesnt pass the evaluation, we may contact a partnering shelter with a behavior modification program to see if they are willing and able to accept the dog."

Which is exactly what eventually happened with Happy, who has since been adopted by the man who fought to keep her alive.

"Happy of course was the lucky one," said Morgan.

"There's many more in Pueblo that aren't so lucky," she added.

News5 pulled 2015 statistics from all of the Colorado shelters and found that four of the state's five shelters with the largest K9 intake numbers--including Pueblo Animal Services--also had the largest K9 euthanasia numbers.

But Pueblo Animal Services' euthanasia rate was considerably higher than the other shelters, at 27%.

This past year, it dropped to 22%. Morgan says that's still way too high.

"These peoplethink that they're going to put their animal in to get them 're-homed'--only 3/4 of them do. The rest of them are dead. And that's just wrong," she said.

Her concerns have already caught the city's attention, though.

"We did ask for the city manager to have the administration come to council and hear their side of the story and put out some questions and get some answers," City Council President Steve Nawrocki explained.

That meeting will likely happen sometime early June.

We'll keep you updated.

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Pueblo animal shelter under fire for high euthanasia rate - KOAA.com Colorado Springs and Pueblo News