Des Moines is going to the dogs. If your pet is picked up Des Moines Animal Control will take it to either a kennel or one of four local veterinary hospitals the City began contracting with at the beginning of this year, instead of the Kent Animal Shelter.

When King County announced earlier this year they could no longer continue to subsidize the $3 million additional dollars a year it costs them to provide animal control, the County told cities as of July 1 if they wanted to use King County Animal Control services they would have to sign a new contract where they would pay for the actual cost of the animal control services.

This included the contracts for shelter services. Des Moines, who has been doing Animal Control in house for at 30 plus years, contracted with local veterinary hospitals and Holiday Kennels to take the animals picked up in Des Moines.

Des Moines Master Animal Control Officer Jan Magnuson said the transition away from using the Kent Animal Shelter has been a smooth one. She said there have really been no problems at all using Holiday Kennel and local veterinary hospitals.

“For me it is way easier than it has been for years,” Magnuson said. Magnuson has been the animal control department in Des Moines for 22 years.

Originally it looked like the costs would be the same for using the County Shelter and contracting with several smaller vendors for shelter service, but during the several months they have been doing it Magnuson said the costs are actually turning out to be slightly less.

She said the reason for this is increased community involvement. If someone captures a friendly animal they will sometimes hold the animal until the owners pick it up.

Magnuson said in instances like that she works as a go between getting the pet reunited with the owner, but there are times she doesn’t even have to personally respond.

Des Moines Police Commander John O’Leary said there has been frustration with communication and the level of service from the County. He said in the last several years there have been instances where an animal was released early, or was euthanized before it was scheduled.

Magnuson said she likes the new system because now she knows nothing is going to happen to the animals that she does not ok first.

The level of service for the animals will be better with this new system, Magnuson said, because now they have 7 day a week access to a vet.

The Des Moines animal control program is now being looked at by the cities of Burien and Federal Way, who chose not to contract with the County.

Des Moines is helping them get their animal control programs up and running, Magnuson said.

“To me there is no reason Cities not to do this on their own if they want to,” Magnuson said.

King County had said last year there were getting out of the Animal Control business. Early this year the County decided to continue offering animal control services, but the cities contracting with the County would be paying the actual costs for their service. In April of this year the County presented a new plan to cities, asking them to send the County a letter of intent by April 30, a deadline that was extended to May 5.

The County plan divided the County into four regions, with one King County Animal Control Officer for each region. The Animal Control Officer would serve five days a week, eight hours a day and be on call the rest of the time. Burien, who chose not to contract with the County, would have been in a region that included Kent, SeaTac, Tukwilla, parts of unincorporated King County and Vashon Island.

Currently 27 cities in King County have chosen to contract with the County for two and a half years.