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North Utah Valley Animal Shelter to recommend a change in animal euthanasia practices

By Genelle Pugmire - | Sep 3, 2021

Connor Richards, Daily Herald

Utah animal rights activists protest the North Utah Valley Animal Shelter outside of the Orem City Center on Tuesday, June 15, 2021. (Connor Richards, Daily Herald file photo)

Following an outcry from residents concerned about how the North Utah Valley Animal Shelter was euthanizing animals, an in-depth study has been completed on the issues and findings were recently released.

The catalyst of the study is the shelter’s use of carbon monoxide in gas chambers to euthanize, a process considered inhumane and in many cases archaic.

Tug Gettling, director of the Lindon shelter, did research into best practices from shelters, veterinarians and animal hospitals from Istanbul to Canada to Utah, seeking a wide range of information on the subject.

With few exceptions, the injection method, using sodium pentobarbital, was the preferred process.

In the study, Gettling addressed the public’s outrage to the current gas chamber method.

Connor Richards, Daily Herald

Utah animal rights activists protest the North Utah Valley Animal Shelter outside of the Orem City Center on Tuesday, June 15, 2021. (Connor Richards, Daily Herald file photo)

“The public perception, whether accurate or inaccurate, has been shown to be almost unreservedly in opposition to the use of carbon monoxide for animal euthanasia,” he said. “The overwhelming majority of animal welfare organizations consider the use of sodium pentobarbital for animal euthanasia to be the preferred method.”

The American Veterinary Medical Association, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, as well as several other scientific organizations reference the Humane Society, and other animal welfare agencies, as authoritative sources. These agencies oppose the routine use of carbon monoxide for animal euthanasia, according to the study.

Lt. Mike Paraskeva of the Orem Police department, who is also an NUVAS board member,  said Orem city leaders appear to agree that changing the euthanasia process to injections is the best practice.

“I’ve spoken with city leaders and they are ready to go with changing the procedure,” he said.

That vote cannot happen until the animal shelter board, made up of representatives from cities In Utah County from Orem to the north, meet, discuss and agree on the change. That meeting will be held Sept. 30.

Isaac Hale

A cat available for adoption looks out of its cage Friday, July 12, 2019, at the North Utah Valley Animal Shelter in Lindon. (Isaac Hale, Daily Herald file photo)

All cities must agree to change the procedure. Paraskeva believes that will happen.

As part of the study, it was noted the pressures, anxiety and depression that shelter workers have when they must euthanize an animal.

In some cases, particularly with wild or feral animals, it can be very dangerous to the shelter worker to try and inject the animal, according to the study. Even the use of the carbon monoxide method can be dangerous to personnel.

“The safety of our employees, as well as our customers and clients, is of the utmost importance. The potential for a catastrophic incident that endangers the lives of employees, customers, and animals exists with the continued use of carbon monoxide equipment and does not exist with the utilization of euthanasia by injection of sodium pentobarbital,” Gettling said in the study summary.

“Both methods of animal euthanasia pose a significant safety risk to personnel, the risk of both methods can be addressed by and mitigated with proper equipment, training, procedures, and protocols. The risk to personnel handling and restraining animals for euthanasia by injection can largely be mitigated through the use of pre-euthanasia sedation using anesthetic drugs coupled with fractious animal injection techniques and equipment,” Gettling added

One of the questions brought up by Orem City Council members was the difference in cost and if it would be too expensive to have injections.

“The operational cost differential between euthanasia via carbon monoxide and euthanasia by injection of sodium pentobarbital appears to be inconsequential,” Gettling noted.

The operational impact of continued use of carbon monoxide as a means of animal euthanasia is entirely negative, according to the study.

“North Utah Valley Animal Services desires to always implement and follow those best practices that vouchsafe animal welfare in conjunction with human safety,” Gettling said. “It is recommended that the North Utah Valley Animal Services Special Service District create and adopt a euthanasia by injection protocol and eliminate the use of carbon monoxide as a means of animal euthanasia.

It is further recommended that NUVASSD discontinue accepting owner surrendered animals for euthanasia.

It is also recommended that employees who receive additional training and are charged with having to euthanize animals are given a pay increase; either as part of their salary or as a stipend given month.

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