BROOKSVILLE, Fla. — Starting in the new year, the Hernando County Sheriff's Office will take over the responsibilities of Hernando Animal Services, its county shelter.
The Board of County Commissioners voted to have the Sheriff's Office take over on Dec. 3, after more than a year of hearing critiques of Animal Services' conduct and seeing an analysis of its performance.
In the New Year, animals will still be sheltered at the same location on Oliver Street in Brooksville, but all operations will run under the sheriff's office.
"It's going to run very efficiently, it's going to run at a very low cost, as low as we can make it, but still accomplish the mission of taking care of the animal that can't take care of themselves," Sheriff Al Nienhuis said.
Neinhuis said that given his office already runs the Animal Enforcement Department, absorbing animal services makes sense.
"I think the advantage there is things can get done efficiently because the Sheriff is the final decision maker and can move quickly if things need to be resolved," he said. "This, I think, is going to be a little bit more efficient."
The shelter's twelve full-time employees could reapply for their positions, undergoing background checks by the sheriff's office. However, shelter management estimates just half of them will stay on.
With that in mind, concerns have been raised over the speed of the transition, which is happening in under a month.
Dr. Cynda Crawford, a Clinical Associate Professor in Shelter Medicine at the University of Florida assessed the shelter. At the December 3rd Board of County Commissioner's meeting, Dr. Crawford said the transition seemed rushed.
"The last thing you want is for the animals to be caught in a lurch. And I can tell you from my experience running shelters that it's a hard job, there's a lot of people to answer to, and there's a lot of nuances," Dr. Crawford said.
Sheriff Neinhuis acknowledged it has been a quick process, but said his team has been working overtime to prepare and they have several contingency plans in place. He also said his team is seeking guidance from some of the roughly twenty sheriff-run shelters around the state and the passionate employees who are staying on board with them.
"If people are really concerned about the animals and really taking care of them then we're going to be able to get over any other hurdle we come across," he said.
The Hernando Sheriff's Office will also absorb animal services' $2 million budget. Sheriff Neinhuis said it will have its own separate cost center to ensure all of that money goes specifically to animal services.
The shelters will be temporarily closed Monday, Dec. 23, through Tuesday, Dec. 31, as animal services transitions to the HCSO. Sheriff Neinhuis said they will be giving the space a deep clean and adding new furniture during that time.
The sheriff's office said the shelter has an abundance of blankets, but they're looking for other supplies and monetary donations to help fund medical equipment. To donate to animal services, click here.