Othello animal shelter still in progress

OTHELLO — The fence has been installed for a new animal shelter in Othello, but a date for final completion is still to be determined.

Othello city officials allocated money for a new shelter in 2024, but city officials are still working on it, said Mayor Ken Johnson. 

"The project kind of got stalled," Johnson said. "There were a lot of little factors that took place."

The city has a contract with Hands 'n Paws Animal Assistance, Othello, to assume ownership of stray animals picked up in Othello, an arrangement that started in October 2024. Hands 'n Paws founder Carmon Derting delivered the group's annual 2025-26 report to the Othello City Council on Monday.

The contract with Hands 'n Paws includes an agreement that the city will provide a shelter. There's a temporary setup on city property, and city officials have purchased some of the components for the shelter, but it's not completed. 

Johnson said installing the utility infrastructure is the next phase of construction, something that can be done by city crews.

Derting said the temporary accommodation is inadequate for the number of dogs and cats coming in and out of the shelter. 

"This year also showed us where we are stretched. Our shelter holds nine dogs. Yet, from July through September, we averaged 12 to 14 dogs in care each day," Derting said.

The temporary facility was busier in its second year, she said.

"Between Oct. 1, 2025, and Sept. 30, 2026, we took in 507 animals, 120 more than in the same period in 2024-25," Derting said. "The animals brought to us by Othello animal control are the heart of our contract with the city, and over the full year, animal control has brought us 145 animals, 126 of those being dogs, and the rest being cats. From January through September, most animal control dogs went to their owners and into adoptive homes or to partner shelters."

Of all animals brought into the shelter, 491 have been adopted, returned home, sent to another shelter or, in some cases, euthanized.

Hands 'n Paws took care of 307 cats and 200 dogs between October 2025 and October 2026, Derting wrote in a report submitted to the council. Of those, 224 cats and 84 dogs were adopted to new homes, nine cats and 63 dogs went back to their owners, and eight cats and 59 dogs were transferred to other shelters. 

Othello animal control officers brought in 145 animals; Othello residents and visitors brought in 165, and owners gave up another 19. Some animals that were adopted, 17 in total were returned, and 25 kittens were born while their mothers were in the shelter. 

"Where owners gave a reason for surrender, financial hardship was the most common, followed by housing or landlord issues and owner health," Derting wrote in her report. 

The average length of stay for dogs was 13.8 days, compared 33.8 for cats.

Of the animals brought in by Othello animal control, five dogs ended up in the shelter after biting someone. Four of them were euthanized, she said. Seven animals were repeaters, being brought to the shelter more than once between January and September. Another 14 were brought in because their owners were taken into custody, or their owners put their lives at risk.

Derting said finishing the shelter is the top priority for Hands 'n Paws.

"The biggest aid right now is the new building. That's where we are stalled, because right now where we're at, we cannot have true volunteers. We cannot have community service. We're not open to the public," she said. "We're so limited right now, and that's why I'm so astounded by the numbers that we do have. But that does require us doing a lot of off-site stuff, and overall, it does hurt even on the donation side because people don't see us as being transparent because they can't come see what we do. So getting that resolved would help dramatically."