PORTLAND, Ore. — The Multnomah County Animal Services (MCAS) has rewritten its euthanasia policy, leaving out phrasing that they will not euthanize animals due to the lack of shelter space — something their previous policy stated. This change comes after County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson requested the department make changes based on 100 recommendations last year.
Margi Bradway, director of Multnomah County's Department of Community Services, oversees the shelter. She told KGW that this new policy was created from scratch between shelter leaders, including herself and the shelter manager Erin Grayhek.
“Erin Grayhek has the authority to enact operational policies, and then, she can run those by me,” said Bradway. “She and her team drafted the policy with the input of the leadership team and the management team, and I reviewed it.”
For the last 20 years, the MCAS euthanasia policy has specifically read that “animals will never be euthanized for lack of space in the shelter.”
However, some people have raised questions about why that verbiage was not included in the new policy. Bradway explained to KGW the reasoning behind that decision.
“First, I was to put on the record that we do not kill animals due to space,” said Bradway. “Our policy doesn’t say we do that, and we didn’t feel necessary to state that because it wasn’t the goal of the update of our new policy, which was focused on the animals and how we make tough decisions around the dogs that are on that edge — those dangerous and injured animals.”
The new policy states that all animals considered for euthanasia will go through their rounds review team. That includes staff veterinarians, certified veterinary techs, division directors, and other animal care specialists. However, a MCAS veterinarian may ultimately determine to proceed with euthanasia without rounds review approval if there is a major health concern to the animal.
According to a shelter report, MCAS euthanized 8% of animals it accepted in December and had a live release rate of 91%. Numbers for January and February have not yet been uploaded.
KGW’s Daisy Caballero asked Bradway if it’s possible to add specific language that clearly states animals will not be euthanized due to capacity. Here’s what she said:
“These are operational policies, and we can update them from time to time, so I’m open to that, but at this point, I don’t think it’s needed,” said Bradway. “This is guiding staff on how to make decisions and how to find pathways for adoption. It’s more about what we do and what (we don't do). And most of our policies are stated that way.”