Mayor Fischer, Louisville Metro Animal Services Celebrate History-Making 2017

Mayor Greg Fischer today joined Metro Animal Services leaders and staff in celebrating a history-making 2017, which includes achieving no-kill status for time and space.

“Our city value of compassion absolutely extends to the animals that enrich our lives,” Mayor Fischer said. “That’s why I’m so proud that Metro Animal Services has achieved a live release rate above 90 percent, thanks to the hard work of the LMAS team, their partners and volunteers.

“We want to celebrate the work they’ve done, completing a really dramatic and impressive turnaround.”

The Mayor thanked the LMAS team and Director Ozzy Gibson, who has guided the agency’s turnaround since 2016.

“Since I got here, I’ve been impressed with the dedication of our team, partners and volunteers to the compassionate care of animal,” Gibson said. “We’re going to keep working hard, and we’ll stay committed to coming up with new ideas that lead to good outcomes for animals.”

Louisville Metro Animal Services, the city’s only open intake shelter, finished 2017 with a 93 percent live release rate — the best in its 52-year history.

And, for the first time, no animals were euthanized because of time or space. LMAS also found homes for 909 more cats and dogs compared to 2016 (3,141 vs 2,232).

Gibson said the launch and overwhelming success last year of the Pay It Forward Free Adoptions Program was a primary contributor to the turnaround. Pay It Forward is funded solely through donations, which allows LMAS to waive adoption fees for certain cats and dogs.

Key 2017 Animal Services stats:

Zero animals euthanized for time or space

• 90.8% live release rate for canines
• 93.8% live release rate for felines
• 37% increase in animal returned to owners
• 41% increase in animal adoptions

More information about Animal Services and Pay It Forward can be found at:https://louisvilleky.gov/government/animal-services.