HUTCHINSON, Kan. — After a record year in 2018, the Hutchinson Animal Shelter saw a drop in the number of pets they were able to adopt. It also saw an increase in the number of animals euthanized. The number of pets adopted in 2019 was 847 compared with 1007 the previous year.
The number of animals euthanized was 647 which ended a five-year decline in that number. The shelter says most of the euthanizations were due to health issues or behavior problems.
The number of lost pets returned to owners was steady at 391 and 266 pets were transferred to other agencies which is a slight increase over 2018.
One area that also saw numbers increase was the number of pets surrendered to the shelter. This past year, 593 pets were surrendered compared with 494 in 2018. The number of strays brought into the shelter did decline last year at 1,501 compared with 1,600 in 2018.