LA GRANDE — In the three years of operating under new management, the Blue Mountain Humane Association has made great strides toward rebuilding trust within the community and improving the shelter facility

Taking over after years of poor management, the shelter board’s biggest goals were reestablishing trust with residents and community partners, while providing the best possible care for the animals that came through their doors. Bri Troutman, president of the BMHA Board of Directors, and Lani Jones, the board’s vice president, oversee all the daily operations of the shelter.

“One of the things I want to say on behalf of this new board, in order to change the future we’re not focusing on the past,” Jones said. “We want to focus positively on moving forward and making the shelter a positive organization to help the community and the animals.” Troutman joined the board in November 2019. She now oversees the cat program and handles the day-to-day necessities at the shelter, such as scheduling vet appointments and processing adoption applications.

Jones joined the board in February 2022, but has been involved with the shelter on and off for around 20 years. She was previously the animal control deputy with the Union County Sheriff’s Office. Jones runs the dog program, given her training and expertise. She is involved in every step of a dog’s journey through the shelter from the initial behavioral assessments to the intake process and eventually adoption.

Implementing new processes

One of the biggest changes the board of directors has implemented is the adoption process.

Previously animals were adopted out without any real adoption policy or vetting process, Troutman said. The board has put an adoption policy and process in place to ensure long-term, permanent adoptions.

Now, anyone who is interested in bringing a new furry friend home must fill out an application, and animals are adopted out only to people who shelter staff have determined will give the animal a good home.

“We vet those really thoroughly now to make sure people are capable and have the appropriate situation to have the pets. We’re not just adopting them out to the first person who applies,” Troutman said.

“We’re looking for the best fit home for that animal,” Jones added.

From February to December in 2022, the Blue Mountain Humane Association did approximately 400 adoptions, according to Jones, and in the first three months of 2023, BMHA facilitated 32 adoptions.

“That’s an average of approximately 10 animals a month (in 2023), which in reality is about what we have up for adoptions. So our turnaround for an animal being adopted out are basically 100%,” Jones said. “Everyone goes out the door eventually.”

Troutman pointed out that these are all local adoptions. Previous years’ numbers included transfers of animals to other shelters or organizations.

Another change is that all the animals adopted from the shelter are fixed, Troutman said. She added that there is the exception of very small puppies and kittens that are still too young to be spayed or neutered.

“In that case, we have a reimbursement that we give toward the vet of (the new owner’s) choosing,” she said.

This cost of spaying and neutering has contributed to the price of adoption fees at the shelter. Troutman understands that some people may find their prices excessive — $200 for adult dogs, $300 for puppies, $75 for adult cats and $100 for kittens — but the shelter is still taking a loss on the adoption of each animal.

“It’s not even reimbursing us for what we’re paying to the vets to get them fixed,” she said. “But we want to do that because that’s also our mission — to make sure we’re not contributing to unhoused, unwanted animals.”

Updating facilities

The board has also worked to make a lot of physical improvements to the facilities. One of the largest undertakings has been updating the heating system, Troutman said. Previously the shelter utilized a radiant heat boiler system, which was outdated and failed to keep the building warm. At times they were relying on space heaters to keep the kennels warm. Jones added that it was also really difficult for staff and volunteers to work in those conditions.

“It was just not an ideal situation all around,” she said.

Union County Commissioner Matt Scarfo helped BMHA procure a grant totaling more than $29,000 for a new heating and cooling system. This also upgraded the ventilation within the shelter.

“Commissioner Scarfo has been instrumental in helping get the shelter up-to-date with our necessities. He has just been fantastic,” Troutman said.

The updated system will help to make the animals more comfortable throughout all the seasons and during the extreme weather that comes with living in Eastern Oregon, she said. It has also brought air circulation to rooms that previously had no air flow, which has helped the air quality.

Under previous leadership, the building was modified from the original floor plans and some of the rooms were no longer being used for their intended purposes, Troutman said. Since then the board has worked to restore the facility to full functionality, such as bringing back the exam room and expanding the size of the general population cat room.

The Union County Commissioners also helped the shelter get a riding mower, Troutman said, which has allowed them to better maintain BMHA’s 5-acre property. Jones said that when the board took over management of the shelter there were only three outdoor yards for the dogs — now there are six.

“That makes it so every dog out there gets hours and hours of yard time instead of being stuck in a kennel all day,” Troutman said.

While the shelter has come a long way, its staff is aiming to continue improving the facility and eyeing potential new projects down the line.

Partnerships

A priority for the board has been establishing a connection with the community —

both with partners and residents.

BMHA has partnerships in place with D&B Supply and Walmart, Troutman said, both of which donate pet supplies, such as food, litter and bedding. Walmart also donates laundry and cleaning supplies to help keep everything sanitized.

“It’s amazing to have that kind of help from our partners in the community,” Troutman said.

The shelter also partners with the local pet supply store Petsense for adoptions. They are currently collaborating on a large adoption event to take place in May, according to Troutman.

She said that BMHA has also rebuilt a lot of its relationships with other regional shelters, such as New Hope in Baker City, and programs, like the Powder Valley Prison Pals.

“We’re trying to bring back more to the community outreach and more of the fundraising,” Troutman said.

BMHA is currently working on plans to resume the successful “Doggy Dash” fundraiser in the fall, Jones said. The community will be able to come out for a 3K or 5K race where they can run with dogs from the shelter.

“It’s a great way to showcase the animals that are up for adoption,” Troutman said.

‘It takes a community’

Looking forward, Jones said the biggest need for BMHA is funding and volunteers.

“Moving forward a lot of our focus is making sure the financial pieces of the animal shelter are sustainable,” Jones said.

BMHA has great staff and volunteers who make everything the shelter does possible, but there is always need for more hands.

“It takes a community to run an animal shelter,” Jones said. “We want the shelter to have community involvement as much as we can.”

“In order to change the future we’re not focusing on the past. We want to focus positively on moving forward and making the shelter a positive organization to help the community and the animals.”

— Lani Jones, vice president, Blue Mountain Humane Association Board of Directors