Previously:

• Del Norte County Looks to Restructure Its Animal Services Department

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Del Norte County staff are offering the sheriff’s office as a potential new home for the county’s Animal Services Division.

County Administrative Officer Neal Lopez will present a report to supervisors on Tuesday that recommends animal control and animal shelter services be a new operational branch similar to others within the DNSO.

Staff also considered restructuring animal services under the umbrella of the Department of Health and Human Services or the Community Development Department, according to Lopez’s staff report.

“Based on the conversations with these three potential departments, it seems fairly evident that the best fit for Animal Services would be the DNSO,” Lopez wrote. “Additionally, the research conducted indicates these services are normally provided by a sheriff’s department agency in rural counties, so it is logical from that perspective as well.”

On July 12, county supervisors directed staff to do more research about restructuring its Animal Services Division, which is currently housed under the Del Norte Agricultural Commission. Animal Services Director Justin Riggs is also the agricultural commissioner and the sealer of weights and measures.

According to Lopez, Del Norte is one of only three California counties with this configuration. In addition to Riggs, an animal services supervisor and two animal control officers staff the division. The Agricultural Department’s administrative secretary and a part-time office technician perform fiscal and clerical support.

Volunteers also take on a bulk of the work, including caring for the animals, facilitating transfer to rescue shelters and ensuring they’re ready for adoption. Volunteers from the Humane Society of Del Norte County also spay and neuter the animals, long-time volunteer Laureen Yamakido.

“So far this year, 189 dogs have come into the county, three horses, four goats, two pigs and one rabbit,” Yamakido told supervisors July 12. “The volunteers are exhausted. The staff is exhausted.”

The Del Norte County Board of Supervisors meets at 10 a.m. Tuesday in the Flynn Center, 910 H Street in Crescent City. Meetings are also broadcast via Zoom.

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