FARMINGTON – Patty Lovell and her staff at the Franklin County Animal Shelter were all smiles Thursday. The shelter will be able to re-open to the public at 11 a.m. Friday.
The ringworm cultures of the animals all came back negative, said Lovell, manager of the shelter.
The shelter with nearly 100 animals has been under quarantine since Feb. 2 due to an outbreak of ringworm, a fungal disease.
Not all the animals had ringworm. All were treated accordingly, either preventively or with treatment.
University of Maine at Farmington students Katie Gassman, Lianne Koczur and Prema Long did all the culture testing as a school project. The university picked up the tab for the testing.
On Thursday, dogs were barking in their kennels. Cats were playing in their cages. Two rabbits, Cricket and Peter, rested on the lobby floor near their cages while Tribble, a guinea pig, slept in its cage.
During the 11.5 weeks the shelter was closed to the public, the place was scrubbed and walls painted new pastel colors of yellow, pale green, lavender and blue to replace off-white.
“I am so excited,” Lovell said as she transferred cats into large cages. “I can actually have people in my building.”
On Thursday, animals that had been adopted-out prior to the quarantine, were going home with their new owners.
The full count of animals, minus the newly adopted ones, was: 12 dogs, 75 cats, two rabbits and the guinea pig.
Lovell and her staff were feeling relieved, excited, overwhelmed and anxious when the quarantine lifted, she said.
“I do need to say,” Lovell said, “that the community supported us, not only financially but emotionally as well. People have continued to support us through the whole thing.”
She would drive into work and she’d find cases of bleach, paper towels, pet food, toys for the animals and more at the shelter.
There will be an open house from 3 to 5 p.m. Sunday, May 2, at the shelter.
Lovell commended her staff and the university and its students for a job well done.
Lovell and her staff opted to treat the ringworm cases rather than euthanize all the animals.
“We took the long road. I didn’t have any choice emotionally,” Lovell said as she looked at some of the cats. “And thankfully, the community and the Board of Directors supported the decision.”
dperry@sunjournal.com
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