ORANGE COUNTY, Fla.,None — Officials at the Orange County Animal Shelter told WFTV Wednesday they are being forced to shut down the facility's overnight drop-off for stray and unwanted dogs. Some of the dogs being left at the shelter have the deadly parvovirus.
The area where people are normally allowed to leave unwanted and stray dogs will be closed for at least three months. The Orange County Animal Shelter noticed a lot of the dogs being left there overnight had symptoms of the parvovirus; it's a virus only dogs can get and it attacks the lining of the digestive system. If it's not treated immediately, it can be fatal.
In the last month, the shelter has seen 36 cases.
"Unfortunately, those animals do have to be euthanized, because we can't risk exposing our huge population. We have 500 plus animals here, right now," said Kathleen Kennedy, Orange County Animal Services.
Animal control officers use a small kit to test the dogs. They get a sample with a cotton swab, place it in a secure container, and then squeeze the blue liquid out and snap it shut. The results show up in eight minutes.
However the test is only available at a vet.
People who drop off at the Pavilion don't even have to give a name or address. Officials do know most of the sick strays came from Pine Hills and the 32805 zip code, just west of downtown.
As a result, Orange County will go into those neighborhoods with a mobile vaccination unit to cut down on the parvovirus cases.
WFTV
