Monroe County Dog Shelter & Animal Welfare Department

Monroe County Dog Shelter & Animal Welfare Department *The Monroe Dog Control Department reserves the right to remove comments that are deemed offensive or inappropriate. We are located on E.

MCAS is a County-Run, Open-Admission Shelter serving Monroe County. Wisconsin Street in Sparta, WI Upon intake, each dog is treated for internal parasites, and treated with a 30 day flea and tick preventative. They are given Bordatella for Kennel Cough, and a Distemper Vaccine (DHPP). One time per week, we have a licensed Veterinarian visit our Shelter to give all impounded dogs a Wellness Examina

tion. At that time they also receive a Rabies vaccination, and selected dogs get checked for heartworm, lymes and anaplasmosis. Adoption Fees
~All dogs under 25 pounds = $200.00
~All puppies (having baby teeth) = $200.00
~All other dogs = $180.00

To apply to adopt a dog, please visit https://www.co.monroe.wi.us/departments/dog-control/online-animal-adoption-application

"This may surprise you, but food guarders are afraid, not being dominant or bossy or any of those other silly claims." "...
01/06/2025

"This may surprise you, but food guarders are afraid, not being dominant or bossy or any of those other silly claims." "Even though all dogs speak through body language, not every dog does the same sequence of threat signals so it’s important to learn your dog’s dialect of body language so you know what they’re saying."

Resource guarding can be scary and dangerous but it’s important to remember, guarding in dogs is a completely normal behavior. It doesn’t make your dog a“bad dog” and dogs should never be punished or scolded for growling or otherwise communicating when they’re upset we’re trying to take something they find valuable.

As my mentor, Jean Donaldson says in her book about resource guarding, Mine!: A Practical Guide to Resource Guarding in Dogs,

"Guarding food, objects, mates and spaces are highly adaptable traits in a natural environment. If dogs had to fend for themselves tomorrow, guarders would have the survival and reproductive edge over non-guarders."

Read more here: https://rescuedbytraining.com/2024/10/28/helping-dog-food-guarding/

We're so grateful to this organization for helping so many of these birds! We often get calls for Owls or Eagles found i...
01/05/2025

We're so grateful to this organization for helping so many of these birds!
We often get calls for Owls or Eagles found injured or hit by a car, and when the DNR is unable to assist, we pick them up and coordinate with CRHS Wildlife whenever possible. Please consider donating to their Wildlife cause if you can!

This weekend included 4 adoptions!!! Pan (no adoption picture taken), Preston, Muskrat & Boom!!!!
01/05/2025

This weekend included 4 adoptions!!! Pan (no adoption picture taken), Preston, Muskrat & Boom!!!!

🐶What a way to start 2025!🐶We think we can safely repeat what we said last year!We couldn't be more proud of our team - ...
01/03/2025

🐶What a way to start 2025!🐶

We think we can safely repeat what we said last year!

We couldn't be more proud of our team - the endless hard work and dedication to these animals is nothing short of amazing ❤

We have no way of knowing what's coming our way each year, especially with being open-admission as well as the designated facility for criminal welfare impounds, and yet everyone faces it with compassion and patience every single time.

THANK YOU to all of those who have sent their continued support, as we couldn't do all of this without you!

(p.s. the number of adopted dogs would also include the 10 dogs from 2023 who rolled over into 2024)🐾

Adoptable hound Little Ann is doing so great in her foster home! She may prefer to eat in peace, but she LOVES to play w...
01/03/2025

Adoptable hound Little Ann is doing so great in her foster home! She may prefer to eat in peace, but she LOVES to play with the big dogs and is respectful and cuddly with the littles!

New shelter pals Boom & Loki have no idea their size difference exists; they just know their play style matched up and t...
12/30/2024

New shelter pals Boom & Loki have no idea their size difference exists; they just know their play style matched up and they had a great time!

Mcashelter.petfinder.com

Keep your pets safe and indoors during fireworks!
12/30/2024

Keep your pets safe and indoors during fireworks!

Some may be letting off fireworks tomorrow to celebrate the New Year. Be sure to keep your pup on leash so she doesn't get spooked and run off.

THANK YOU to the folks at Marcie's Country Pet Spa for the donation drive they held for the shelter! Adoptable boy Prest...
12/28/2024

THANK YOU to the folks at Marcie's Country Pet Spa for the donation drive they held for the shelter! Adoptable boy Preston was quick to enjoy the pigs ears!

SHARING for our friends at Driftless Humane SocietyOliver would thrive in a home with someone experienced with highly dr...
12/27/2024

SHARING for our friends at Driftless Humane Society

Oliver would thrive in a home with someone experienced with highly driven working breeds - he's highly intelligent, loves to play fetch and loves going running with his favorite human!

Oliver is an adoptable Dog - Australian Shepherd searching for a forever family near Viroqua, WI. Use Petfinder to find adoptable pets in your area.

12/24/2024

If you plan on gathering with friends and/or family this holiday season, there are a number of things you can do to keep your dog (and your visitors) safe.

Remember, there is nothing "wrong" with your dog if you need to manage amid all the chaos; that is 100% normal.

Check out this week's blog post for more info on how you can implement each of these strategies: https://rescuedbytraining.com/2022/11/14/holiday-gathering-tips

WE NEED:Pet Safe Ice Melt (any brand/container size) and Paper towels! Thank you🤗
12/20/2024

WE NEED:
Pet Safe Ice Melt (any brand/container size) and Paper towels!

Thank you🤗

We've had some people inquire about our change in viewing operations for adoptable dogs, so we'd like to clarify why thi...
12/19/2024

We've had some people inquire about our change in viewing operations for adoptable dogs, so we'd like to clarify why things changed and how a new building could help improve this issue!

During the COVID shutdown, we changed our adoption viewing to "by appointment only" to avoid groups of people all clustering into our already-small kennel area. What we noticed during this is that not only was it easier for the staff to accommodate families one-on-one, but we saw a DRASTIC reduction in the stress of our shelter dogs.

The first 11 kennels in our shelter are all built like this one in the photo, with a lower ceiling area, making it so that some dogs only see portions of people walking through. (this is not an ideal way to build a kennel, and would be one of the first things we change with a new building!) What we used to experience was people walking through for all different reasons: Some were interested in adoption, but others were just looking for something to do and would spend prolonged periods of time in the kennel area just staring at the dogs, which made many dogs really upset. Some people would poke in at the dogs, some would even feed them things they weren't supposed to have if we weren't back there watching, and some would even let them out of their kennels without a staff member or volunteer present. Because we've only got a couple employees on at a time, and we're responsible for manning the front desk/phones, tending to the other shelter dogs, and doing adoption counseling, we simply couldn't accommodate everyone at the same time who came through the doors.

Over the years, there has been a lot of information updated on how differently animals behave in their kennels vs. how they are outside of their kennels. We have seen a vast improvement in adoptions simply due to the fact that we are able to get the dogs out in a happier state of mind, one at a time, with a family who's interested in them, and block out enough time for us to really spend with each family. This has helped reduce the stress of our shelter dogs, both adoptable and on hold.

Speaking of hold, that's another reason we don't have public freely walking through our kennel areas anymore - our building isn't set up for much separation, so if we have animals in the kennel area who are evidence in a criminal case, we had no way of keeping them in an area secured from public access. Another goal for our new building! :)

Promisingly, we've actually had an improvement in adoptions due to our changes! This might not be the case for some other shelters who have a different layout, a larger number of staff, and the ability to keep more fearful dogs in a quieter area. All of our adoptable dogs are listed on our petfinder page so that families interested in adoption can read as much as we know about them, and simply submit an inquiry. We ask for an adoption application ahead of time so that we know the family is at least 'generally approved' to adopt before we take everyone's time to do the adoption counseling. Once someone is generally approved, they can schedule as many appointments as possible before they find the right fit! We block out at least one hour, making sure that we have an employee available to commit time to that family, and yes, you still get walked through the kennel area. The difference is that now it's in a way that's not overwhelming to our dogs who may not appreciate the lingering individuals in front of their kennels.

Our #1 goal is happy, relaxed dogs who feel safe, and finding them the best possible match of a family to call their own! We appreciate everyone who has respected this process for the wellbeing of the dogs and have ended up finding their new family member in a more productive manner.

Our lobby area is still open to the public during business hours for license sales, inquiries, filing welfare complaints, or any other need our department may help you with

Address

Physical Address: 3100 E. Wisconsin Street/Mailing Address: 777 S. Black River Street, Suite #2
Sparta, WI
54656

Opening Hours

Monday 2pm - 6pm
Tuesday 12:30pm - 4:30pm
Wednesday 2pm - 6pm
Thursday 12:30pm - 4:30pm
Friday 12:30pm - 4:30pm
Saturday 10am - 2pm

Telephone

+16082698775

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Upon intake, each dog is treated for internal parasites, and treated with a 30 day flea and tick preventative. They are given Bordatella for Kennel Cough, and a Distemper Vaccine (DHLPP). One time per week, we have a licensed Veterinarian visit our Shelter to give all impounded dogs a Wellness Examination. At that time they also receive a Rabies vaccination, and selected dogs get checked for heartworm, lymes and anaplasmosis. Adoption fees effective 01/01/2019 ~All dogs under 25 pounds = $180.00 ~All puppies younger than 6 months of age = $180.00 ~All other dogs = $140.00