The Humane Society of Central Illinois still hopes to reopen Wednesday following a dual virus scare that has temporarily closed the shelter.
A puppy that the Normal shelter took in tested positive last week for the highly contagious parvovirus. At the same time, the shelter became concerned its cats may have been exposed to ringworm. The shelter announced Thursday it was temporarily closing to give staff time to deep-clean and monitor pet health.
Madonna Courtright with the Humane Society said Monday that no other dogs have tested positive for parvovirus. The puppy was in critical condition as of Sunday but was tolerating the treatment, the Humane Society said in a statement.
“We have no active cases of ringworm at this time. Cats are being monitored as we wait for a culture to be read in a few days,” the shelter said.
The majority of animals taken in by the Humane Society have been relinquished by their owner, according to the shelter’s website. Animals also come there from McLean County Animal Control and other shelters, said Courtright.
“Nothing’s going out, nothing’s coming in right now,” said Courtright, the development director at the Humane Society.
During the closure those looking to get rid of a pet have limited options, she said. They can try Wish Bone Canine Rescue, or a private fostering home, she said.
“It’s kind of limited,” Courtright said. “They can take them to McLean County Animal Control. But Animal Control makes no claims to be a no-kill shelter because they have to do what they have to do to maintain their population.”
There is a silver lining to the timing of last week’s dual scares.
“It just happened to occur simultaneously,” Courtright said. “Which is good because that’s better than doing the timeout for parvo, and then a week later having to do another timeout for ringworms."
To help with cleanup, HSCI is seeking donations of bleach, paper towels, laundry detergent, and antibacterial dish shop. They're also accepting monetary donations.
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