The animal shelter directors for both Catoosa and Walker counties say no county-run animal shelter can claim to have a 100-percent adoption rate or not to use euthanasia.

“There’s really no such thing as a no-kill shelter,” said Catoosa County animal shelter director Darla Proctor.

When shelters are run by the county government, they are required to accommodate every animal that they encounter.

Euthanasia becomes necessary when the shelters cannot accommodate the number of animals that are in their care.

Walker County animal shelter director Allison Hardin-Smith said if people turn in animals to no-kill shelters, they are often told to come back later when they have room.

“No-kills have the privilege of limiting the number they take in,” she said.

“We base everything on space,” Proctor said.

The Catoosa shelter took in 295 animals in July. About half of these were adopted. The shelter has 30 dog kennels, which can hold about 60 dogs, and 12 cat cages, which can hold about three cats at a time.

The state requires that animals are held for five days before being euthanized. If the animal is a runaway, this timeframe gives the owner time to locate his or her pet, Proctor said.

The Walker County shelter declined to share its statistical data.

“We euthanize more than I like,” the director said. “One is more than I want (to euthanize).”

Both shelters work with local organizations to place as many animals as possible in homes. For example, Proctor works with Pet Friends of North Georgia and Catoosa Citizens for Animal Care Inc.

Some of the organizations help specific breeds of dogs or only cats.

Proctor said some shelters who claim to be no-kill mislead citizens by leaving out animals they deem “unadoptable” from their adoption rate calculations.

Unadoptable animals are the ones that cannot live with humans because of violent behavior or a history of abuse.

Proctor said some shelters include animals that cower from humans as well as those that attack humans.

The no-kill shelters claim not to use euthanization because they don’t have certified euthanization technicians at their shelter, and when the animals are transferred, the first shelter is no longer responsible for their care.

Hardin-Smith said the overpopulation of cats and dogs happened because of “human irresponsibility.”

“I hate that my job has to exist,” she said.

Overpopulation stems from animals being left to breed.

Proctor said overpopulation of cats is a different kind of problem than that of dogs.

In a good breeding season, an average female cat will give birth to three litters, and by the time she has those litters, her first litter has grown old enough to breed, she said.

“I like cats better than I like dogs, but they are a plague,” she said.

Cat owners often leave their pets unneutered because cats have tendency to run away.

“You may claim a cat, but the cat claims whoever has the best cat food,” Proctor said.

Cats are difficult to capture and usually live animal traps are used, she said.

“I’ll capture a pit bull-mix any day over a (feral) cat,” Proctor said

Catoosa County animal shelter

101 Allmond Trail, Ringgold, Ga. 30736. 706-935-2454. Operating hours: Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. Closed for lunch from noon to 12:30 p.m.

Walker County animal shelter

5118 N. Marbletop Road, Chickamauga, Ga. 30707. 706-375-2100. Operating hours: Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Saturday, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Citizens can help by donating money to their county shelter or by volunteering to work or to be a foster parent.

Update on Ms. No Name

Ms. No Name, a 1-year-old domestic short-haired cat who has nursed many litters, including two litters of cats and one litter each of rabbits and Chihuahua-mix puppies, has finally received a name. She is called Sumi, which means surrogate. One of her puppies was adopted in Florida, where Sumi now lives.