TOMS RIVER – Toms River Animal Control Officer David Matthews prepared the Toms River Animal Shelter for takeover by the Ocean County Shelter today by ensuring all remaining animals were either adopted by local rescue groups or brought to the County Shelter.
Clearing the Toms River shelter was necessary to facilitate and prepare for construction upgrades, including installing a dog run to ensure animals receive proper exercise and preparing for an in-house veterinarian.
“We are happy to report the remaining animals in our care were either adopted or taken in by the County Shelter, which is open 24/7 and has a veterinarian on staff,” said Mayor Rodrick. “Soon, the Toms River branch of the Ocean County Shelter will feature the resources to care for animals and give them the best life possible.”
Local animal rescue groups All Fur One in the Silverton section of Toms River, Best Friends of Animals in Williamsboro, and S.A.V.E. from Toms River collected nearly all of the animals on Friday. They will work to find them forever homes.
The remaining animals were transported to the Ocean County Animal Shelter on Friday, where they will be prepared for adoption.
County-run animal shelters are the norm across New Jersey, as municipalities lack the funding to operate effectively.
“Ultimately, we just want what’s best for the animals and the taxpayers of Toms River,” said Mayor Rodrick. “The shelter cost us $1 million yearly and did not give the animals proper care. The County does an excellent job and will continue to give these animals their best lives and best chance to be adopted.”
Mayor Rodrick also responded to political opponents’ false claims on Facebook and other social media platforms. The first claim is that the shelter is closing.
“Nobody is shutting down the Toms River Animal Shelter,” he said. “This is completely false and intended to create a political firestorm by former Mayor Maurice Hill supporters. The shelter will operate under the Ocean County Health Department, which will care for the animals better than Toms River ever has.”
“These people continuously claim the Ocean County Animal Shelter is a bad place for these animals,” he said. “If the shelter is that bad, why are they not protesting there every day to stop these alleged inhumane activities they say are going on? The answer is simple: The county runs a great shelter program and is more than capable of running the Toms River shelter.”
He also addressed a claim being made by an anonymous Facebook scanner news page that claims the animals are being euthanized.
“This is the same page that earlier this year created a panic in the community about busloads of illegal immigrants being dropped off at a hotel,” he added. That has been debunked after a thorough investigation by the Ocean County Sheriff’s Department. Just because they post it on Facebook doesn’t make it true; in fact, it’s usually the opposite with that page.”