About a month ago, Ashtabula County Dog Warden David Britton reached out to Geauga County Dog Warden Matt Granito for help.
About a month ago, Ashtabula County Dog Warden David Britton reached out to Geauga County Dog Warden Matt Granito for help.
The animal shelter Britton uses in Kingsville Township is owned by the Ashtabula County Animal Protective League.
Negotiations between Ashtabula County and the ACAPL broke down at the end of September and the contract to use the building was set to expire Jan. 1, 2026, Granito said during a phone interview Jan. 3.
If the county does not have a contract with the ACAPL, Britton does not have a shelter, Granito said, adding it is possible for Geauga County’s dog shelter to house some of the 250-plus dogs from the Ashtabula shelter.
“We have space,” Granito said.
The Geauga shelter on Ravenwood Drive in Claridon Township cares for about 300 stray dogs per year, down from about 700 per year 15 years ago, he said.
“Since COVID, the population of stray dogs has gone down,” Granito said.
A one-year contract written by the Ashtabula County Prosecutor’s Office has been submitted to the Geauga County Prosecutor’s Office for review, Granito said.
Any deal will require Ashtabula to cover the cost of keeping its animals in Geauga’s facility.
“We can’t do this without funding,” Granito said, explaining the contract stipulates if Geauga County keeps animals from Ashtabula County, his office will be compensated for food and medical care.
If his shelter adopts out an Ashtabula dog, Geauga keeps the money, Granito said.
“Obviously, it will put a little strain on our shelter and our people. It would probably double the number of dogs we get,” he said.
While Granito said he wants to help Britton out however he can, Geauga’s dogs are his first priority.
“Our dogs come first,” he said. “It’s a tough thing, especially this time of year.”
Meanwhile, the Ashtabula dog warden’s office is building kennels for strays in a warehouse in Jefferson Village as a temporary facility and Britton is hoping a new facility can be built, possibly funded by a grant, Granito said.
The ACAPL website said that as an independent, nonprofit organization holding a county contract to serve as the county dog pound, they receive only about 15% of operating funds from Ashtabula County and the city.
“Most of our work is supported through donations, adoption fees, grants and community support such as volunteers and fosters,” the website said. “In August, the shelter hit a breaking point — operating at 250% of its capacity.
“With extremely limited funding and the shelter operating well beyond capacity, the ACAPL made the difficult but necessary decision to temporarily suspend humane agent operations.
“The ACAPL’s actions were taken for one reason only: to protect the safety and well-being of animals already in the ACAPL’s custody.
“This decision was guided by compassion, responsibility and necessity. To suggest otherwise is not grounded in fact. The real failure would have been accepting more animals than the ACAPL could care for responsibly.”
The ACAPL contract with Ashtabula County requires the facility to accept all dogs, regardless of the ability to house them, according to the site.
“Providing care, housing and medical attention for these animals costs hundreds of thousands of dollars above the amount the county pays, placing a significant strain on the ACAPL’s already very limited capacity and financial resources,” the site said. “As a nonprofit, the ACAPL has stretched every dollar to protect animals and support public safety. The ACAPL has kept its doors open, absorbed overflow and saved the county significant taxpayer dollars, but the ACAPL’s decades-old facility can no longer support the ever-increasing demand for animal care. The current situation is untenable.
“The ACAPL desperately needs a larger shelter and increased funding to support the needs of the residents and animals of Ashtabula County.”
Granito said his shelter fosters dogs to qualified Geauga County residents with the hope the pets will find their forever homes.
“We’re pretty good at getting dogs adopted,” he said.
Britton could not be reached for comment prior to press deadline.
