By JOYANNA LOVE/ Senior Staff Writer

The Chilton County Humane Society hours of operation are changing on March 7.

The animal shelter will be open each Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday from noon to 5 p.m. and Saturday from noon to 3 p.m.

The animal shelter will be closed on Thursdays.

The board of directors approved the changes to the hours of operation during the March 1 meeting.

Employees will stop accepting animals that owners need to surrender at 4 p.m. during the week and at 2 p.m. on Saturdays.

Adoptions are available whenever the shelter is open.  Animals available for adoption and the application form can be viewed on the Humane Society website at chiltoncountyhumanesociety.org.

In the month of February, 158 pets were surrendered to the shelter. The animal shelter also took in 14 strays and received 19 animals from animal control. This brought the total intake to 191.

In the same month, the shelter had 32 animals adopted and 150 sent to rescue organizations.

A highlight of the shelter report for the board was that only one animal had been euthanized.

“That’s outstanding,” Board President Lee Helms said.

Board member Katherine Reece said the statistic was a testament to how far the animal shelter has come.

Low euthanasia numbers are possible through a successful spay/neuter program and partnerships with rescue organizations.

During the meeting, Vice President Kristi Hyche asked why the shelter was being charged for the PayPal account even though it had been designated as for a nonprofit.

Reece explained that she had confirmed with PayPal it is impossible to have zero fees with an account, but that the new nonprofit account had a greatly reduced rate compared to what the shelter had been paying.

Hyche said the fees would be tax deductible.

Helms said he wanted to set up committees in order to get more input and ideas for the shelter.

A new building for the shelter is a goal for the new president. Helms said he plans to talk to local government officials and other contacts about the needs.

Additional training for shelter employees is also being researched.

Multiple ideas for fundraisers and community events were discussed. Specific details are expected in the coming months.