GDA seeks 10-year contract to operate dog shelter in Gonzales

For more than 13 years, Gonzales Dog Adoptions (GDA) has been contracted on a year-to-year basis by the City of Gonzales to operate the city’s municipal dog shelter and has struggled to keep up with demand, as the shelter has maximum capacity for about 25 dogs, but has been taking in more than 30 dogs per month on average.

The contract with the city must be renewed each year is expected to be on the agenda for the Thursday, Oct. 17 regular Gonzales City Council meeting. After raising $100,000 to construct a new shelter building that will be housed on city-owned property, GDA is asking the council to consider a 10-year contract instead that would be able to ensure the organization can continue to operate the facility as a “no-kill shelter.”

GDA officials said the new building will not increase capacity to handle dogs, but will provide better shelter for their current intakes, especially during harsh weather conditions (hot, Texas summer or during cold freezes that occur in the winter). They note that they have been operating in good faith under a year-to-year contract for more than a decade.

A petition has been started online at change.org/GDA_PETITION for those who wish to sign and show their support for the organization receiving a 10-year contract to operate the shelter. They are also asking people to show up to the Oct. 17 meeting to voice their support for GDA.

The 501(c)(3) tax-exempt non-profit had a monthly budget of $2,300, or $27,600 per year, up until February 2024, when their budget increased to $4,000 per month, or $48,000 per year. Because the shelter is an open-door facility, it cannot turn away any dogs from inside the Gonzales city limits. And because of their mission to be a no-kill shelter, GDA tries extra hard not to put down any adoptable dogs for the sole purpose of making space for other intakes, which has allowed it to remain one of the few no-kill shelters still operating in the state. All dogs at the shelter are vaccinated and either spayed or neutered before being made available for adoption.

In addition to the contract with the city, operational costs are covered by adoption fees and donations, which are tax-deductible. The physical address for the shelter is 400 CR 488, Gonzales TX 78629, while the mailing address is PO Box 192, Gonzales, TX 78629.