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January 28, 2026
Volume 60 l Number 252
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TODAY
Guadalupe County considering public-private partnership for animal shelter operations Cindy Aguirre-Herrera
(Seguin) -- Although many of the details are still being finalized, the Guadalupe County Animal Shelter could soon transition to a new operational model. Discussion about the shelter’s future came before members of the Guadalupe County Commissioners Court during Tuesday’s meeting, where Sheriff Joshua Ray outlined a proposal to shift the program away from being fully operated under the Guadalupe County Sheriff ’s Office and toward a public-private partnership. Ray clarified that the proposal would not eliminate animal control services. Instead, he said the focus is on restructuring the sheltering and animal services side of the program while deputies would continue handling enforcement and field response duties. “I’m not aware of any cruelty investigations that have been neglected. I know there is a lot of emotion attached to some of these pictures and whatnot. Sometimes, there are expectations that cannot necessarily be satisfied through a criminal investigation, but I think overall, we have done a pretty good job with the funding and resources that we have available. But the purpose of this discussion was to point out that it is not sustainable for the long-term future
and we have to work together to formulate some better solutions, and we’ve done our best to put together a few solutions. Obviously, we think the private-public partnership is the way to go because we think that in the end, it saves the taxpayer dollar and it also does better by the animals. It provides them services that some constituents have an expectation of in our community,” said Ray. Walking county leaders through the concept was Lt. Zach McBride, who presented the logistics and potential benefits of partnering with a nonprofit organization to manage day-to-day shelter operations. McBride explained that similar models in neighboring communities have improved efficiency, expanded services, and opened the door to additional funding sources such as grants and donations that are not always available to government-run facilities. “Right now, our animal services program is entirely taxpayer-funded. Donations and fees make up less than 1 percent of costs. Over the last four fiscal years, the budget has nearly doubled, averaging -- 18 percent growth annually. About 89 percent of the budget is personnel ($526K), with $63K in operations, which is woefully insufficient. Shelter, pg. 3
Photo courtesy Guadalupe County Animal Services and Adoption Center Facebook page.