Manatee County Animal Welfare moves operations to expanded Bradenton campus

Manatee Animal Welfare new shelter

After eight decades in an aging Palmetto building, dogs at Manatee Animal Welfare are getting ready to move into a new campus in Bradenton. FOX 13’s Jennifer Kveglis reports.

PALMETTO, Fla. - After 80 years in its Palmetto facility, Manatee County Animal Welfare is getting ready to relocate its dogs into a new, modern shelter on the Bishop Campus in Bradenton.

The move will allow staff to operate in one place instead of splitting animals between multiple sites.

The county’s Communications Coordinator, Michael Strollo, says the organization continues to exceed no-kill shelter benchmarks of 90%, with a 96.74% save rate last month and 143 adoptions in September alone.

What they're saying:

"We’ve been exceeding that at both the local level, state level, and national level," said Strollo, referring to the shelter’s continued success in maintaining its no-kill status.

He added that the move to the Bishop Campus will make a big difference for both staff and animals. "We’re excited to finally move Palmetto over to our Bishop Campus, so everything will be housed here," Strollo said.

"In Palmetto, we’ve had to use outdoor kennels for overflow. But now, every dog will have air conditioning, plumbing, and space to play."

The backstory:

The Bishop Campus was gifted to Manatee County by the SPCA in 2022. Since then, the county has been working to transform it into a comprehensive animal welfare center.

READ: Several malnourished dogs rescued, Bradenton couple arrested: BPD

Currently, dogs are screened and treated at the intake and medical facility on-site before being transported seven miles north to the old 1940s-era shelter in Palmetto — a system officials say will soon be a thing of the past.

What's next:

Phase One of the move, including a temporary adoption trailer, is expected to be completed by mid-December. Construction on Phase Two, which includes a permanent Adoption Resource Center and Pet Pantry, begins this week.

The only part of the operation that won’t relocate is Cat Town, which will remain at another facility in Bradenton. There’s no set completion date yet for the second phase.

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