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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 27, 1984)
Monday, August 27, 1984/The Battalion/Page 7E Bob and Bobby Beals of Bryan admire one of the animals in the shelter at its one-year anniversary in January. Shelter can provide temporary home for stray, unwanted pets By LINDA SANTINOCETO Reporter The Brazos Animal Shelter is the only facility for stray or unwanted animals in about 100 miles, says Kathy Ricker, director of the Brazos Animal Shelter. The shelter, with about 40 cages, a bathing room, a euthanasia room, and a corral, can accommodate dogs and cats as well as goats, cows, horses and birds. If students want to adopt a pet they just need to come and pick it out, says Ricker. “September is a busy time,” she says. ’’There are about three to four adoptions a day.” There are, however, a few qualifi cations the students must meet. “We are very strict with our adop tion policy, because we want the ani mals to have the best home,” she says. First, students must sign an adop tion form agreeing to the following: • To take the animal to a veterinar ian to be vaccinated for rabies and neutered. • To provide the animal with affec tion, food, shelter and medical atten tion. • Not to sell, trade or give away the animal. 1 • To return the pet if they can no longer keep it. No co-adoptions are permitted. “The pet is often left out in the cold when roommates split-up,” Ricker says. In addition, to make prospective owners aware of the re- sponsibilites of having a pet, they are „asked questions such as whether they have a fence or if they are allowed to have pets where they live* she says. “Some people just get a whim and decide they want a pet without even thinking of caring for it, v Ricker says. After the paper work, students can pick out their pet. But they might not get that pet. All pets have a three day waiting period to see if their owner claims them. After the three days the animals are evaluated for adoption. “Our staff tests the animals for friendliness, to see if they will make a good house pet,” Ricker says. Then, one of the 20 volunteer veter inarians examines the animal. The adoption fees are $40 for dogs and $35 for cats. In addition, there is a $12 charge for a rabies shot and a city tag. For this fee, the student receives a pet and a coupon for a free visit to a veterinarian. If animals don’t meet the adop tion reguirements or become sick while at the shelter they are put to sleep, Ricker says. “Euthanasia is done as humanely as possible,” Ricker says. “The ani mal is held in a staff-member’s arms while injected and it is asleep before the needle is removed.” Ricker says some people bring their pets to the shelter because they are moving or can no longer care for them. In these cases, a surrender fee between $5 and $20 is asked, for food and care of the animal. “We can’t guarantee the animal will not be put to sleep but the staff does everything possible to find it a home,” she says. If animals have tags when they come to the shelter, it is easier for the staff to find the owner. “The staff will call the owner or leave notes at the owner’s home,” Ricker says. It costs $15 to get your arlimal out of the shelter. The shelter, which is funded by Bryan, College Station and Brazos County has an annual budget of $150,000, Ricker says. The shelter’s major fund raiser is a newspaper re cycling program. Each ton of news- apers donated brings the shelter 35, Ricker says. “We wouldn’t be able to have such good facilities if it wasn’t for all the generous community people who volunteer their time and money to help the shelter,” she says. Local parks provide a place for play, relaxation By JAN WUTHRICH Reporter Bryan and College Station are ex panding and improving their park sytems. College Station is building 10 neighborhood parks as part of its re cent work on development and im provement, says recreation superin tendent Marci Rodgers. Brothers Pond Park is one of the newer neighborhood parks found in Southwood Valley off Rio Grande. It includes a cinder track and concrete jogging trail/exercise trail, a play- round, four backstops, a basketball alf court, one acre pond, fishing pier, gazebo hnd park trails. Oaks Park, off Harvey Road, is central to several College Station apartment complexes. It also in cludes a jogging trail as well as a lighted multi-use court, a main deck and bridge, shelter and restrooms, conversation pits and two party areas. Anderson Park on Anderson Street is close to the Texas A&M campus. Two basketball courts, five youth soccer fields, a playground, restrooms, storage and parking are available there. Two of College Station’s 27 parks have swimming pools for public use — Bee Creek Park and Thomas Park, which has a dome above the pool for year-round swimming. Art- other public pool is under construc tion at the Southwood Athletic Park. It should be completed sometime in September, Rodgers says. Southwood Athletic Park is a re cent development. It is a Little League complex which also has ten nis courts and lighted soccer fields. It is at Rock Prairie Road and Rio Grande. College Station’s largest and most frequently used park is Central Park at 1000 Krenek Tap Road. It is the headquarters for the College Station Parks and Recreation Department. Facilities in the 47-acre park include three adult soccer fields, soccer res trooms and shelter building, four lighted adult softball fields, softball concessions, two lighted tennis courts, a playground and open play areas, a one-acre pond, fishing piers, a stage, 10 picnic units, nature trails and parking. Rodgers says softball, played in three different seasons, is the favor ite sport at Central Park. Basketball teams play in January, soccer in the fall and spring, flag football in the fall and volleyball in late October to early December. She says December is usually the dead month at Central Park, but in December 1984 the Parks and Recreation Department will sponsor choirs, plays, and a na tivity scene. The busiest times for College Sta tion parks are, of course, the spring and summer and on holidays. Par ents Weekend is a big attraction at the parks, too, Rodgers says. Central and Bee Creek parks are the most heavily used parks. Parks with pavil ions also are popular. The Central Park pavilion has a huge barbecue pit and a kitchen. Anyone who wishes to rent park facilities or equipment must do so at the Parks and Recreation Office, 1000 Krenek lap Road, from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Alcohol is allowed in the parks but cannot be sold there. Some College Station park land has been donated, and some is desig nated by developers as required by city ordinance, but most are pur chased by the city with money from bond issues. Bryan parks have lagged behind College Station’s in the past, but with the aid of oil and gas royalties, bond issues, matching state funds, and do nations by charitable trusts, Bryan is polishing its park facilities. The Astin Recreational Area at South College Avenue and West Roundtree Drive is an example of Bryan’s park improvements. It in cludes restrooms, boardwalk, pavil ion, jogging track, barbeque pit and fireplace, gazebo, pier and a lake overlook. It is adjacent to the Bryan Municipal Golf Course and the Bryan Municipal Lake complex. Williamson Park also is adjacent to the golf course. A tennis court, bas ketball court, shelters, lighting, ta bles, barbecue grills and a parking lot are being adcled. One of the largest of Bryan’s 21 parks, Henderson Park, is getting a Little League concession building, restrooms, group shelter, play equip ment and lighting. The 21-acre park is at 1629 Mockingbird St. Bryan Independent School Dis trict, in conjunction with the city, is building the Bryan Aquatic Center at Bryan High School. It will be avail able for students during school hours and should be completed by mid-fall of 1984. The schedule for the public will be announced. Bryan High School won’t be stop ping there. Travis Park, at 501 W. Cat-son St., where the Vikings play, their baseball games, will be getting a face-lift as well. Parking, lighting, soccer and Little League fields will be added as part of a general reno vation. A new athletic park will be devel oped on about 100 acres near the East Bypass and Texas Avenue. Plans include four softball fields, four Little League fields, two base ball fields, seven soccer fields, six tennis courts, basketball courts, pa vilions, fishing ponds and other fa cilities such as tables and restrooms. The Bryan City Council also has directed its attention to developing the Bryan Utilities Lake, which pro vides water for the Dansby Power Plant north of the city, as a possible site for a major lake park. - A day in the park Upper picture: The Brazos County Arboretum provides a picnic pavilion. Center: The fishing is good in several area parks. Lower: Feeding the ducks is better than studying.