K-9 Adoption Center temporarily closed due to sickness outbreak

ZANESVILLE — An outbreak of sickness among the dogs has led to the closure of the Muskingum County K-9 Adoption Center.

Muskingum County Sheriff and Dog Warden Matt Lutz said the center's population has been at or over capacity within the last month and, over these last three weeks, the staff has noticed five dogs in total have been sick at various times. Four of the dogs have died and tests have been run in an attempt to discover what sickness may have caused the deaths.

The staff has taken major steps to clean and disinfect the center, and they are waiting on the test results to return, Lutz noted Tuesday.

The staff has not been contacted by anyone that has adopted dogs prior to the sickness outbreak.

The center will remain closed until the staff can verify the cause and assure a safe environment.

The new Adoption Center opened last year and is located at 1854 East Pike. At the time, officials described it as a more humane facility. The previous facility, located on Newark Road, was 50-plus years old and was deteriorating and unsanitary.

This article originally appeared on Zanesville Times Recorder: K-9 Adoption Center temporarily closed due to sickness outbreak