One of the dogs removed from allegedly unsanitary conditions last month has given birth to puppies, adding to the capacity crunch at the already overwhelmed Flathead County Animal Shelter.  

“That puts us up to 37 dogs in our shelter,” said county Health Officer Jennifer Rankosky at the Flathead City-County Board of Health’s April meeting. “We have a capacity and that’s pushing it at about 50.” 

Candy Jean Evans, 55, was arrested March 13 for felony aggravated animal cruelty after officials seized 27 dogs and an allegedly dead puppy from her property in Coram. 

Of the 37 dogs at the shelter, 34 of them are there as a result of the investigation into Evans as of last Thursday.  

Evans pleaded not guilty to the felony charge at her April 3 arraignment in Flathead County District Court. An omnibus hearing in the case is scheduled for Aug. 20 with a pretrial conference to follow on Sept. 17. 

If convicted, Evans faces up to two years with the state Department of Corrections and a fine of $2,500.  

A hearing on the cost of care for the animals was supposed to occur mid-April but had to be rescheduled due to a family emergency, Rankosky said at last week's Health Board meeting. County officials estimated the price of caring for the canines to be around $30,000. 

On average, a dog costs the county anywhere from $24 to $30 a day, Rankosky said. Because Evans' dogs are not county property, the shelter can provide minor medical help and vaccinations but cannot alter or move them.  

There are three additional dogs in the shelter that are involved in a separate alleged abuse case that the county can’t touch or adopt out.  

If the dogs are relinquished to the county, the shelter would have more agency in treating the animals. Evans remains unwilling to relinquish the dogs to the county, according to Rankosky.  

“There are 37 dogs that we cannot do anything with, so that's adding onto the burden,” Rankosky said. “... Hopefully we don’t find any more pregnant.” 

When the dogs arrived in March, facility staff asked neighboring shelters to take some of the existing dogs for help. That resulted in the transfer of 16 adoptable animals, according to Austin Hicks, shelter division manager. 

In March, Hicks thanked shelters around the state in March for their assistance, a list that included the Yellowstone Valley Animal Shelter, Heart of the Valley Animal Shelter, Stafford Animal Shelter, Humane Society of Western Montana and the Tobacco Valley Animal Shelter.  

To support the shelter’s efforts, members of the public can donate to Flathead Shelter Friends, the nonprofit dedicated to funding work at the shelter. Flathead Shelter Friends can be reached at (406) 890-0459 or [email protected].   

Reporter Kate Heston may be reached at 758-4459 or [email protected].