Stephen Drynan, executive director at Three Rivers Humane Society, pets a dog, Axle, in 2015. Drynan said he’s crossing his fingers the weather stays mild through the completion of the kennels.(Andy Tullis/Bulletin file photo)

MADRAS — “And did he always have the crossed eyes?” said Jerilee Drynan over the phone discussing a dog.

The phones ring loud and often with questions from customers, local veterinarians and community members asking whether their dog has turned up at the Three Rivers Humane Society in Madras.

Stephen Drynan, the executive director, and his wife, Jerilee, director of operations, don’t just help the dogs that come in, they help the owners too. But as of late, they’ve been more worried about their four-legged friends. With the added anxiety a dog has from being at the shelter, it’s not ideal for dogs to sleep outside during the winter, even if Central Oregon has seen much warmer weather this season.

Three Rivers Humane Society, formerly the county-operated Jefferson County Kennels, takes in only dogs and has 10 indoor kennels to house its current capacity of approximately 40. The rest of the dogs are kept in the 32 outdoor kennels, where they are susceptible to the low nightly temperatures. The lowest temperature on record for Madras this winter has been 15 below zero, according to Diann Coonfield at the Pendleton weather service office.

“The difference between a dog on the farm and a dog here is, a dog here is under three times the stress,” said Stephen Drynan. Indoor kennels are also much easier to maintain and therefore cleaner, preventing the spread of canine parvovirus and other diseases. Even though there are tails wagging and happy yips in the kennels, there are also forlorn cries and whimpers mixed in.

Three Rivers is putting on a fundraising campaign, “Raise the Woof!” to construct a new building that will have 32 indoor kennels, to replace the outdoor kennels. Three Rivers still receives some county funding, but the rest comes from county pet licensing fees, impound fees, adoptions and donations.

But before that $400,000 goal is reached, Drynan has to figure out where he will house the majority of the dogs during future construction. Temporarily fostering them in local homes is the most likely option, but Drynan was candid in his answer.

“I’ll be honest with you, I don’t know yet,” said Drynan, who has asked local families to foster from time to time, but never to that degree.

Three Rivers is a limited-mission, high-save shelter, meaning the facility will never put down any adoptable pet.

“We don’t euthanize for time and space,” said Drynan, explaining that most of the dogs stay an average of about 18 to 30 days before being adopted.

If no one in the area takes interest in an animal after that length of time, it is potentially moved on to a different facility where it has a better chance of being chosen by a permanent home. Three Rivers sometimes works with the Oregon Humane Society of Portland; the society will send a van to Madras to pick up dogs that haven’t been adopted in weeks.

Three Rivers takes in dogs of all ages, including pregnant dogs or litters. Every dog that comes in is spayed or neutered after an allotted holding time.

Using online resources, like Petfinder.com, Three Rivers has seen people come in to adopt from as far away as Washington, California, Idaho and British Columbia. Drynan explained that in larger the cities, the race to adopt pets at local shelters is more competitive. People travel to Three Rivers because they see a dog they want there when they haven’t been able to get one in their area.

The Drynans added that adopted dogs often come back for a visit to Three Rivers with their new families.

“They look contented, like they let their guard down,” Jerilee said. “They look like they belong.”

— Reporter: 541-383-0325,

kfisicaro@bendbulletin.com