Goodbye, Animal Control. Hello, Animal Services?

Weeks away from relocating into a new building, the city division currently known as St. Paul Animal Control is looking to sport a new name.

Angie Wiese, director of the city’s Department of Safety and Inspections — which oversees the unit that handles endangered and abandoned animals — told the council on earlier this month that the term “Animal Control” is passe within the industry, where workers are more likely to try and rehouse kittens or reunite a missing iguana with its owner than to control rabid dogs.

“The term ‘Animal Control’ is very outdated in the animal services world, and comes from a time when animal care looked a lot different than it does now,” Wiese said. “One of the drivers to make this change now is that we’re preparing to move into a new space, and we want to brand that new space.”

Wiese shared pictures of a giant turtle, a large white goose, an iguana, a kitten and other abandoned or escaped animals that were returned to their owners or rehomed with new families through partnerships with area nonprofits. “We do a lot more than dogs and cats,” she said. “We provide a number of services that are more than just control of animals.”

Wiese said DSI has also worked closely with Human Resources to recast job titles such as “Animal Services officer” and “Animal Services manager.”

The city council will host a public hearing on the division’s potential name change on Wednesday, and likely a final vote a week later.

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Animal Control currently operates out of an outdated animal shelter at 1285 Jessamine Ave. West, by McMurray Fields, that was built in the 1970s. Work began around last April on remodeling what had been a privately-held shelter in the same neighborhood at 1115 Beulah Lane, which will offer better separation between large and small animals and more space for veterinary care and adoption services.

Animal Control is expected to move into the new facility early this year.