The Sevier County Humane Society will no longer take in stray or surrendered animals.
Starting July 1, the organization will continue to offer spay/neuter and adoption services, as well as humane animal treatment education, but will stop operating as the county's animal control shelter.
On Tuesday, the organization's board of directors unanimously voted to assume the role of a more "traditional" Humane Society.
Sevier County Humane Society Vice President Cheri Hagmeier cites a long battle over government funding.
Most recently, she said the board of directors requested $100,000 from the county, but the county offered $85,000. She said the county would only provide additional funds if the board offered a controlling vote on its board of directors to the local governments. The board declined that offer.
Sevier County and the cities of Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge and Sevierville issued a statement Wednesday afternoon saying they were "disappointed" in the actions of the Sevier County Humane Society Board of Directors.
"There was no warning of their action to stop accepting animals on July 1, 2017, and that decision puts those animals at risk," the statement read.
The release said the Humane Society notified the county in 2015 that they would need additional funds to continue operating. Then, in 2016, the Humane Society sent a letter requesting $391,000 from all of the governments. The governments responded stating "in order to provide increased funding, there needs to be 'a more structured partnership with the Humane Society.'"
The Humane Society faced particular financial hurdles after the November wildfires, which forced staff to evacuate its Gatlinburg location and temporarily operate out of the Sevier County Fairgrounds.
"Our intake rose by 200 to 300 percent," said Hagmeier. "A lot of lost, displaced pets."
Hagmeier said between the increased intake, the cost of smoke and wind repairs at its original Gatlinburg location, veterinary costs and the cost of paying utilities for both locations through the winter, the organization was "stretched thin."
She said post-wildfire donations were helpful, but not enough to sustain caring for thousands of animals each year.
"It met the needs of a lot of animals and people that we had to help at that time," Hagmeier told 10News. "However, animal sheltering is an ongoing thing. We've been doing it since 1974, and we aren't getting enough money to meet the needs of 3,000 animals that we take in a year."
The Sevier County Humane Society said it plans to sell the 10-acre property it recently purchased and move into a smaller, closer to one-acre, shelter.
Pets Without Parents co-founder Lori Souders confirmed to 10News that it will be partnering with the cities and the county to become the new county-sponsored shelter in Sevier County starting July 1.
The facility is located at 901 Mize Lane, in Sevierville. Adoptions and donations are from 11 a.m to 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday. On Fridays, its hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. for adoptions only. Volunteers can work 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday.