Last week’s deep overnight chill put an exclamation point to an ongoing controversy about the operations of Manatee County’s Division of Animal Services. The Palmetto shelter, the lone county facility for abandoned, runaway and otherwise homeless dogs, held about double capacity — 60 canines awaiting adoption in quarters fit for only 30.

The idea that dogs would be left outside in kennels in near freezing temperatures — even in an emergency situation — is unacceptable. Animal Services did not do that, though, instead placing canines inside small crates indoors so they weren’t shivering all night long.

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