One day. Twenty-four hours.

That's how long a pet owner may have to locate a lost animal in Pennington County before it's killed.

That's not much time for some busy, active families to even realize a pet is missing much less contact the shelter and retrieve it.

Earlier this week, Pennington County Sheriff Don Holloway petitioned the county commissioners to shorten the time period the county be required to hold an unlicensed, unmicrochipped, stray animal they have picked up before having the option of adopting it out or killing it.

"There's no way to know whose they are (unlicensed animals)," Holloway told the county commissioners. "We're just housing them for three days and then they can be disposed of. All we're asking is let's try to save the taxpayers a little money."

We know the county faces its fair share of budget issues, but we don't think the county taxpayers would suggest saving about $14,000 a year is justification for killing animals with such short, inhumane efficiency.

The county commission should reject this idea and leave the current three-day ordinance in place.

In this area, we have had some terribly unfortunate incidents take place with family pets. Dogs have been killed, some shot in their own driveways; horses have been slaughtered for no reason other than someone had a gun.

Let's not encourage that kind of ruthless disregard for animal welfare by imposing a one-day ordinance and sending the message animals are a disposable commodity - and the sooner the better.

They aren't.

The county can't harbor stray animals beyond a certain point and many will have to be killed; that's clear. But the county can send a message that there is a certain level of tolerance - respect even - for animals and their owners.

"One day" does not send that message.

Most people are more than willing to post a reward either to learn the identity of a person who killed a pet or donate a handful of dollars to someone else's cause. We don't think the taxpayers are going to applaud the commissioners for saving $14,000 at the expense of an unnecessarily short holding period for lost animals.

The county commissioners should reject this idea.