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On Wednesday, Jan. 30, Jefferson Parish received the report by the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) on the parish animal shelter department.
A team from the HSUS looked at the two parish animal shelter facilities and their operations as well field services, management, budget, and community outreach programs. The evaluation was paid for and done at the request of the Parish as a result of the first recommendation of the Parish President's Animal Welfare Task Force in February, 2007. The Parish Council approved advertisement for the professional evaluation on March 14, 2007, and the Council subsequently selected the HSUS and approved a contract with the agency.
The team gathered information in advance of an on-site visit from Oct. 1-4, 2007, and then compiled their observations, recommendations and discussion points in the 255 page report.
In an introduction, the HSUS stated, "By their nature, our reports focus on areas that need improvement, but the observations throughout the report are not meant to be critical; rather they should be viewed as a snapshot of where the agency was at the time of the site visit, and they should be used as a departure point to where management wants the agency to go."
Although the report finalizes its evaluation of the animal shelter department, the HSUS committed to remain available as a continued resource. The HSUS urges those reading the report to use it as a tool for positive change.
During meetings with the HSUS team both during and at the conclusion of their on-site visit, Parish President Aaron Broussard asked for a thorough and unvarnished evaluation of the department and committed to improvements recommended by the report. Before they departed Jefferson Parish, the HSUS team briefed the Parish President and top staff, including the new director of the Animal Shelter Department. As a result of that, a number of changes were implemented immediately to address the most egregious problems noted, mainly the level of animal care and veterinary services provided in the shelters. They include:
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A new full-time veterinarian and full-time veterinary technician were hired at the East Bank Animal Shelter in November. The veterinarian is overseeing medical care including kennel health management, proper daily sanitation of the kennel areas, treatment of sick and injured animals, health and temperament screenings for adoption candidates, spay/neuter surgery, and performing necessary euthanasia herself or monitoring euthanasia performed by the Certified Animal Euthanasia Technicians to ensure that the procedure is performed properly and humanely in compliance with established protocol. With the goal of improving kennel/cattery health and operations, the veterinarian is in consultation with LSU School of Veterinary Medicine and local veterinarians with animal shelter experience.
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The part-time veterinarian at the West Bank Animal Shelter resigned at the end of the year and the department has negotiated a contract with a new full-time veterinarian who has previous animal shelter veterinary medical experience. She will perform the same duties as listed above for the East Bank Animal Shelter veterinarian.
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Renovations to the interior of the East Bank Animal Shelter are underway to make it more functional and attractive. New equipment is in place including two safes to secure medicines and controlled substances, all necessary equipment to safely and securely handle feral cats including feral cat boxes inside of cat cages, nets and squeeze cages, and stainless steel water and food bowls and litter pans.
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Through an arrangement with Science Diet, premium quality food is being provided for dogs, cats, puppies, and kittens. Written kennel policies and standard operating procedures are being developed with the assistance of a consultant from the ASPCA. The director has initiated weekly meetings with staff members, alternating between the East Bank Animal Shelter and the shelter on the West Bank. Front office employees are being cross-trained on various procedures.
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The Animal Shelter director and the Parish Human Resources Department are rewriting increased qualifications necessary to be a
kennel worker and will submit the new job description to the Personnel Department with a recommendation to increase pay of
kennel workers in order to attract sufficient qualified workers and stem the chronic problem of high turnover among those positions.
The HSUS notes that their recommendations can be overwhelming and that they should be prioritized and may not be feasible in all cases. "Some of the recommendations can be implemented immediately with just a change in procedure while others may take months or even years. It will be on ongoing process," the report stated.
Although substantial changes are in place and work continues to improve shelter operations, over the next 30 days the parish administration will develop an action plan to implement further recommendations from the report.
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