Animal shelter gets good marks on city audit

By Emily Richmond

Tuesday, Oct. 2, 2001 | 9:46 a.m.

The majority of problems that led to complaints against the Animal Foundation were solved when it moved into its new, larger shelter on North Mojave Road, according to an audit by the city of Las Vegas that is due for release today.

No evidence of fraud or financial misconduct in relation to the foundation's contract with the city was found during the three-month investigation, Las Vegas City Auditor Radford Snelding said today.

Complaints had included poor training, inadequate record keeping and overcrowding. The city looked into the allegations and found that most had been resolved when the foundation moved into its new $3.5 million Lied Animal Shelter at 700 N. Mojave Road.

Snelding said he believes the problems at the foundation are all "solveable." He said he has already seen improvements in control measures and record keeping since the move to the new facility.

The 35,000-square-foot shelter that opened Feb. 8 enables the Animal Foundation to handle the true volume of homeless cats and dogs, foundation president Mary Herro said.

The foundation signed a contract with the city of Las Vegas in 1995 and had expected to handle 10,000 animals a year. The reality, Herro said, has been that twice that number of animals have needed care each year.

"I am greatly saddened by our shortcomings and mistakes during those years," Herro said. "However, looking back, I cannot apologize for choosing overcrowded shelters to mass euthanasia. And I can't apologize for choosing our limited funds for animal care, not bookkeepers, for choosing life over efficiency."

Despite missteps, the shelter's euthanasia rate dropped from 55 percent to 33 percent after the foundation took over. Adoptions jumped from 1,500 each year to more than 9,000, Herro said. Several fostering programs have also been initiated with high success rates, she said.

The city's audit was launched after animal activists and officials at Dewey Animal Care, a for-profit shelter that contracts with Clark County and North Las Vegas, raised questions about the foundation's finances and handling of animals.

Supporters of the nonprofit Lied Animal Shelter say their critics are disgruntled former employees and Dewey personnel who are angry over the loss of the lucrative city contract, which runs through 2005 and is worth $4.4 million.

The audit's chief findings include:

* Some animals were mistakenly euthanized.

* Animal licensing data is incomplete, inaccurate and not easily accessed.

* The former shelter director stole $3,982 from the foundation and later repaid the missing funds.

* Poor record keeping made it difficult to track animals as they were moved through the facility. Employees said they believe some animals were lost either to theft or by escaping.

* Unauthorized employees had access to controlled substances, including sodium pentobarbital and ketamine, both powerful sedatives popular with recreational drug users. The Drug Enforcement Administration is investigating possible misconduct, according to the audit.

* Unlicensed personnel gave injections of vaccines to animals, a procedure limited to licensed veterinary techinicans and technicians in training.

* The facility's inadequate system for handling paperwork led to inconsistencies and omissions, unecessary euthanasia, thefts and loss of funds and employees' certifications and credentials expiring.

* Overcrowding of dogs in the runs occurred but no evidence supported allegations that the mismatching of different sized dogs in the same run resulted in animal deaths.

* There was no evidence of animals not being fed or given water, as alleged by some former employees. Current employees denied the allegations "repeatedly, stating that if anything, animals received more than adequate food portions."

* There was no evidence of animals being left out in the elements for lengthy periods. At times during extreme temperatures animals were placed in outside holding areas and trailers because of overcrowding, a situation that appears to have been resolved by the opening of the new facility, the audit concluded.

* The audit found no evidence of animals not spending the required 72 hours in the lost and found area, as required by city regulations.

* There was no evidence of improper or unauthorized methods of euthanasia and no evidence that dirty, clogged or barbed needles were used on the animals.

* Employee complaints that they hadn't been properly compensated for overtime were not sustained.

The foundation intends to use the city's audit to improve operations and procedures, Herro said. Herro has turned over the day-to-day operations of the shelter to two supervisors in order to focus on a new pet licensing program for the foundation.

The city auditor's office reviewed the foundation's financial records. The city's Department of Detention and Enforcement investigated claims of animal cruelty, allegations of falsified documents and accusations of mistreatment by veterinarians.

"I'm not recommending doing anything with the city's contract other than asking the Animal Foundation to address the things that were found by the audit," said Mike Sheldon, director of the Department of Detention and Enforcement, which negotiates the contract for animal control. "They've given good customer service and have built a state-of-the-art animal shelter.

"We pay the same fee we paid seven years ago and they're handling at least twice as many animals."