Commission appoints county humane officers and hears shelter staffing update

Putnam County commissioners on July 29 approved annual appointments of county humane officers and heard a progress report on staffing and operations at the county animal shelter. A county official told commissioners that the shelter recently hired a director and assistant director and that a supplemental order would “designate Caitlin Johnson to serve as a dog warden and as a special officer, and also designating Caitlin Johnson, Nautica Champlin, and Jeff Thomas, and Andrea Barrett, as county humane officers.” A motion to approve the appointments passed by voice vote. Commissioner Doug, who said he has volunteered at the shelter since his appointment to the board, told the commission, “We’ve seen a lot of big changes at the animal shelter...we were able to hire the new director and the assistant director and several other employees, and things are really headed in the right direction.” The commissioner said the July 1 budget included new positions that helped with those hires. Separately, the commission voted to appoint Ashley Fisher to the Putnam County Animal Shelter Board, with a term effective Sept. 1, 2025, through Aug. 31, 2027; that motion passed by voice vote. Why it matters: new hires and formal humane officer designations affect shelter operations, animal care and local oversight of animal control responsibilities. Actions taken were limited to the annual designations and a board appointment; there were no budget appropriations at the meeting specifically tied to the appointments beyond previously approved budget items mentioned by commissioners.