Owasso staff hire outside investigator and outline steps after animal-shelter complaints

Owasso officials told the City Council on Tuesday that they have hired outside counsel to conduct an independent investigation into recent allegations about operations at the Owasso Animal Shelter and outlined five areas staff will review.

City staff said the five review areas are social media, live-release rate, documentation and reporting, customer service and the allegations of crimes or policy failures that speakers raised at the June 17 council meeting and on social media. "We hired outside counsel to perform an independent investigation, to identify the facts in each of those claims," Chris Garrett, a city staff member addressing council, said. Garrett said the investigator began work the day after she was retained and has interviewed the people who brought the allegations forward.

The city said the investigator is also reviewing audio, video and phone recordings from the shelter. "There is audio and video in the main area. There's audio and video in the kennels, and there's audio and video outside all the way to the parking lot," Garrett said. He added that telephone lines to the facility are recorded and available to the investigator. Staff told council they expect the probe to take "another couple of weeks" and hope to have a final report before the August work session, or otherwise "at the first available opportunity."

Beyond the investigation, Garrett outlined operational steps staff say they are pursuing. For social media and public visibility, staff are improving access to photos and information about animals in the shelter. To increase live-release rates, staff said they will prioritize holding animals longer when reasonable and will "reach out early and reach out often" to local rescue groups and foster networks so animals can be placed before time runs out. Garrett said the city does not plan to change the underlying ordinance and instead is looking at changes in practice.

On documentation and reporting, staff said they will standardize case-note categories and add more detail to individual records so responses to public inquiries contain more consistent information. On customer service, staff emphasized training and consistent professional conduct: "We want staff to always take the high road ... maintain that polite professional demeanor," Garrett said.

Councilors asked about staffing and operational capacity. Garrett said the city currently has three certified animal control officers (ACOs); one is primarily assigned to run the kennel facility while the others take ACO calls and can operate the shelter when needed. He also said the Police Department has included an adoption-coordinator position in year two of its five-year plan (next fiscal year), a role intended to support shelter operations and placements.

Garrett said staff will provide updates as the investigation and operational reviews proceed and will present the final investigation report when it is available.

The council did not take formal action during the discussion; staff said they will return with findings and any recommended changes once the investigation and internal reviews are complete.