Entire Allegany County animal shelter board resigns; county moves to secure emergency care

Allegany County officials held an emergency meeting on Nov. 3 after they received notice that the entire animal shelter foundation board and its management had resigned, leaving the shelter with no vet of record and only volunteers on site.

"Last night we received notice from the remnants of the animal shelter board that all of them have resigned their post," Administrator Jason Bennett told the commissioners. "As of today, there are 2, I believe, part time employees/volunteers working out there to feed animals." Bennett said the volunteers cannot deliver medicine or provide veterinary procedures because there is currently no management function or veterinarian on site.

Gorman (Mike) Getty, the Garrett County attorney sitting in for Allegany County Attorney Lee Beamer, told the commissioners the foundation remains a 501(c)(3) legal entity but is not operating in compliance with the contract it has with Allegany County. "The emergency portion of it is the care, feeding of the animals and to the extent appropriate animal control," Getty said, urging the county to consider short-term operational control so animals receive necessary care while legal and policy questions are reviewed.

Officials said the Maryland Department of Agriculture informed the county that without a veterinarian of record the shelter's capabilities are limited. Bennett summarized that the department indicated the shelter can "really only...feed the animals," and cannot administer medicine, perform surgeries or euthanasia in the present staffing configuration.

County staff and the sheriff agreed to provide limited emergency assistance, and Garrett County offered help for emergent animal-control duties. Bennett said the county has roughly "half a year's budget remaining" for the shelter and estimated "approximately $260 or so left for the year to spend" for immediate operations.

Short-term remedies discussed included asking former director Jody Eric and members of her team to return on a temporary basis to reestablish veterinary coverage, enlisting additional volunteers including people with management experience, and using short-term contractual hires to handle duties the county no longer staffs directly. "You have a legal responsibility by virtue of the way the statutes are written, to administer animal control," Getty said, adding that providing veterinary access and care should be part of any stopgap plan.

Commissioners instructed staff to set up a liaison between volunteers and county offices so information flows, to perform a baseline safety and condition inspection of shelter facilities, and to prepare for a prompt public discussion of longer-term options. Officials said a follow-up public meeting may be needed before the board's next scheduled meeting on Nov. 6.

No formal vote or ordinance was taken at the emergency meeting. Instead, county officials described the steps they would pursue immediately: secure short-term staffing and veterinary access, coordinate with volunteers and the sheriff's office, conduct a basic facilities inspection, and return to the public with proposed options for the shelter's future structure.

"This is definitely a crisis, and we're going to address it that way," a commissioner said as the meeting closed, thanking staff, volunteers and the sheriff for immediate response efforts.