Residents urge Menifee to address animal-shelter oversight, request feasibility study for city-run facility

At a Menifee City Council meeting, public commenters pressed the council to address what they described as serious gaps in animal-welfare services and oversight of the city's contracted shelter.

Lupe Jenkins told the council shelters and rescues are overwhelmed and asked the city to "assign a city staff member to coordinate with Riverside County to bring their mobile spay and neuter clinic to Menifee so residents can access affordable services," arguing that lack of local spay/neuter capacity fuels pet overpopulation and abandonment.

Laurie Clough urged the council to commission a professional feasibility study for a city-run animal shelter and alleged multiple operational failures by the city's contracted provider. "Animal Friends' spay/neuter clinic license expired in January; they continued scheduling appointments anyway," Clough said, asserting the shelter later renewed the license but provided only neuter appointments for males and no spay appointments for females, which she said "violates our agreement in city ordinance." Clough also told the council she had compiled figures she attributed to the regional system showing Menifee accounts for a large share of intakes and euthanasias and said accountability from council-appointed finance-board members is "long overdue."

Council members did not take formal action on the requests during the meeting. The clerk announced the public-comment period closed after the speakers, and no staff report or council directive on the shelter matter was recorded in the minutes for this session.

Next steps: commenters asked the council to direct staff to coordinate outreach with Riverside County mobile clinics and to commission an independent feasibility study to evaluate a city-run shelter; the council did not record a specific motion on those requests tonight.