Board Orders Probe of Pet Shelter

The Riverside County Board of Supervisors on Monday called for an external audit of the Department of Animal Services, which was the subject of a scathing grand jury report released last week.

The action came after the board heard proposals from the department’s executive director for reducing the euthanasia rate and improving shelter conditions, which the county’s executive office will consider in coming weeks.

Director Janis McLaughlin said the source of the problems at the shelter is pet overpopulation, coupled with a general discomfort about what must be done at a county shelter: euthanasia. More than 20,400 cats and dogs were killed in the 2002-03 fiscal year.

“The bottom line is animal control kills animals,” she said. “We don’t like it, and we don’t want to do it.”

After the meeting, McLaughlin added: “I don’t feel I’ve done anything I need to be ashamed of.”

Last week, the county grand jury condemned the management of the shelter, finding that animals are routinely euthanized without attempts to find owners and that the animals are poorly cared for. The report also noted that the shelter is unable to account for 14% of the animals it takes in.

The grand jury ordered the county to respond to its report within 90 days, and on Monday the supervisors voted 5 to 0 to expedite that response. They also said they wanted an external audit. County spokesman Ray Smith said the executive office will return to the board with proposals, possibly by the end of January, for how that audit might be done and by whom.

Several speakers, including shelter workers, delivered pleas to improve conditions at the Riverside County Animal Shelter.

Lori Stamp Brown, a veterinary technician at the shelter, said she entered the field to help animals but has become “profoundly disillusioned” since working at the Riverside shelter.

“Basic care -- food, water and a clean environment -- is not being met,” she said. “I see the lack of care, concern and quality supervision.”

Kennel attendant Cindy Reed said the blame lies solely with management.

Others defended the shelter, saying management was doing the best it could with the resources it has.

And McLaughlin gave the supervisors’ clerk a stack of supportive letters from shelter employees.