Kentucky is Different

Kentucky is different.

Now that we’ve been to over twenty Kentucky shelters, at least when it comes to animal shelter, that much is clear.

Municipal animal control shelters usually fall under the realm of the sheriff’s department, the agriculture department, or exist as their own department reporting directly to municipal leadership. Generally, the person who ultimately makes policy decisions and determines thebudget has some animal care and control knowledge or even experience.

In Kentucky, the ultimate authority for municipal shelters is the fiscal court, made up of magistrates and an elected Judge Executive (JE) who leads them and has the final say.

When there is a good relationship between the JE and the animal shelter, the shelter’s ACOs or managers are trusted to make recommendations and carry out the shelter’s work somewhat independently. At the first few shelters we visited in Kentucky years ago, there was very little mention of a JE.

At our recent visits in the last year, the JE has factored majorly into the success or struggles of the shelters we’ve visited. At one shelter we visited on our tour last month (a visit of which I did not post, and the pictures included in this post are from visits elsewhere), the ACOs were told that they could not talk to the press if they wanted to keep their jobs. Because we kind of skirt the line of what constitutes ‘press’ and because we promised not to post about the shelter, we were allowed to visit.

The surprising thing about that visit was that the shelter is really very nice. There is a lot the county should be proud of. They vaccinate on intake, spay/neuter before the dogs leave, have a small play yard, and have a caring staff. The building itself is pretty nice, and it sits in a nice neighborhood.

The JE has also determined that this shelter cannot have volunteers because of ‘liability concerns,’ which leaves the four ACOs to do absolutely everything. It’s not a small shelter, they take in about 100 animals each month.

The shelter is not open on weekends, which restricts the public’s ability to reclaim or adopt dogs. Two of the ACOs do try to hold adoption events, assumably on their own time.

Of all the shelters we visited on that tour, the dogs in that shelter worry me most. The staff has their hands full just running calls, caring for the animals, and managing the shelter, so the dogs minimal human interaction. The staff loves the dogs and does what they can, but no volunteers come to walk dogs, lead play groups, or just sit with the animals to give them attention. Marketing the dogs is done exclusively through Facebook. Consequently, many of the dogs linger for months.

Two other shelters we visited had relatively new leadership brought in under new JEs and they were turning those shelters around. It was exciting to hear about their plans, and I’m excited to share their stories with you in the coming months.

At one of our visits, the JE came out to meet us and at another one of the magistrates did. Their presence affirmed they value their staff’s work and the shelter’s worth.

But here’s the thing—theJudge Executive is an elected position. So we could come back to visit in a few years and hear a completely different story. One of the ACOs I talked to told me that they love their JE and have a great relationship, but if that JE decides not to run again, that ACO doesn’t plan to stick around.

You know what could stabilize this situation? Community engagement.

It’s important everywhere, but it is critical in Kentucky. If the community is involved at the shelter—volunteering, fostering, adopting, supporting, and participating in events at the shelter—they will be invested in its success.

This means that at election time, it’s critical to reach out to the candidates running for JE and ask them how they plan to support the shelter. The community has the power to elect leadership that cares about the animals.

Personally, I think it’s not the best setup for shelter administration. I believe that decisions about the shelter should be made by people who have knowledge and experience in animal care and are actively engaged at the shelter.

Since it’s not up to me, I’ll just keep encouraging Kentucky citizens to get involved in the Judge Executive race and use their vote to improve their shelter.

I wrote about exactly that happening in Meade County.

I had the chance to speak at the Kentucky Animal Care and Control Conference while we were on our last tour. It was a challenge to relate to the wide variety of ACOs from all over Kentucky. My message, though, no matter the size of your shelter, was this—community engagement is critical, and you can’t succeed as a shelter without it. That is true in Kentucky more than ever.

In the coming weeks, I’ll share with you about all but one of the twelve Kentucky shelters we visit this fall (these plus the five next week). The stories are inspiring and educational. I’m excited to share them with you.

Nancy and I will be traveling back to Kentucky next week to participate in an event called Stronger Together –We’re Unstoppable. It’s a one-day gathering of leadership, volunteers, staff, fosters, and other advocates in shelter and rescue to network, share resources, and explore ways they can all work together to help the animals of Kentucky. We’ll visit shelters on our way there and back (because how could we not?).

If you’ve got a few bucks to spare (and I know that everyone’s asking right now!), consider shopping our Amazon Wishlist to help us fill our vehicle with donations for the shelter. We gave out everything we had on hand last month, so we need pretty much everything. Here’s the link.

I hope you’ll follow along and share the stories we find at the five shelters we will be visiting, and most especially the Stronger Together Retreat (if you’re in Kentucky, YOU’RE INVITED, and it‘s free; just RSVP on the Facebook event or message me if you have questions).

WWLDO October Kentucky Shelter Tour

Thurs 10/17 Leslie County Shelter, 425 Detention Road, Hyden

Fri 10/18 Mercer County Animal Shelter, 896 Moberly Road, Harrodsburg

Sat 10/19 Stronger Together Retreat 9-5, Colvin Community Center, Radcliff

Sun 10/20 Pendleton County Shelter, 1314 Bryan Griffin Rd, Butler

Mon 10/21 Robertson County Animal Shelter, 786 Brierly Ridge Rd, Mount Olivet

Mon 10/21 Montgomery County Animal Shelter, 115 Adena Dr, Mt Sterling

Until each one has a home,

Cara

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To see our Emmy-nominated, award-winning short documentary, Amber’s Halfway Home, click here. If you’d like to see it on the big screen (along with other short dog films), check out the tour schedule of The Dog Film Festival, currently in art movie houses all over the country.

Learn more about what is happening in our southern shelters and rescues in the book, One Hundred Dogs & Counting: One Woman, Ten Thousand Miles, and a Journey Into the Heart of Shelters and Rescues (Pegasus Books, 2020). It’s the story of a challenging foster dog who inspired me to travel south to find out where all the dogs were coming from. It tells the story of how Who Will Let the Dogs Out began. Find it anywhere books are sold.

For more information on any of our projects, to talk about rescue in your neck of the woods, or partner with us, please email cara@WWLDO.org.

And for links to everything WWLDO, including volunteer application, wishlists, and donation options, check out our Linktree.