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Family of dog euthanized by Denton animal shelter demands another independent review

Al Keys
/
Denton Record-Chronicle

Earlier this week, the city of Denton released an independent review of Denton Animal Services that highlighted nearly two dozen recommendations to improve services at the Linda McNatt Care & Adoption Center. The review came a few months after shelter staff euthanized an elderly arthritic dog, Gunner, less than 24 hours after he had been evaluated by a veterinarian and given a three-day supply of medication.

Gunner was chipped and wearing a tracking collar that had gone dead. He had also been to the shelter in 2022 and 2023. But his owners — John and Courtney Gilcrease, who live in the Krum area — weren’t given enough time to pick him up since staff euthanized him on a Wednesday, when the shelter is closed to the public.

City Manager Sara Hensley commissioned the review of Denton Animal Services by a consulting company, Shelter Savvy, after news of Gunner’s death led to a public uproar.

Shelter Savvy’s review highlights several strengths at Denton’s animal shelter, such as open adoptions, staff morale, a robust foster program and upcoming renovations to add indoor/outdoor dog runs. It also offers nearly two dozen recommendations to improve animal shelter operations.

Shortly after the review’s release, John Gilcrease shared his frustration with it on social media and demanded what he called a “true independent investigation.” He also called on residents to demand that city officials “redo the investigation and hire the same company who did the 2018 report.”

Similar to the recent review, Arizona-based company Animal Shelter Services spent five days in 2018 at the Linda McNatt Animal Care & Adoption Center documenting, interviewing and meeting shelter staff, volunteers, shelter visitors and city officials about various aspects of the shelter’s operations. The 2018 report found six critical findings that needed improvement, including lack of an employee manual and standard operating procedures, improper cleaning and sanitation practices, needed structure and supervision of volunteers, and mentoring and coaching for the animal shelter supervisor and kennel supervisor.

Contacted Friday morning, Gilcrease said that on a scale of 1 to 10, he would rate the October 2024 review a negative 10. But for the 2018 independent review of the shelter, which the city also released this week, he would give a rating of a 10. He said the new report doesn’t highlight what he feels is wrong with the shelter and what needs to be fixed.

“Overall the report (review) is exactly what we thought it would be which is a fluff piece,” Gilcrease wrote on the Justice for Gunner Facebook page. “... In our opinion this was a waste of taxpayer dollars and a complete sham!”

“We were hoping to see the truth, that they had issues that they were going to fix and everything that happened to Gunner would come to light, that they’d be honest and upfront. They weren’t,” Gilcrease said. “The 2018 report was the truth about the shelter, and nothing has changed since 2018. … All they are trying to do is make this go away from the public eyes.”

Courtney Gilcrease said they were concerned about all the information they’ve discovered about the animal shelter’s ongoing issues because they will continue to happen.

“At this point, it is not just about Gunner,” Gilcrease said. “It is about the animals coming in and out of there.”

However, the recent review did point out flaws that needed to be fixed. For example, Carrie Ducote, the principal consultant for Shelter Savvy, reported that Denton Animal Services didn’t have a formal adopted or outline policy for how euthanasia decisions are made.

But the Gilcreases questioned why Hensley didn’t mention that the consultant she had hired may have a conflict of interest given the consultant once worked for Best Friends Animal Society, which the Denton shelter has been utilizing for training, and wondered how the consultant could write a “bad review” with that connection.

On Friday, Shannon Greer, an animal advocate who has been helping the Gilcreases, said it was a conflict of interest since Best Friends Animal Society was also helping the city interview new shelter managers. The former shelter manager was “relieved from her duties” shortly after Gunner’s euthanasia.

Greer also criticized the length of the recent review, comparing it to the one from 2018, which she called “a full investigation.”

“Truthfully, I don’t think anything is going to change, and all I can do is pray for every animal that gets taken in those doors when I go to bed at night,” Greer said. “... The report that was done was not thorough nor was it complete. It didn’t even address the reason why the audit was being done.”

In a Friday morning email, Dustin Sternbeck, the city’s chief spokesperson, wrote that Shelter Savvy was chosen because the consultant had experience working with municipal shelters across the country.

Sternbeck said the consultant “did not provide PR-related services as part of their review.”

The Denton City Council, Sternbeck also wrote, approved six new and 10 follow-up audits of city departments and programs, including one for the Linda McNatt Animal Care & Adoption Center. The results from that audit — along with previous assessments of the animal shelter — will be reviewed at an upcoming council meeting.

“The City remains committed to transparency and continual improvement in its operations to ensure the well-being of the animals in its care,” Sternbeck wrote.

The city’s goal with the independent review was to address the situation quickly, through what Sternbeck called a fair and unbiased assessment of shelter operating procedures.

“This matter elicits emotions, and I sympathize with anyone impacted by Gunner’s death,” Sternbeck wrote. “Since his passing, the City has been working expeditiously to identify areas of improvement and implement meaningful solutions.”

Before Shelter Savvy’s animal services report, Sternbeck said the Denton Police Department had conducted an investigation into Gunner’s death and found no evidence of criminal wrongdoing.

Hensley didn’t respond to requests for comment.

City Council member Brian Beck also questioned the thoroughness of the review.

“The recent ‘Shelter Savvy’ report was remarkably insufficient, leaving out essential information and awareness of challenges to animal care and thus failed to comprehensively tackle existing issues or offer complete solutions,” Beck wrote in a Tuesday evening email.

Mayor Gerard Hudspeth didn’t respond to a request for comment.

However, Mayor Pro Tem Paul Meltzer called the review a “beginning, not an end,” in a Wednesday message to the Denton Record-Chronicle.

“This is a rebuilding opportunity,” Meltzer wrote. “There’s a lot to deal with, not just these recommendations but also any outstanding recommendations from the 2018 study and the study currently underway being done by the City Auditor. … I’m looking forward to hearing a comprehensive plan from staff that will include very transparent public discussion and input, as well as very tight and very frequent tracking of progress.”

Copyright 2024 KERA

Christian McPhate | Denton Record-Chronicle