ANGELS FOR ANIMALS Mistake in killing dog spurs shelter resolve

The organization plans to strictly adhere to its policies to avoid problems.
By SHERRI L. SHAULIS
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
CANFIELD -- Diane Less Baird acknowledges mistakes were made with Max and she and her colleagues are committed to making sure he didn't die in vain.
"It was a horrible situation all around," she said. "People out there think we are killers, and that's not the case. There were just many mistakes made."
Those mistakes, said Less Baird, president of Angels for Animals, should be avoided with stricter policy enforcement at the group's Beaver Township shelter and other changes.
Max, a Sharpei-Labrador mix, was euthanized in August at the shelter, Less Baird said.
A stray cared for by Bob and Nancy Faulkner of Howland, Max had been treated for several months by a Niles veterinarian for mange, malnourishment, fleas and other conditions, Nancy Faulkner said.
With the costs of boarding Max growing, and since they were on a waiting list for him to be placed with Animal Welfare, the couple decided to take Max to Angels for Animals.
The limited-access shelter, near Greenford, between Canfield and Columbiana, uses euthanasia as a last resort, instead preferring to place animals in foster homes with volunteers until permanent homes can be found.
A limited-access shelter is one that puts down animals only if they are unhealthy or have behavior problems.
Faulkner said when she took Max to Angels to be assessed for the adoption program, she knew he would pass the temperament test with flying colors.
"He was just such a friendly, loving, playful dog," she said.
She said she told workers at the shelter that if for some reason Max did not fit the program's criteria for placement, she would find a home for him herself.
That, Less Baird said, was the first mistake on the shelter's part.
Technically, she said, Max should have been considered a family pet by shelter workers, meaning he automatically did not qualify for placement.
Group's purpose
Angels for Animals is dedicated to finding homes for stray and homeless animals, not pets. Since Max had been under the care of a local family, even though he was boarded most of the time, she said, he should have been considered a pet of the Faulkners.
And though Max was accepted, shelter workers should not have made promises that the Faulkners would be notified they could have Max back, she said.
Once Max was evaluated by Dr. Parker DeWitt, an Angels for Animals' veterinarian, a decision was made that he should be put down because of chronic mange and hip dysplasia, Less Baird said.
Faulkner disagrees with that diagnosis, but even more so with the decision that Max be put to sleep before she and her husband were notified.
"My husband still cries sometimes, saying he should have kept Max in the garage, but that would have been no life for him," she said.
Faulkner said she and her husband already have several animals, as well as others they foster, and they are limited on space. Otherwise, she said, they would have kept Max.
Suggestions
Faulkner said as word got out about Max's death, others have come forward. That's why she and her husband decided to address the Angels for Animals' board this week.
The couple presented several letters of similar complaints and offered suggestions, including creating a paper trail for any animals designated for euthanasia, making it clear to anyone who brings in an animal that euthanasia is a possibility if placement is not an option and allowing those who bring in animals the chance to keep the animal if euthanasia is pending.
While not all of the suggestions may be implemented, Less Baird said, shelter workers will begin stricter enforcement of its policies.
Less Baird said Dr. DeWitt is seeking other employment but is still the Angels' vet for now. The shelter is advertising for a replacement.
"We can't bring Max back, but we have to enforce our policies to keep something like this from ever happening again," she said.
slshaulis@vindy.com