Bags of cat corpses and strewn bones found in the outskirts of Cochise County led to a big shake-up at the animal shelter in Douglas this spring when animal control officers told deputies they’d been releasing hundreds of trapped animals into the desert outside of town.
The disturbing details reached back to the Humane Society of Southern Arizona in Tucson, which was serving as a consulting agency to the Douglas shelter. The local humane society was still dealing with the fallout from the discovery late last year that rodents transferred from a facility in San Diego for adoption here were instead handed over to a reptile dealer to be sold and used as food.
The Douglas incident took place seven months after the uproar here and in San Diego over the rodent debacle that resulted in the job termination of the humane society’s director at the time.
The agency’s new director acknowledges the troublesome incidents, but says the Humane Society of Southern Arizona is on track to persevere over the next several months.
No criminal charges
Leaving the cats in the desert was an alternative to euthanizing them, animal control officers in Douglas told Cochise County deputies, according to reports taken in March of this year.
Animal control officers said they were doing what they thought would be best for the animals, police reports show.
Prosecutors declined to seek criminal charges, saying there was not enough evidence to warrant an animal cruelty charge, court documents show.
When questioned about shelter policy, one animal control officer told deputies that he knew of no policy with the city when it came to dumping or relocating animals.
Rattlesnakes, javelina and feral cats had all been released in the area, they said.
However, actual numbers of dumped cats varied widely, depending on who police were interviewing, the records show.
That should not happen.
Credentialed shelters must maintain intake and outcome documents to declare “live outcome” percentage, according to state law.
“It is malpractice not to maintain these records leaving animals vulnerable,” a whistleblower said last month in an interview with The Arizona Daily Star. “It is illegal to euthanize or perform medical procedures involving controlled substances without this documentation for humane reasons and to prevent trafficking of veterinary drugs.”
When requesting intake and outtake information for the hundreds of animals going in and out of the Douglas shelter, whistleblowers said they found the documents were fabricated, or that no tracking was being done.
While this transpired, the animal control officers were working in tandem with a member of the Humane Society of Southern Arizona, according to Cochise County Sheriff’s Department reports. That person was later identified as former HSSA employee Chris Meeks.
No knowledge of cat dumping
During his interview with investigators in March 2024, Meeks told police he had been sent to Douglas to help out for several months and get things in order.
However, when asked if he was aware of the animal dumping, Meeks denied having any knowledge of the events. He told police he was aware of a single cat escaping the shelter, but that he knew nothing about animal relocation. He made the claim despite the implicated animal control officers saying Meeks participated on at least one cat dump.
Whistleblowers, concerned about the safety of the shelter animals, allege that requested documentation provided by the humane society has been manipulated, incomplete or disregarded entirely.
Their worry grew when they did not get answers from Cochise County officials about how many animals were coming into the shelter and how many were adopted or euthanized.
When animal advocates asked for those records, HSSA Vice Chair Mark Butler allegedly told them he didn’t know how to obtain that information. Whistleblowers say the data should be readily accessible according to best practices.
According to the state law, euthanasia records must include the animals’ weight and amount of the drug used. Two signatures, one from the veterinarian and a second witness, are also required before an animal is put down.
Without these records, there’s no way to track the amount of drugs being used or the number of animals being put down, advocates say.
Dangerous drugs, like ketamine, can be abused without proper record keeping, they say.
Former HSSA CEO Beth Morrison said in October 2023 that when she visited the Douglas shelter and learned it was “euthanizing nearly 100% of the cats” they were trapping, Morrison suggested to leave the cats in the community as part of the trap, neuter and release program.
New leadership
After interviewing 90 applicants, the HSSA selection committee and board of directors in May chose Kristin Barney as the new CEO and face of the 80 year-old organization.
Her past experience includes working closely with municipal leaders and community partners to implement nationally recognized best practices to improve animal life saving practices.
She said growing up with a disabled mother and her service dog, Muffin, helped her realize just how important animals can be in helping navigate one’s life.
Barney says her goal is to make the humane society here a model for animal service. That includes having a strong public/private partnership.
“Every local saw what happened here,” Barney said, acknowledging the rodent scandal. “I appreciate how this organization has moved forward, and taken recommendations.”
Barney served as the chief of operations at the Pima Animal Care Center from 2014-2016.
Her specialty is change management, and she has spoken nationally on animal welfare leadership.
Most recently, she was a senior director of lifesaving programs at Best Friends, working collaboratively with animal welfare professionals across the West.
“We’re thrilled and are looking forward to working with Dr. Barney,” said Robert Garcia, who chairs the humane society’s board of directors. “Barney is a perfect fit for the job,” he said.
Jumping into a critical role among the recent chaos is difficult, Barney said, but it’s a role she’s ready to take on.
She reiterated that HSSA was only serving in an advisory role to the Douglas shelter when the cats disappeared.
In a year’s time, Barney said, she hopes to have rebuilt trust with stakeholders, as well as assessing the communities’ needs and evolving to address those needs.
But she knows the road to 2025 won’t be an easy one to travel.
“There’s always a bit of nervousness when you do something this meaningful,” Barney said. “That’s how I knew this was the right place for me.”
