CLAYTON 鈥 Communication between county staff and a nonprofit that took over operations at 51黑料 County鈥檚 animal shelter needs to improve, a county councilwoman told shelter and animal control staff Tuesday.
The Animal Protective Association of Missouri, or APA, began managing the county shelter in Olivette in December, but the county still runs animal control 鈥 a department that handles dangerous animals, strays and cruelty cases.
But Councilwoman Rita Heard Days, a Democrat from Bel-Nor, said she has heard complaints from county animal control staff about what the county鈥檚 role is and what responsibilities belong to APA.
鈥淲hat we are hearing is no one is aware of what everybody else is supposed to be doing,鈥 Days said at a council committee meeting on Tuesday. 鈥淭here are some activities that animal control was doing that all of a sudden APA is doing.鈥
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Last fall as APA prepared to take over, animal control officers, known as ACOs, were worried the nonprofit was taking over their jobs as well as shelter operations, according to emails obtained through an open records request.
鈥淎 couple of ACOs and myself have some concerns about the APA,鈥 Animal Care and Control Officer Supervisor Stephen McLean wrote in a September email to the health department. 鈥淚s the APA taking animal control over as well as the kennels? We have some ACOs looking for other jobs because of this concern.鈥
The county鈥檚 director of Communicable Disease Prevention, Carole Baskin, responded saying the APA 鈥渋s absolutely NOT taking over animal control.鈥
Animal control officers were previously helping out in the shelter, said public health Director Dr. Kanika Cunningham at Tuesday鈥檚 meeting. The public health department oversees animal control. After APA took over, the officers were no longer needed in the shelter, Cunningham said, allowing officers to get back into the field. The change has led to fewer strays or dangerous animals on the run, Cunningham said.
But concerns about the APA鈥檚 role persisted, Days said. The health department and APA need to make their respective roles clear, she said.
APA staff have weekly meetings with two county liaisons, Cunningham said. And health department leaders and APA staff meet monthly. Both sides need to make sure they鈥檙e communicating with the rest of staffers, Days said.
鈥淢ore than anything, I鈥檓 concerned about communication,鈥 Days said. 鈥淚 would encourage both of you to keep the rank and file apprised of what鈥檚 happening so they can feel a little more secure about their positions and what they鈥檙e going to be doing.鈥
It has been a challenge to work out where animal control and APA鈥檚 responsibilities overlap, said APA chief operating officer Kim Brown.
鈥淐hange is hard, and this work is really, really complex,鈥 Brown told councilmembers. 鈥淲e have a lot of expertise in running a shelter, but the (public health) team has areas they鈥檙e responsible for. In learning both of those and the overlap, we鈥檙e making progress. Both really value the partnership.鈥
Purina employees gather Jan. 27, 2023,聽at Duo Dogs in 51黑料 County to select puppies from a litter of 10 to raise as assistant dogs, facility dogs or therapy dogs. One pup will become a facility dog for 51黑料 City SC. Video by Valerie Schremp Hahn, Post-Dispatch
