In response to a statement by Mayor Nancy Martin: The administrators of this page have all been involved with Helmetta Regional Animal Shelter (HRAS) for several years. This page was not put up without great thought, detail, and research going into the effort. We have tried to make changes internally. We have tried to speak with the director. We have tried to speak with the Mayor. Our concerns were ignored, animal suffering and mishandling was covered up. We felt involving the public was the only way to bring about desperately needed reform to this horribly mismanaged shelter. The photos taken were collected over a long period of time. The cat photographs are from the adoption room, the ISO room (which is located through the double doors within the adoption room) and the 7 day hold room (which is located through a door found in the ISO room.) Obtaining photos and video is very difficult. The shelter, which claims to have no funds for basic necessities, has installed a state of the art camera system that is monitored on the shelter directors desk. The Mayor claims, many of the photos posted on the site are not even photos of animals housed in the HRAS. That is an outright lie. Every single photo that appears on this page is of an animal housed at HRAS. The video of the dog grooming session, where dogs appear to be seizuring after being given an unknown drug by the shelter director, was also taken at HRAS. That video was taken on the lower level, in a room right past the main entrance. We take great offense that the Mayor would deny the suffering these animals have endured, as well as the trauma experienced by those who witnessed it. The Mayor claims that shelter employees and customers are being harassed due to this page. We have had no reports of customers being harassed. We have seen photos taken outside of the Helmetta building that show Helmetta employees. While these photos were taken on public property, we personally have never asked anyone to take the photos, individuals administrating this page have not photographed Helmetta employees, and we have repeatedly and clearly stated that all communication with the shelter and those affiliated should be polite and respectful. We have specifically directed people to avoid using threats and cursing. While we cannot control what others do, we have certainly never encouraged or directed anyone to do anything other than lawful protest and questioning of a taxpayer-funded facility. On the contrary, reviewing the shelter activities from today, it came to our attention that the Mayors son, who is also a shelter employee, clearly threatened to mess up so bad the administrators of this page. Let this be clear: We will not be bullied. We will not be scared off by a boy riding on his mothers coattails. We will continue to speak up for the animals of HRAS until there is reform. They deserve nothing less. We have over a thousand people watching this page in a very short amount of time. We receive nonstop messages and emails from people asking us what they can do to help, sharing their horror stories of the shelter, telling us to keep going. In closing, lets play Devils Advocate for a moment and pretend the Mayor is being truthful about the photos not coming from the shelter. Ignore the photos for a moment. Read the state reports. We have linked to four years of inspections. Every year, multiple violations are noted. Every year, we see the same or similar violations repeated. Everything from disease control to record keeping to method of euthanasia. The shelter is importing dogs from out of state without health certificates and adopting them out to the unsuspecting public, some of whom have shared their stories on this page. Sick dogs, filled with parasites, not spayed or neutered, no vaccines, lost paperwork, reports of dogs being adopted out while pregnant. Your community members being blindsided with thousands of dollars in veterinary bills to save the lives of beloved adopted pets. Cats sitting in the adoption room, microchipped with an owner actively searching. Animals going into the shelter and disappearing; questions about these animals deleted from the shelter Facebook page. The public constantly begs for photos of cats up for adoption. After enough people ask, the shelter throws us a bone and posts a handful of cats. The shelter employees claiming that they dont get in too many stray cats, while the state report acknowledges 149 cats sitting in the shelter as of July 16, 2014. Cats who were never made available to the NJ public being shipped to South Carolina. Were these lost pets? Are there desperate owners who will never see their cat again? Heartbroken cat owners going to the shelter to look for their pet, being denied access to the so-called 7 day hold room where all cats go as soon as they are brought to the shelter; the majority never leave. Where is the proof if you dont take our word for it? The numbers dont add up; plain and simple. HRAS has contracts with 21 townships. Look at their Facebook page. Look at their Petfinder page. Look at their adoption room. Where are all the cats? We see other shelters desperately asking for help, begging rescues to pull cats. Not HRAS. Ask yourself why. Look at the dog kennels. Simple comforts like a bed, daily exercise, are denied. We have nothing to gain from making this page. We are not asking for donations. We are not even asking to be acknowledged for the work we have all put into this effort. We want one thing: change at HRAS. We want a new director. One who will admit to the high-rate of senseless euthanasia and is open to volunteers and rescues working with the shelter to save lives. One who does not refuse to allow photographs of animals in need to be taken or published. One who will answer questions and work with the community to constantly improve the way our homeless animals are housed and treated. Why are animals hidden rather than put up for adoption? Why are people with legitimate questions and concerns struck down, bullied, ignored? This is not acceptable. We are not out for blood. We are not trying to harm anyone. We want what should be there to begin with: a caring, well-run shelter with the animals needs being met on a daily basis. Its not enough to scrub the shelter down after enough people complain. Its not enough to give the cats in public view a water bowl, while so many more cats are hidden in back rooms drinking filthy water out of old cat food cans. We have asked. We have begged. Its time for change.
Posted on: Sun, 03 Aug 2014 23:01:25 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015