You may have read about the abhorrent conditions a group of dedicated animal rescue advocates, The Clearlake Animal Association, found their shelter in “The nonprofit Clearlake Animal Association took over operations as of Sunday, Feb. 8.The prior operator, North Bay Animal Services of Petaluma, was faulted by the city for poor management, shelter overcrowding and a lack of communication with city residents. The city terminated its $375,000 contract with the organization in August and gave it two months to wind down operations there. It is unclear what happened in the interim, but Clearlake officials told the Lake County Record-Bee that the group left as many as 114 dogs living in urine, feces, and inhumane conditions for months.”

I have been doing this work a long time. I don’t shock easily.

But what we saw at the criminally mismanaged Clearlake Shelter temporarily broke me. It has only been through the support of our donors, volunteers, staff, and the resilience of these severely neglected dogs, that I’ve been able to put the broken pieces of my heart together, and keep going.  We have now rescued six dogs from this inexcusable situation. They were emaciated. Not thin. Emaciated. You could see every rib and hip bone. They were stained with urine, had bedsores consistent with lying in crates too long. One incredibly sweet one year old dog, Delilah,  is sick with Parvo plus a long-standing dislocated hip and may now lose her leg.

These conditions do not happen overnight. When you choose to work in animal welfare, you make a promise. You promise to FEED them, clean their space, monitor their health, and protect them. That is not only the job, it is the covenant one enters with the public to honor our shared values of putting animals first! When a shelter fails to do that, it is not only a betrayal of animals who were already failed by humans, it is also betrayal of public trust. What simultaneously breaks my heart and puts it back together is that every single one of these dogs is still gentle and trusting, still eagerly seeking human companionship, despite everything. If animal control found a private citizen keeping animals in these same conditions, there would be an investigation and likely prosecution. The standard of care should not change depending on who is responsible.

These dogs are safe now. They are being carefully re-fed. They are receiving medical care. They are finally being treated with dignity. But they should never have arrived like this. I want to thank Charmaine Weldon for stepping in and taking over North Bay’s operations. You are literally their life saver! Thank you to the many reputable shelters in Marin and Sonoma County who also stepped up and transferred dogs to their loving care.  I also want to thank our Vet Tech of 18 years, Gina, Dr. Clare, and our staff for caring for these poor, loving souls around the clock. I want to thank you, our readers and donors, for your ongoing commitment to sharing resources, and getting the word out about pets in need — it was in part through your efforts in January to help find homes for our shelter residents, that we had the capacity to take on these sweet, neglected souls. These  dogs will be under our close watch, we will be working to bring them back to clean bills of health. Watch this space and our social media for updates. If you would like to visit any of these dogs, take them for walks, play with them in the play yard, please sign up to volunteer.
With love and gratitude,

Judy Martin

Executive Director, Mendocino Coast Humane Society.

Dine Out Wed 18: Cafe One