By now, if you’re paying any amount of attention to the persistent problems at Louisville Metro Animal Services, you’ve already turned into a raging alcoholic.
Check this out:
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The $10 adoption fee (plus the cost of the license) is really just a way to hide a $19.50 adoption fee.
According to the ordinance, LMAS does have to charge a license fee – at least, that’s the best we can tell. When out-of-county adopters come in, they don’t get a $9.50 reduction in price.
But why, exactly, are adopters living outside of Jefferson County required to license their animal in Jefferson County? And why isn’t the $60,000-per-year communications director communicating clearly about this? Why set the organization up for more ridicule and failure? Why not call it a $19.50 adoption fee and be done with it?
There’s a pattern of misinformation flowing out of LMAS involving fees associated with, you know, everything. Like this:
The photos don’t cost $5.00 – they cost $9.95. Five bucks of the cost went to LMAS, though. Either LMAS has a problem communicating costs associated with government or there’s an effort to constantly mislead.
Sadly, only two people showed up to be photographed on Saturday. In years prior, 35-40 were taken each day. We’re not shocked, really, as Dismas workers were there instead of of volunteers.
Our sources on-hand to watch LMAS says the employee assigned to manage the Dismas guys left at 3:30/3:45. The event was scheduled to end until 4:00. The second person who showed up requesting a photo with Santa arrived at 3:50 and a volunteer on-hand to work with cats had to call Animal House to have Margaret Brosko send them back to Petsmart.
And you wonder why nothing ever changes at Louisville Metro Animal Services.
9 responses so far ↓
1 Rosebuds // Dec 6, 2011 at 10:32 am
WOW.
You know, as a former LMASer, I must say that if not for the DISMAS workers, many things at that shelter would not get done. There have been LOTS of problems with them, sure. Perhaps even enough to consider ending the program. But, those DISMAS workers who care about the animals DO work hard and offer invaluable service to the shelter – costing LMAS and Metro Govt basically nothing.
However, any communications director should have the weebit of common sense needed to know that managing her organization’s image is paramount in her responsibilities, and that bringing work-release criminals to a public event in a retail store – with children, families, items that could be stolen, etc. – is NOT a good move. (You know, to say NOTHING of the fact that the employee left the event early.)
That said, perhaps if they hadn’t driven out their volunteer coordinator, maybe they’d have had a throng of volunteers to help spread the word about the event and to work the event itself, ensuring its success – as in years past.
2 WTF // Dec 6, 2011 at 10:46 am
It’s events like this that are going to expose more deficiencies at LMAS. I volunteer there and the general volunteers weren’t even asked to help out. Maybe they asked the Petsmart volunteers but the lady that schedules for that has resigned and now it is up to Margaret to do it. Uh Oh. So I’m guessing since she didn’t ask, she didn’t have anyone and grabbed the Dismas guys at the last minute. Last year and the year before it was a big success. We had elves, Santa wasn’t a kid and it all ran smoothly. It just goes to show that volunteers aren’t valued for what they can do and only a select few are on the “approved to help” list. I think they are hoping the others will just go away.
3 G'town Reader // Dec 6, 2011 at 12:11 pm
In that 2nd FB post pictured, did the highly paid communications person REALLY spell out “freinds?????”
4 JTT // Dec 6, 2011 at 12:19 pm
The person who managed the Dismas folks left early? What about the actual Dismas guys? They MUST be supervised by their agreement.
5 jake // Dec 6, 2011 at 12:23 pm
The Dismas folks actually did a good job according to all reports.
6 Shelli // Dec 7, 2011 at 7:37 am
I asked the question about the license fee just because I knew I would get the ridiculous answer that out-of-county residents still have to pay it. And I still can’t believe they are so that they would not accept your offer to pay for all adoptions for this event. It just defies logic on every level.
7 jake // Dec 7, 2011 at 7:40 am
Can’t have a critic doing anything with LMAS, Shelli. That’s how it works.
You have no idea how quiet we had to be just to rescue a dog from Animal House in March. If two now-former LMAS employees hadn’t assisted, the dog would have soon been euthanized.
8 Jtt // Dec 7, 2011 at 11:17 am
I’ve always had good things to say about the Dismas folks I’ve used and supervised, but I had to take a class to do so and they emphasized that they must always be supervised by a person that had been approved. Never had a lick of problem with any of the guys, but ….
9 Turner // Dec 8, 2011 at 12:34 pm
I wonder if out of county residents have to pay the license fee at KHS also. And I think I noticed that when they waive adoption fees one still has to pay the license fee but that the waive license fee advertising does not nec. mention that. I think I am going to check into that. And JTT, the Dismas employee did leave at the same time and under supervision on the day of the Santa photos mentioned above. That Dismas employee does a great job.
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