A request to transition funding to hire an animal shelter attendant got stonewalled by the Macon County Board of Commissioners on Dec. 10, with one commissioner suggesting the county should divest from animal control due to what he feels is animal services’ ineffectiveness.
The lack of decision came after a presentation by Macon County Public Health Department Director Kathy McGaha and Board of Health Chair Dr. Jerry Hermanson. The two presented the Board of Health’s request for a new shelter attendant.
Hermanson explained how 40 people attended the Board of Health’s September meeting to raise concerns about Macon County Animal Services. These included volunteers who said they are doing the work that shelter attendants do and that there is a lack of funding and manpower. After this, the Board of Health said they would do a complete deep dive into the department. Staff presented that report at the Board of Health’s November meeting where they passed a motion to ask for a shelter attendant.
Health Department Administrative Officer Jimmy Villiard explained how there’s been more animals going through the shelter, meaning more work for the same number of employees over the last few years.
Hermanson said a lot of the property concerns have been dealt with and their plan could take them well into the future.
The shelter attendant request is equal to one full-time employee. McGaha said they have two environmental health positions they can’t fill, so the idea is to shift the money to the shelter attendant position.
After some follow-up questions by Commissioners Gary Shields and Danny Antoine, Commissioner John Shearl aired his grievances with the department. He talked about a situation regarding a “problem dog” on Lake Emory Road, saying an animal control officer went out and didn’t do anything about the dog. Later, Villiard said he was familiar with that case and said the animal control officer couldn’t do anything except issue a citation because the animal was on the owner’s property, per the county’s animal control ordinances.
“If they can’t enact their authority, why would we want to add another person?” Shearl said. He later suggested there should be an investigation into other options to handle the county’s animal situation.
Shearl suggested that Macon County divest from the animal control business and leave it in the private or nonprofit sector. Shearl said he was told he was the first county commissioner in years to walk through the animal services building when he visited and that nothing would get done if it wasn’t for concerned citizens.
McGaha asked Shearl to appreciate what the animal services staff does, and that changing what animal control officers do would be a county decision. Shearl said he has “great respect” for animal service workers and his phone continually rings with people upset about how ineffective they feel animal services is. McGaha responded that the commissioners control what animal control officers can and can’t do.
Board Chair Josh Young interjected to say he feels like this discussion is more suited for the budget season in the spring, saying there needs to be another animal control position hired, as there are currently only two and there are three trucks. That third position has been vacant for roughly a month, McGaha said.
Regarding divesting from animal services, McGaha said according to statute, each county isn’t required to have an animal shelter, but if they have an animal shelter, the county has to follow state rules on animal shelters.
At the end of the discussion, the commissioners made no motions and Young said they’ll consider the request during budget season.
This isn’t the first time Shearl has spoken against animal services funding. In the June 2023 budget discussions, funding for a new animal control officer position and the truck for that position was removed from the final budget, following Shearl’s suggestion.