1) POSITIVE Hired a part-time veterinarian, which will allow the shelter to spay/neuter their pets prior to adoption or shortly thereafter. This is a great step forward, as they are now striving to meet the State Law.
2) POSITIVE They have established and almost finalized Standard Operating Procedures for the shelter. This will be the first time our shelter has had SOPs. We believe this will increase the quality of care given to the animals while in shelter custody. It will also help management hold employees accountable for their actions.
3) POSITIVE They are having thoughtful, inclusive and transparent discussions about the pros and cons of potential ordinance changes. The recent Odessa ordinance change was discussed at length and all agreed that Midland would prefer to continue investing in incentive programs rather than punitive programs.
4) NEGATIVE There was no presentation to compare prior year to current year results. When questioned, Melissa said that she did not have access to prior year numbers. This is patently false, as these numbers have been previously reported at advisory commission meetings and therefore are “on record” and should be easily attainable. In our opinion, she has failed Chief Chuck and the Advisory Commission with her lack of transparency. After all, only with transparency will we have accountability.
5) NEGATIVE In the presentation Melissa gave about Live Release Rates for 2023, the numbers did not match past presentations she gave the commission (ie: July has shown 69% and in this presentation it now showed 90%, August was 52% and now is 95% and etc) When questioned on this new, more favorable method of calculating the Live Release Rate, Melissa said Pet Point did not include all euthanasia in the report. When questioned why she was unable to present a report that included all euthanasia like she did for the past two meetings, she spoke in circles. We feel the fact is she could have prepared it using the same, consistent methodology but she chose not to. Why? Because the real live release rate is not 89%. It is closer to 70%. Why is this important? Melissa has failed Chief Chuck and the Advisory Commission with her lack of transparency. Without transparency, one cannot have accountability.
