Kansas Humane Society demanding change after Kansas Department of Agriculture cites partner for taking sick animals
WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — The Kansas Humane Society is demanding change after they say the Kansas Department of Agriculture (KDA) cited one of their partners for taking parvo-positive animals from them.
The KHS says they learned of the citation Tuesday. They closed for an hour to hold an emergency staff meeting.
The KDA is who gives the KHS their license to be an animal shelter. The KDA also oversees all animal activity in the state, including providing reviews and inspections at the KHS to make sure they are meeting all codes and any expectations.
The KHS says they have been told that the KDA is beginning to enforce a law that states that no animal with any infectious or contagious disease may be treated or transferred outside of the shelter of origin, unless that animal is transferred directly to a veterinarian’s care for treatment and transferred directly back to the shelter of origin once cleared
“This means that strays and other animals who have been successfully treated in our community for years through placement with our incredible rescue partners or our foster homes are no longer allowed to take these animals for treatment, even under the oversight of a veterinarian. They must physically be located at the facility where the veterinarian is providing constant supervision,” said the KHS. “It also means that sick animals that we have networked for Wichita Animal Services, in accordance with our joint operating agreement, can no longer be moved from the Wichita Animal Shelter into any placement that is not a Veterinary clinic that provides the direct care in-house (no foster placements, no transfers to rescue).”
The KHS says it is only when an animal is cleared of any illness that it may return to the shelter to be eligible for transfer of ownership.
“In practice, this means many, many animals who are sick upon arrival at the shelter or who become sick while in care will not have a live outcome, as the costs of providing the medical treatment for high volume animal shelters will simply exceed the resources available,” said the KHS.
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The KHS has issued the following statement, in part:
Kansas Humane Society is awaiting further instruction and clarification from the KS Department of Agriculture, but based on the law and enforcement as presented, we are left without options. Following the law in treating our animals is not optional and could affect our license and put us, and every other animal placing agency in the state of Kansas, at significant financial risk. We believe in our mission – To be a community resource for pets & people, dedicated to enhancing the welfare of all companion animals. In service of this mission, and for all animal welfare staff throughout the state of Kansas, we plan to move forward to lobby for immediate change to this outdated and unrealistic expectation so that we can continue to work with our partners to provide humane care to every animal that encounters the animal welfare system. We need people to vaccinate their pets now more than ever, as well as microchip/update microchip information, and talk with your veterinarian.”
Kansas Humane Society
The KHS shared more details in their words about the problem, what this means, their stance on it and how you can help on their Facebook page.
KHS DEMANDS CHANGE
THE PROBLEM:
As a Kansas animal shelter, we are governed by the laws set in place by the Kansas Department of Agriculture. We have always followed the Kansas Pet Animal Act while working within the Animal Health Statutes (AHS) that pertain to domestic animals with contagious or infectious diseases. That includes foster-to-adopt, instead of adopting and fully transferring ownership, and sending sick animals to rescue and foster. Our foster-to-adopt program was designed to keep dogs with CIRDC from infecting other dogs in our shelter while allowing them to be cared for by their future adopters. This is what has allowed us to help thousands of animals over the years that we couldn’t directly care for due to limited space, resources, and funding. Yesterday, we were contacted by another Humane Society in our state, who told us that they were cited by the Kansas Department of Agriculture for taking in several Parvo+ puppies, which we had previously transferred to them for treatment and care. The transfer of sick animals with contagious or infectious diseases is something we have carefully done in order to best serve our local pets and avoid euthanasia. When we asked for clarification on the law, we were told that knowingly transferring sick animals would result in a possible revocation of our license and a $250-$1,000 fine for every animal for every day.
WHAT THIS MEANS:
As of right now, we are no longer allowed to transfer any sick animal out of our building to foster or rescue. We are only allowed to send sick animals to a veterinarian’s care to be treated, which must immediately be returned to KHS once medically cleared. With limited funding, space, and resources, we are not able to humanely care for the amount of sick animals that we send out to rescues or fosters. Additionally, our neighbors at Wichita Animal Services (WAS) are also not allowed to transfer any sick animal with a contagious or infectious disease to KHS or any rescue partner. We have worked with WAS under a joint operating agreement since 2009 to network animals from Wichita Animal Services to rescues. Under the agreement, KHS is responsible for networking animals that are not current adoption candidates, whether that be due to behavior or medical reasons, which are then offered a live outcome by being transferred to our rescue partners. This sets a very dangerous precedent for animal welfare in the state of Kansas and means countless animals will be euthanized due to the hardline stance the Kansas Department of Agriculture is taking. We have asked the Kansas Animal Health Commissioner for clarification, which is expected sometime next week. There is still a lot we do not yet know, but we need your support now more than ever.
OUR STANCE:
Everyone at KHS is extremely scared and frustrated by the precedent set by the Kansas Department of Agriculture and we are demanding change. We have been allowed to operate in a way that better serves our local animals and not allowing us to send animals with infectious or contagious diseases to rescue or foster has hit every person working at KHS extremely hard today. Everyone here is working to help our local animals get to their next chapter in life and it has been a difficult day for all of us. This is a battle that we are willing to fight, but we need help in lobbying for change. We will be as transparent as possible as we navigate these laws and statutes that are not in our control and affecting us.
WHAT YOU CAN DO TO HELP:
We need people to vaccinate their pets now more than ever, as well as microchip/update microchip information, and talk with your veterinarian about spaying/neutering. We need to create a community herd immunity from infectious and contagious diseases to assure that animals that are lost or surrendered are not at risk to preventable diseases. We hope you will support us in this endeavor to bring change for our local pets.”
KSN has reached out to the KDA and the KHS. They tell us they will have more information Wednesday.
In 2018, KSN covered how the state gave the KHS a temporary exemption to fostering out sick dogs to help avoid euthanization. Read “State grants Kansas Humane Society exemption for sick dog fostering to avoid euthanization” for more details.
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