Leaders seeking urgent action

County officials demand swift fixes after scathing audit

FORT LAUDERDALE — A scathing audit that exposed glaring problems at Broward County Animal Care and Adoption has county leaders demanding that long-awaited fixes come swiftly.

Commissioner Mark Bogen put the blame squarely on the county’s administrators while defending activists who were dismissed as fanatics after complaining about what they called horrific conditions at the shelter.

“The administration has completely failed,” Bogen said. “We’ve been calling the activists crazies. But they’re not crazies. They’ve been accurate. We just can’t seem to run the shelter.”

County Administrator Bertha Henry defended her staff.

“You have a myriad of priorities,” she said. “This is but one. A lot of things did go wrong. A lot of things went right. I think you need to look at it in its entirety.”

The 208-page audit lays bare a long list of woes ranging from animals being kept in the dark for too long to an inefficient pet licensing program that’s costing the county $13 million a year in lost revenue. One of the audit’s 135 recommendations stresses the need to hire 36 more people.

The shelter takes in approximately 14,000 live animals each year but has a budgeted staff of only 75 workers, or 65% of what it should have,

according to the audit.

“As commissioners we have to own this,” said Commissioner Beam Furr, calling the audit fairly damning.

“So much of it comes down to a lack of staffing, a lack of resources,” Furr said. “That’s on us. We decide what the budget is.”

A new director expected to take over on Jan. 25 will be given six months to come up with a “reset” plan designed to right the ship.

Bogen, who pushed for the audit a year ago, vowed to keep close watch.

“Either we do it right or let’s get rid of it,” Bogen said. “We’re short staffed. You should be coming to us for more staff. I’m going to be vocal. We have to get this done. It’s an embarrassment to me. I’m not going to be quiet anymore.”

Previous audits have found similar problems but went ignored, said Michele Lazarow, a Hallandale Beach commissioner and longtime critic of the shelter.

“Please tell us what will be different this time,” she said.

Lazarow told the county administrators and commission they were both to blame, accusing them of ridiculing activists and their complaints over the years.

The recent audit, released to the public in December, found that animals were left unattended for up to 18 hours. Kennels and cages were not locked and could be opened by anyone, including the dogs inside them. Locks have since been added to kennel doors and timers added for light switches. But not all dog cages have bedding, which can lead to dogs developing sores.

Hillsboro Beach Mayor Deb Tarrant, a longtime canine agility trainer, urged shelter officials to give each dog a towel and blanket to call its own. She also said they need daily exercise to escape even briefly from their “dim concrete cells.”

Commissioner Lamar Fisher said he backed Bogen in his mission to get the shelter running the way it should be.

He wondered why dogs weren’t given baths when they arrived at the shelter and why no animal behaviorists were on staff.

Fisher also suggested using volunteers to answer the phones. The audit found that most calls went unanswered.

Commissioner Nan Rich, who initially defended the shelter, said the audit exposed many things that have needed fixing for a long time.

Hiring more employees — including a secretary to answer the phones — and bringing in more volunteers would help solve some of the problems, Commissioner Barbara Sharief said.

“I share the same concerns,” Vice Mayor Michael Udine said. “This is an issue that keeps popping up over and over again.”