Hamilton hires humane pet experts to help animal shelter
HAMILTON >> The township has taken a big step toward righting the ship of the embattled Hamilton Township Animal Shelter.
The Mayor Kelly Yaede administration on Friday announced the municipal government has hired an independent consultant for an assessment of its shelter’s operations and is close to finalizing an agreement for a supervising shelter veterinarian.
The New Jersey Department of Health conducted a raid-like inspection on the township’s animal shelter in July and released its inspection report in August. Among the most egregious violations cited was how the shelter failed to wait seven days before euthanizing numerous animals at the facility. Township officials say that transgression and other deficiencies have been corrected.
Dr. William J. Carter, former supervising veterinarian of the Hamilton Township Animal Shelter, resigned as the township’s emergency vet this summer, saying he was resigning due to the “misrepresentation of facts by the shelter’s leadership, along with the spin they have put on this situation.”
The problems at the animal shelter prompted Hamilton Council to initiate an allout probe of the facility. The governing body is proceeding with its subcommittee investigation into the troubled animal shelter with the legal assistance of Bernstein and Associates.
Humane Pennsylvania, which according to its website is the region’s largest partnership of animal welfare organizations, will provide Hamilton Township with a private assessment of its shelter operations, focusing on key areas that officials hope to improve, the Yaede administration announced Friday.
After analyzing information and data on the facility, the organization will tour the shelter, discuss current practices with staff and work with stakeholders to determine priorities to address, the administration said in a news release, adding Humane Pennsylvania will provide officials with a final assessment within two to four weeks of its site visit. The cost of the complete independent assessment is $5,000.
“We have made the decision to go above and beyond what needed to be addressed at our facility and, through the services of Humane Pennsylvania, welcome the organization’s independent assessment and recommendations so that we ensure our shelter meets the highest possible standards,” Yaede said Friday in a press statement.
In addition, Hamilton officials are finalizing an agreement for a supervising shelter veterinarian, which could be completed within the next week, the Yaede administration announced. “Once the agreement is finalized, the Township will formally announce the new veterinarian,” the administration said in the news release.
Hamilton’s animal shelter off Sylvan Avenue has continued to use the services of a local animal hospital while finalizing a new supervising veterinarian and has also consulted with state officials during the process, the administration said.
The township is moving toward what is referred to as ‘no-kill’ practices, which includes the suspension of euthanasia services for terminally ill pets that were brought to the facility by their owners in order to be humanely put to rest, according to the township’s news release.
Township officials are expected to be questioned about the shelter’s maintenance and operations when Hamilton Council holds a two-hour workshop meeting scheduled for 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 9, at the Nottingham Volunteer Fire Co.
Members of the community may attend the workshop meeting, but no public comments will be allowed.