Missy, as pictured on the NBC Chicago website.
That pillar of animal care and control, the Chicago pound, is once again pillaring all over the animals. Pound staff brought 14 dogs to the Chicago Wolves hockey game for an adoption event on Saturday, April 18. A dog called Missy was reportedly “having problems” at the event and was taken out to a cage in a city vehicle. Missy was left unattended in the cage for the remainder of the adoption event and for the next five days. A volunteer found Missy on Thursday night, April 23, “barely alive” and still caged in the van which was parked in a city lot a mile from the pound. Someone called the police, who immediately went into corrupt enabler mode:
Police said they do not know specifically how many days the dog was left inside the van.
[…]
Police say it was an accident and they do not expect any criminal charges.
We don’t know how many days the dog was left in the van because math is hard and also a very inexact science. But we don’t need to know how many days it was because even if it was 5 or 3 or 53, we know it was just an oopsie. And oopsies are not crimes when committed by city employees I guess.
Pound spokesmen describe Missy as “playful” and suffering “no health issues” after being neglected for 5 days. Which totally gels with the “barely alive” thing. Maybe she was too weak to stand and had to be carried and they figured she was “playing dead”, I don’t know.
Anyhoo the pound will investigate itself in the matter and depending on the findings, may go so far as to take disciplinary action against someone. Which is exactly the same punishment as would be doled out to a regular citizen who neglected a dog so egregiously no doubt.
In addition to determining who left Missy in the van instead of returning her to the pound after the adoption event, I have more questions. Who signed off on feeding Missy every day from April 18 through April 23? Who signed off on walking her? Who made the daily notations in her records about her general well-being? Are any of those people going to face the dreaded disciplinary action?
Chicago taxpayers need to demand that pound employees do their jobs and be held accountable when they don’t. For whatever that demand might be worth.
(Thank you to everyone who sent me links on this story.)
How is it an accident that no one should be charged for??? Since when does that mean you get off without even a slap on the wrist? Oh I know- if you’re an ACO!! If I “accidentally” leave my baby (or even my dog) in the car for six days, does that mean I wouldn’t be charged. Stop the BS, my head hurts from the lack of common sense.
You use of the term “corrupt enabler mode” sums it up PERFECTLY.
That, along with the GOB crap and “old school mentality infuriates me to no end.
How did it ever get this bad?
* YouR use, I meant. Editing my comment is pretty challenging while I’m on my phone.
;-)
From her photos (here & in the city story), you can see she’s very submissive (tongue flick trying to appease others), so I wonder about her creating an issue at the game. Likely she was nervous, which you would think they would have not taken a nervous dog to an event with so much noise, movement & people, so that would be the first mistake. Then, whichever duffus drove the van back and didn’t unload her – if it was the same person who put her in the van, that should be grounds for disciplinary action, without a doubt. That could be the second mistake. If it was someone other than who put her in the van, MAYBE she didn’t make a peep and a thoughtless duffus MAYBE could claim ignorance (obviously) of her being in the van, so this is where a smart and compassionate administrator implements the requirement of psychically moving through the entire van and looking for animals, other problems, and picking up anything that’s left inside the van that doesn’t belong in it at the end of every trip, and signing off on doing that.
Considering that the van was moved again, MAYBE that was done by someone who wasn’t at the event at all, and MAYBE Missy, being a scared, submissive dog, still didn’t make a peep, it only reinforces the need to have a complete visual check done of the vehicle before it’s left at a long-term parking area. Since the van is described as an ‘RV-type vehicle’ an actual check for anything out of place should have been SOP anyway. There’s likely a faucet, and maybe even a tiny bathroom, and those should have been checked before walking away from a vehicle for the night, plus to pick up anything left inside, such as volunteers/staff belongings – AND A DOG!
I was a school bus driver for a while, and even when I knew full well, that all the students who’d gotten on had also gotten off, I had to physically walk to the back of the bus after parking it – every single time – and look to make sure there was no one left inside, hang a sign that read ‘EMPTY’ and sweep the bus at the end of the day. It took 3 minutes. I really hope that whichever duffus (singular and/or plural) involved in this show of laziness has to lose 3 DAYS of pay, so that next time, they’ll realize that 3 minutes is NOT an imposition on their time!
What if that van hadn’t been needed for even a few more days – Missy could have DIED. And yes, the adoption coordinator and kennel caretaker(s) should be disciplined for not making sure that ALL the animals that went to the event actually were adopted and left for their new homes from the event – and that there was complete paperwork for that, so the intake & kennel info was all correct. Here’s an idea – how about a simple phone call to find out how the 14 dogs that were adopted (or not) where fitting in with their new families? Those calls could have been completed by the 3rd day after the event and “Hey, wait, there’s no paperwork with an adopter’s info for Missy – where did she go?” should have been said by SOMEONE to find out where she was – locked in a van offsite. I’m sure there are enablers saying, “At least it wasn’t summertime” because a cooked dog would have attracted flies and the van would have been really stinky, and hard to air out for future use, don’t ya know!
The person who moved it Sunday had to have headphones on and didn’t hear her. The driver area is not enclosed from the animal area. It is the animobile that they use for transporting. I work these events and there is NO way someone could not have heard her otherwise when moved the next day. This is not the first mishap with animals but the other results were death. Thank GOD mother nature was on her side. The inspector general is aware by the volunteer who went to van. the volunteers and others will not let this rest until people are fired and not the slap on the wrist like in the past. 6 days in a van without food or water…any one else who be charged with something…but not if you are a city worker.
Yes the animal coordinator should be too cause why did it take her 6 days to go thru paperwork to realsie where is the application for Missy if she was adopted and there was none which prompted the call tot he volunteer where is Missy….UNCALLED FOR no matter how you look at this.
OHMYDOG, I meant to write physically, NOT psychically moving through the van! They need to move their body through the vehicle, not their mind!
I want to see staff psychically move through the van. Let’s make it a demand.
That would require them to have a mind they could use, and I think that’s asking too much!
This incident needs to be investigated all right, but by the State’s Attorney of Illinois. I’m hoping the media and Internet will get hold of this and demand that “someone” is punished for almost killing that poor dog. This is outrageous!
It was 6 day she was in van….can supply contact info of volunteer who handles Wolves game event who is also the one who raced to sn praying Missy was still alive. She was just agitated at game so we thought best not to have her out….nothing more…she is a sweetheart.
Anyone else would be charged with endangerment or neglect why not the city? Not the first mishap with animals some in the news and public records…unfortunately those animals died and employees involved got slap on wrist.
There are at least three people who need to be fired over this..enough with the slap on wrist cause one was around for the other “mishaps” too.
They (animal control) claim to be the ones who contacted inspector general and they were not…this volunteer did. She will get justice for Missy and the others.
not the first mishaps
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/05/16/chicago-animal-care-dogs-killed_n_5338618.html
http://chicago.cbslocal.com/tag/chicago-animal-care-and-control/feed/
http://www.chicagonow.com/raining-cats-dogs/2014/01/chicago-animal-care-and-control-sued-by-aldf/
People need to be fired – not the slap on the wrist like in past. There are other things too that just did not make the news like a dog named LArry being stolen from the pavillon, 2 kittens stolen from the adoption room. Accountabilty is needed.
The lack of accountability is disgusting. Whether it is trigger happy police or heartless shelter workers it’s way out of line and seems that those in charge are deaf to the anger it’s causing.
I hope that the publicity will help change things and at the very least someone adopts the sweet dog.
The police treat dogs as things! They don’t get upset or investigate reports of neglect or abuse! We need a change…desperately! Shelters are disgusting and need to take severe action against those responsible!
Anyone who wants to voice their concern or comment on CACC matters, please come to the Commission meeting May 21, 8:30am in the auditorium at 2741 S Western Ave.