City manager Jared Miller weighed in on the operations of Animal Management and Welfare on Wednesday, saying internal changes are likely going to be coming to the department.
In an interview with the Amarillo Pioneer, Miller said he plans to make internal changes to the department, especially to communication issues, over the coming weeks. Activists have been making calls for changes to the department for months, but the calls have been heightened following the “accidental” death of Gordy, an Amarillo family’s dog, who staff say was “mistakenly” euthanized last week.
“We have to improve how we communicate internally,” Miller said. “There is sure work that needs to be done.”
Miller said changes are likely to come from within the department, although he did not state what specific changes will be made, or how changes will be made to improve communication.
“I can’t tell you exactly what changes will be made, but I can tell you we will do a better job of communicating internally,” Miller said.
Miller said he has spoken with Lubbock city manager Jarrett Atkinson about animal control in the Hub City, and says the results have been “fascinating.” Miller also said, according to Lubbock staff, a no-kill model appears to be “sustainable” in the region.
Additionally, the city manager said while the death of Gordy has been compared to the death of “G7,” a pregnant pit bull who was euthanized by City staff while in labor, there is no similarities between the two incidents.
“They were dramatically different situations,” Miller said. “The only similarity was that they were both euthanized.”
Miller went on to say the circumstances are too different to compare in the case of Gordy, due to G7 being in a “unique situation.”
“Although she didn’t bite anybody, she was surrendered to us as a result of some level of involvement,” Miller said. “I’m not saying she bit anybody, but she was a party to these situations.”
The city manager said G7 should have been “euthanized immediately” when she reached the shelter. Miller also said that while there has been debate in this instance, the “alignment of variables” in the G7 case were unlike any he has seen in other cities.
Overall, Miller says in the case of Gordy, he hopes to prevent any future situations of similarity from occurring.
“We need to be able to say, ‘this won’t happen again,’” Miller said.
Miller
Photo by HCPUA