Former Animal Behavioral Specialist for the City of Albuquerque Deana Case has spoken out regarding the conditions of animal shelters within the city following the pandemic.
With few staff members or volunteers and too many animals being housed, deplorable conditions have run rampant within Albuquerque's animal shelters. Case cited many instances of dogs who were once gentle yet have now become dangerous due to the stressful environments within the shelters and a lack of human contact, according to KOB4.
"These conditions are unacceptable. Animals in the City of Albuquerque shelters must be treated and cared for humanely. The current leadership continues to fail our community in so many ways," said Manuel Gonzales III, Bernalillo County Sherriff and Albuquerque Mayor candidate in a tweet on Monday.
In particular, Case spoke of a situation in which a shelter employee was attacked by one of the dogs.
“She went in to scoop his kennel and this very young herding breed dog who had been there for months without enough exercise, no enrichment-level human contact, he mauled her," Case said to KOB4.
For the dogs turned aggressive by conditions in shelters, their fate is typically euthanasia. For Case and other dedicated shelter employees, the increasing number of euthanized dogs is an immediate cause for concern.