In response to Tony Kovaleski’s story broadcast on KMGH Monday night, the Colorado Humane Society has issued the following response:

We hope you will evaluate Mr. Kovaleski’s report in the context of our 125 years of continuous service to animals and their owners in the Denver metro area, our outstanding lost pet reclaim rate and our policy of euthanizing animals only in cases of aggression, terminal illness or loss of quality of life.

Since the late 1800’s, hundreds of thousand of animals in the Denver area have benefited by our organization’s dedication to humane care. And many of those animals have been either reunited with their owners or placed in good new homes as the results of the efforts of our staff, volunteers and donors.

CONCERNING THE ASSERTION OF IMPROPER DISPOSAL OF EUTHANIZED ANIMALS:

It is the policy of the Colorado Humane Society not to euthanize animals except in the case of aggressive behavior, terminal illness or loss of quality of life.

The case reported on KMGH was an isolated incident handled in a way that we deeply regret. We are taking steps to make sure that it never happens again.

Here is what happened. Two dogs, an adult keeshond and an adult rottweiler, had been euthanized late on a Friday afternoon due to their demonstrated vicious behavior which caused us concern for the safety of our staff in caring for and handling the dogs.

After an animal has been euthanized, our policy and procedure is to place the animal in a refrigeration unit until it can be picked up by a commercial crematory service. Unfortunately, our refrigeration unit was full on that Friday afternoon and pickup by the crematory service was unavailable until Monday. Instead of seeking another alternative for storage or cremation, a member of our staff made the decision to place the bodies of these two animals in our commercial trash bin. This was a mistake in judgment. We accept responsibility for the mistake. It will not be repeated.

Neither Colorado Humane Society nor any of our staff have placed puppies in the dumpster. We can tell you that the trash bin is unlocked and easily accessible to the public. We do have people who bring animals that are already dead to request cremation service through CHS. It is possible that someone with a dead animal arrived at CHS, discovered we were closed, and made the decision to dispose of the animal in our trash bin. We do not know. We are investigating and we are taking steps to secure our trash bin.

IMPLICATION OF MISAPPROPRIATION OF DONATIONS:

Katrina donations

Regarding any questions dealing with the utilization of funds donated toward our emergency assistance program to animals affected by the Katrina disaster. We were the first organization in America on the scene after Katrina hit with truckloads of food, medicine and temporary shelter. We took in many animals, fed and sheltered them and found homes for some of them.

We can document that Katrina donations received to date total $66,154.64; our expenses to date have been $73,193.71 and continue to grow. Every dollar of Katrina donations – and more – has been spent on this worthwhile effort.

Car donation

Typically, people who wish to donate their vehicle for the benefit of CHS do so through Vehicles for Charity, which provides a valuable service to organizations such as ours. The donors of a 1986 Mercedes with 167,000 miles said they donated the car directly to CHS so that CHS could realize the maximum value.

Colorado Humane Society researched the value of the car through many Internet sites, and took the car to a local Mercedes dealer for a actual inspection to determine the value of the car. Nonetheless to avoid any questionable appearances, the vehicle has been returned to CHS for further disposition.

ASSERTION THAT WE MISSED PAYROLL:

All of our payroll obligations have been met. No employees’ checks have bounced.

CONCERNING OUR FAILURE TO REGISTER WITH THE SECRETARY OF STATE:

Colorado Humane Society is a Colorado Non-Profit corporation listed in good standing with the Colorado Secretary of State. CHS also has a current tax exempt 501(c)(3) tax exempt designation from the Internal Revenue Service. Regarding the charitable solicitations registration, CHS is in the process of updating our information.

ALLEGATION THAT WE USED EXPIRED VACCINE:

So far this year, we have purchased and used 2,525 doses of vaccine for the benefit of our animals. In May we received one donation of expired vaccine from a veterinary clinic. Contrary to our policy, the donated expired vaccine was administered. Although we operate on a tight budget, the use of expired vaccine is never justified and we take responsibility for this one lapse in judgment by one of our staff.

FINAL COMMENT:

Unlike our animals, we are only human – and unfortunately at times prone to human error. The KMGH story has pointed out some of our shortcomings but fails to note the immeasurable amount of good our organization has done. In so doing, he shortchanges his viewers and damages our reputation in a way that is not justified by the facts.

We ask our volunteers and donors for their continued friendship and support of our organization and its important mission. We appreciate their faith in us.

Sincerely, Madeline Duncan President The Colorado Humane Society