Here is a letter that was emailed to us from a volunteer who is helping to clean up the mess that is the Toronto Humane Society. Anything that can be used to identify this person has been removed, as we don’t want anymore donor dollars being squandered on lawsuits. Here’s hoping that the board members and the public relations wizard actually read it.
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To Bob Hambley, the board of directors, and Ian McConachie,
Imagine my surprise when I picked up the Metro News today on my way to volunteer at the Toronto Humane Society and found your full-page ad. I’m not really sure which aspect of your letter/advertisement is most offensive. You claim that “what you are hearing is inaccurate” in regards to the recent allegations about animal neglect at the shelter. Well as a former employee, and current volunteer I want to let you know that it is my firm belief that the allegations against you are not strong or numerous enough.
You have systematically destroyed what was once a safe haven for the lost and abandonded animals of our city. It is going to take months to sort out the mess you have made of the shelter, and years for the public to regain trust in the THS again.
Anyone can say “I have dedicated my life to the care of animals.” Words mean NOTHING. Where were you when the vets started quitting en mass because medically untrained staff were interfering with medical decisions? Where were you when there were as few as 6 animal care workers on a shift to feed, clean, and walk over 1300 animals? Where were you when the first newspaper article was published in 2006 about allegations of neglect? Where were you when there were hundreds of people protesting infront of the THS this summer?
You stated in your letter/advertisement that “I am listening to our members…”. Well I was at the AGM Mr. Hambley and you know what I witnessed? Member after member trying to voice their concerns at the the AGM only to be totally ignored by the board members that bothered to show up. Volunteers, former staff, and concerned members were cut short when they tried to ask questions or make a complaint about animal care at the shelter. Were you listening then Mr. Hambley? I certainley didn’t see you objecting when Tim Trow cut the question and answer period short at the AGM. Calling the allegations “a bunch of hooey” doesn’t qualify as an appropriate answer.
You’ve stated that you “do everything possible to return animals to good health.” How do you explain the fact that there are many animals that haven’t been looked at by a veterinarian in several months (some in over a year) even though they have chronic health conditions? How do you explain the cat kennel cards that say “released in the basement as per Andy”? How do explain the fact that sick animals were being housed with healthy ones? Why has there been a lack of supplies for the veterinary staff? Why has there been a shortage of medications for the animals?
You’ve claimed in your letter/advertisement that “donation dollars are going to where they should – to the care and treatment of animals”. Well I want to know how you explain the fact that the board of directors was going to let the THS foot the bill for the legal costs of the 5 people charged with animal cruelty. You were quoted in the Toronto Star last week saying, “Morally, you have to protect your employees, and legally, you have to indemnify the directors” You also said “”We owe it to our employees,” in reference to paying the legal bills with donor dollars. What about what you owe the animals? This year alone you have spent $418,609 on legal fees yet have only spent $276,248 on emergency animal care. How do you defend that financial decision?
You are trying to deflect attention away from yourselves and put the spotlight on the OSPCA by claiming that the OSPCA has some sort of vendetta against the THS. Do you really think that the public is that stupid? Instead of doing what is best for the animals (which would be resigning from the board of directors), you are putting out press releases and putting letters in the newspapers. Did donor dollars pay for your full page letter/adveristement in the Metro today?
I have a few more questions for you that I doubt you will have the decency to answer.
- Why were wild animals that were found in Toronto released in Newmarket by THS employees (at the direction of management) when wildlife is supposed to be released within 1km of where they were found? Are you not concerned with the spread of disease within our wildlife populations?
- Why was nothing done to try to stop the revolving door of staff at the shelter? Why did you not deal with the chronic understaffing or develop any employee retention programs?
- Why is the board only responding to allegations of abuse and neglect at the shelter now that the OSPCA has raided the THS? These allegations were brought to the boards attention in 2006.
- Why did you reaffirm your support of Tim Trow after all of these allegations of abuse and neglect were published in the Globe and Mail in June?
- Why was Casper (the cat found dead in a live trap in the ceiling) marked as euthanized when that clearly wasn’t what happened?
- Why did you wait until now to consider hiring a person to come to review animal care procedures at the Toronto Humane Society? That would have been a good idea a few hundred dead animals ago.
- Why was Tim Trow allowed to be both the president of the board and essentially the acting executive director of the Toronto Humane Society? Why did you allow Tim Trow to have so much power at the THS?
- Why have you not acknowledged that majority of the staff inside the THS have declared that the current board of directors and Ian McConachie do not represent the staff inside the shelter. Doesn’t this declaration concern you?
- Mr. Hambley, why did you sign membership rejection letters including a letter to someone who didn’t apply?
- Mr. Hambley, how many scandals have you lived through at the Toronto Humane Society since you became a director? What about the other directors? How many more scandals do you think that the members should support you through?
- I noticed that “hospital” was added to the official THS logo. I don’t recall the change of the charity’s name being discussed at the AGM. Did the members vote on changing the name?
- Why do you keep claiming that the Toronto Humane Society is a hospital, when in reality the clinic portion of the THS makes up a very small percentage of the shelter?
- Why were there no veterinarians or registered technicians on the overnight shift at the “hospital”?
- Why is the board of directors refusing to acknowledge ANY accountablilty or responsibility when it comes to the situation at the THS?
- Why have you not issued a formal apology to the animals at the THS, the members, the donors, and the citizens of Toronto?
I haven’t forgotten about Ian McConachie….
Ian McConachie has stated several times that the people complaining about the THS were just disgruntled former employees using the animals as a political tool. You know what I have seen everyday since the OSPCA raided the shelter? A lot of former staff and volunteers donating their time to help the animals at the THS. “Disgruntled” former animal care workers volunteering their time to clean cages, feed animals, walk dogs, wash dishes, laundry, and a myriad of other tasks to help with the complete lack of animal care staff at the shelter. Registered veterinary technicians who are “disgruntled” ex-employees volunteering their time to medicate, vaccinate, and assist veterinarians with the hundreds of animals that have been going without medical care. Veterinarians who are “disgruntled” ex-employees that are examining animals, designing treatment plans, doing medical procedures, and ensuring that the animals are getting the veterinary care they so desperately need. Ex-volunteers who were fired for being vocal about their concerns, or who quit out of sheer frustration are back. They are grooming cats, filling water bowls, walking dogs, and doing whatever they can to help out.
When was the last time you filled a water bowl or cleaned a cage at the Toronto Humane Society Ian?
Why is Ian still the PR guy for the THS anyway? He has been caught lying to the press, he screamed at a member during the AGM, cried at the AGM, and allegedly surrendured his own dog to the THS. He also said that Casper (the cat found dead in the ceiling) was likely a stray (Casper turned out to be a THS animal who had been marked as euthanised) and referred to knowing that there was a dead cat in the ceiling as “unpleasant”. He didn’t say horrifying, or shocking, or heartbreaking. He said unpleasant.
The whole lot of you should be ashamed of yourselves. You should be ashamed of what you have allowed to happen to the animals at the shelter, for treating the staff and volunteers like toilet paper, for wasting donor dollars, and for ruining the reputation of the Toronto Humane Society. I urge all of you to resign from your positions at the THS. At this point it is the least you can do.
- One Pissed Off Member and Volunteer
