We are a small, rural community in NE Ohio. We have one animal shelter that services our area, the Ashtabula County Animal Protective League. (From here on to be known as APL.)This animal shelter is the main shelter in the area for owner surrenders and where the Ashtabula County Dog Warden takes any dogs that are at large.

Over the last few years a growing group of people have noticed multiple issues with the APL. Efforts have been made to go to the APL board meetings and meeting with the animal welfare director, but they have been met with hostilities, no answers to questions asked and feeling like they didn't listen to the issues at hand. These issues are as follows:

Runaway/Other dogs not being returned: The following people have had their dog taken to the APL and have had a difficult time having them returned. Some people have been told there dog is not at the shelter when they called, when it was, in fact, in the shelter and the APL makes it near impossible to prove that a dog is yours. (Being a rural area, with a lot of farmers, people tend to buy vaccinations at a local feed store and administer the vaccinations themselves. This is legal in the state. This means they don't always have a veterinarian record, which the APL wants to require to prove the dog is yours. There are other ways in which to prove an animal is yours. Animals shelters in the region were called and found that they do not have the same strict requirements to prove an animal is legally yours. Below are quotes from two people who have had issue getting their dogs back from the APL:

Shannon H. (Ashtabula, OH) - “Around the middle of October 2015 I was out of town for about a week. While I was gone my son and step son were taking my dog outside. My step son tripped over my dogs leash and must have hurt my dog (Osiris)a little bit because Osiris turned around and nipped at him. It really wasn't that big of a deal, no damage was done. Osiris was about 6 months at the time, still a puppy. My fiance lives in an apartment complex and the maintenance man seen it all. He then decided to call the dog catcher to have my dog taken away. He did that out of spite over personal reasons. Osiris ended up at the APL that same day. When I was informed of all this , I called the APL and talked to a lady. I told her I was Osiris owner and I told her what happened and that I was out of town and will be in when I came back. She told me that she would see what was going on them give me a call back. I gave her my number and never received a call back. I returned home Saturday morning, called the APL to get there hours. I decided to just wait to go up to the APL on that Monday because that's when I would have money to adopt my dog back plus the lady I was speaking with was giving me the run around about adopting my dog back, but I didn't think that I would never get him back. Monday came, I went to the APL filled out my adoption sheet. When I went to the APL the lady told me I had to fill out the adoption sheet and show proof that I'm able to own a dog at my residence. Seeing how I don't have a land lord, I basically own my house, I didn't need permission to own a dog. I filled my application out, I showed proof of residency and I had the money to adopt. She then told me I had to wait till the end of the week to see if I'm available to adopt my own dog. Friday came and I heard nothing, Saturday came and I still received no phone call. Monday came and so I called them, the same lady put my on hold for about 2 to 3 minutes then told me I couldn't adopt my dog. I asked her why and she told me that she didn't have to give me a reason. I left the returned a few days later. I talked to some lady that I guess was in charge. That lady told me that I couldn't adopt Osiris because, I couldn't show proof that I have my dog his shots (Which I bought from tractor supply and did at home.) and because my fiance's chocolate lab (Emma) was not living at my house. At the time me and my fiance was going threw some things and she chose to keep Emma at a mutual friends house. Emma couldn't stay with my fiance because her property manager was giving her trouble over Emma because dogs aren't allowed unless you have a reason from a doctor, which she has. Any ways my fiance chose to keep Emma some where else which she was allowed to do. The lady seen how much I wanted my dog back so she decided to give me a week to take Emma to a vet and place her at my house. I was going to play her little game, but I couldn't come up with the vet money in a week like I thought I could due to the fact that I was remodeling my house and in the process of me fixing a pipe in my kitchen and basement that had burst. I called and let a message telling her that I needed more time and I said what had happened. I never received a call back, I called a few more times and still never got a call back. I am still trying to get my pipes fixed because me and my handy man been having a tough time getting on the same schedule. One time when I went to see Osiris, the first thing I noticed was all the blood on the tip of his tail, i asked about it and they said he broke it from wagging his tail to much in his kennel. His tail wasn't in a split or anything. He was filthy and he had kennel cough. He was clearly unhappy and unhealthy there. He was excited to see me and the kids. That was the last I seen him or heard about him three the APL. When I was taking pictures of Osiris because of his condition, the lady took him away and never brought him back. She wouldn't even leave the room so we could visit him by our self's. Despite all efforts Osiris has been adopted out to another family. He is the dog pictured above. As I was writing this we found out that he was back up for adoption again by the APL. All this while the original owner just wants her beloved family member back.

Janet H. (Jefferson, OH) - “My dog was picked up off of my farm and taken to the APL. When I went to the APL we were told our dog wasn't there. Then my nephew sought up for adoption on their website. I went there and tried to get the dog back, but was told it had been there over the three days. So I filled out the application to adopt. Because it was an outside dog who is kept in a heated cow barn, we were denied even though I had proof and that records that my dogs were all taken care of very well. The APL even came out to do a home check and commented on how well my animals are taken care of. (I have two other barn dogs (siblings to the one they kept from me), several barn cats, and nearly 200 head of dairy cattle ranging from newborn to 10 years old. )They still refuse to give my dog back they actually hid it from me. A group of us went to their board meeting and they treated us horrible. They said because my dog did not have a license was because I must not love it. They said the reason they will not change policies to adopt to people who have their dogs outside is because they personally just don't feel it's right. Now we are not talking about a dog that stays out 24/7, tied to a tree. We're talking about an animal that has proper shelter. I don't understand what gives these people the right to pick or choose or blackball people who truly want to adopt animals into good homes. Although we were encouraged to donate our time and money at that meeting, but we were not good enough to adopt animals. I told them I wanted to adopt a dog and keep it in a tiny 2' x 3' pen like they were doing, some for over a year now. And I was told that was just absurd. So I asked why was it OK for them to do that to animals. I even emailed the County commissioners with many questions regarding the APL and got no response.”

The state of the APL cleanliness/health of animals – Many have been appalled at the state of the APL. The area where the animals are kept are said to be in terrible condition, ribs showing, feces in cages and small cages where they stay a vast majority of the time.

Jessica B. (Edgewood, OH) - Had Volunteered at the APL in 2009/2011 said the following: “When i worked there they were having parvo (Canine Parvovirus) breakouts like every week. And the only thing they did was put bleach on the floor. I will never forget there was a momma pit bull and 9 puppies and they just kept dying one after another and they just brushed it off and said oh well less for us to deal with. I was literally crying for the animals everyday when I got home.”

Diane Jane Mae L. (Geneva, OH) - “My mom wanted a kitten, found the perfect one at the APL she just fell in love. Went through process to see if she qualified right.. Do you believe she was turned down because the APL "didn't have proof of our dog that passed away 5 years ago & told my mom that she had to give then information about my dog. One lady that works there had been constantly bugging me to give her my Siberian Husky so I believe that's why. Anyways one day I go in to donate stuff, I mean I feel terrible for those innocent animals. Anyways there was a beautiful husky (I'm a huge husky lover) I thought I was qualified till the lady tells me "your mom was just in her trying to get an animal, your not allowed nor qualified" and threw my stuff away! They want all this help with these animals cause they are running out of space but won't qualify people to adopt for stupid reasons?”

Donna G. ( Rome, OH)- “I went to look at a dog I saw on the APL web site, and was upset with the condition of the place. I could hardly stand just walking into the building the smell was so bad. The new outside pens had dogs in them with poop all over the flooring. “

Trying to adopt from the APL – The APL makes it very difficult to adopt an animal out into a loving home. Many have tried to adopt through the APL and have been turned away. They have gone to other shelters out side our county and have been able to adopt with ease. My own family adopted through the APL in 2007. At that time they had a program where you had to take your adopted animal to a veterinarian within two weeks of adoption and there were multiples of vets listed that would give you that first visit free. Now they turn you away if you don't have a vet listed in the application to adopt! We feel some of the restrictions they have, as evident in the experiences below, need to be lifted or changed:

Sandra JH (Geneva, OH) - “I made a big community fuss about their adoption guidelines. They were making it nearly impossible to adopt and would rather leave the animals in their cages than to adopt to a slightly less than perfect home. For example; Only to homes with fences. Had to show proof of vaccinations, when a lot of people from this area use tractor supply and do their own. I went in and spoke to their Animal Welfare director in an over 2 hour meeting. I applied to be on their board shortly after with not even so much as an acknowledgment. I see people on their board with absolutely no animal experience what so ever. I am a certified vet tech so at the very least I know the medical conditions of animals. Nothing came of anything. Nothing changed. I was there recently in October of 2015 to try and adopt a cat for our family. I couldn't do that because of the conditions they were in. 90% of them were sick and i mean sick sick. IT WAS HEARTBREAKING TO NOT ADOPT FROM THEM. They were hardly able to breathe. sneezing all over each other, snot pouring out of their eyes and noses.”

Hailey Z. (Ashtabula, OH) - “Around last year at this time me and my boyfriend wanted to go an adopt a dog before the holidays so a dog could have a home. We went and looked and found Buddy. He was so skinny you could see every rib and his spine.. They told us it was because he ran around his his cage and never kept weight on. They laughed in my face when I turned in my application and said I was not fit to adopt. Thinking it was because I'm only 18, I had my friends mom go in and try to adopt Buddy and since she had a cat but couldn't show vet records they denied her too!They were so rude to me I left the APL crying.”

Jessi N. (Andover, OH) - “We filled out the application 2 times and wanted to adopt, called everyday for a week following and they couldn't return a phone call let alone come do a home check and they wonder why they're full. when you walk through the kennels they are so cramped and so many in one cage that it's ridiculous. And half the dogs are jumping, barking, and trying to bite people through the cage.”

Alisa B. (Conneaut, OH) - “My family and I have tried to rescue a dog a few years ago. We played with a few and made our choice. We were asked for a vet reference on the application, and we don't have one cause we do our dogs vaccinations ourselves from tractor supply. Never had a sick animal so we don't use a vet. I told the lady I didn't have a vet so I left that part blank. She said well no sense in wasting more time cause you won't be approved. I asked if we set up an appointment for the dog to be seen would that work. She took my application and threw it away and said that's not how it works. My kids were heart broken and left out of there crying. It's sad how many animals miss out on good homes because of their stupid rules.”

Sarah A. (Ashtabula, OH) - “Almost 5 years ago my brother and I went there to adopt a second dog to give my brothers dog a friend. We had to bring his dog up there to make sure he worked well with the other dog. After trying out a few it was hard to find a perfect match. Then the person working with us starts to lecture us on how my brothers dog, a purebred American bulldog, needed to be fixed because they see dogs like that just sitting at the shelter and no one wants to adopt them. We went inside to fill out the application and the other girls started in on us on how irresponsible we were because my brother said he will get him fixed but he wanted to his dog to be the father of a liter of puppies. We were able to get approved for our second dog easily but that's because we were 19 years old and just bought a house, so we didn't have any animals outside of living with our parents. We did leave frustrated because they treated us horrible after finding out my brother dog wasn't fixed.”

Sarah E. (Conneaut, OH) - “I fell in love with a sweet dog that has been there for almost 2 years. She was one of the sweetest dogs I have ever met. She just wanted nothing more than to be in my lap and held. She loved my kids and not once show any aggression towards them. The APL said she didn't get along with younger kids and didn't like them, but was very loving towards them both. I put my application in for her and they denied her to me because I live in a 2 bedroom apartment. She weighed less than 40 lbs and claimed she deserved to live somewhere bigger or stay in a small cage. BUT, they offered to let me adopt a beagle that they had there. This poor dog is still there to this day going on two years being at the APL. They even denied my friend who lived in another county cause she was part pit-bull, yet he has the home owners insurance to cover "animal bites." That poor dog cried every time we would put her back in her kennel.”

Heather D. (Andover, OH) - “About a year ago we wanted to adopt a dog from the APL. We really had to jump through hoops doing so. We had to show proof of a vet, with shot records of all our dogs. We had to show that we had a fenced in area for the dog and allot of other nonsense. We almost didn't adopt because every time we did what they asked there was another step to be done. We stated we would need a dog that got along with our other dogs (Ozzy and our 2 Yorkies) and our 2 cats. We wanted a dog that we could take backpacking with us. They ensured us that they had a great dog for us. Kia came home with us. He was a red healer. He was so cute, he looked like he had eyeliner on. He was not friendly at all. We tried so hard to integrate him into our family, we wanted him badly. He killed a cat. Attacked everyone that came over and tried dominated over my husband and they other dogs. It was sad that we had to take him back to the APL.”

Sarah T. - (North Kingsville, OH) - “A couple of years ago my son picked out a dog from the APL that was in their obedience training program. We brought the dog home for a few days to see of he was a good fit. We were in love, so upon our return with him I filled out an adoption form. We were denied because our 7yr old cat had no vet records outside her first year vaccines and being neutered. My children were heart broken, as was I. The man in charge of the obedience program made several calls on our behalf and still the answer was no. I called and spoke with someone from the APL about how my healthy happy indoor cat does not need to have yearly vaccinations to be healthy and happy. I asked if they think am animal is better off caged or euthanized than being in a home with people who would love and care for it. She said yes, because there in its cage at least it's being seen by a vet and better to be killed than with someone whose not going to take it to one. After I made a big Facebook stink about the situation they said they would never adopt to me or my husband.”

Gave animal to APL because thought they would help:

Tracy C. (Madison, OH) - “My family adopted a dog off of social media. He instantly became a family member. He got sick soon after and only had $90 as my bills just got paid. Only had 2 days before my check came, but due to his condition was seeking any help I could get. Was told the APL could help. What a joke. They made me pay them to take our dog and did nothing for him; but being a lover of animals I couldn't see him go without care. No vet would take less then $120 to even see him. He was well within a few days. God how I wish I would have waited because now that he went on the website, not only can I not adopt him (due to no vet history, even though we hadn't had a dog in 20 years)they wouldn't even let my friend adopt him (They said he would return him to me...not so. He just knew he was a good dog.) I have a fenced in back yard,and we loved that silly dog...now my grandson (my hubby & I have custody of 2 grand kids, reason for getting the dog in the first place) keeps asking for his dog, drawing me pictures of him...not a day goes by that one of the family doesn't cry over it.”

Sarah A. - (Ashtabula, OH) - “A couple of years ago I ended up dropping off a STRAY. I was treated like dirt from the beginning. They were acting like it was my own dog and giving me a hard time about bringing him in. Then they asked if I could just keep him and I said no I have 2 other large dogs and they would probably tear that little dog up. I ended up ranting on Facebook and I had a friend who dropped off a stray and they were trying to make her pay a "donation" for doing so.”

There are many more experiences with the APL that I wasn't able to include because it would make the petition too long and as you can see we believe there are major issues not being addressed and as animal lovers we don't want to see any animal suffer.

We would like the Ashtabula County Commissioners to investigate these issues as the Ashtabula County Commissioners directly funds the APL with public funds and also have a contract with the APL through the Dog Warden. We would like a meeting with the APL, the Ashtabula County Commissioners and a few members of the group who have voiced these concerns.

We want to be able to adopt, get our animals back easier and not see any of the above ever happen again to an animal adopter or a dog that accidentally got out or was taken away for other reasons. We also want the animals at the shelter to be taken care of and healthy.