Willie was killed because he was scared. He was an owner surrender who knew many tricks and did walk on a leash. Coming to a loud, stressful shelter without experienced staff led to his death. Although tough decisions do need to be made in the current climate, we will not accept bad decisions. Killing for convenience is not acceptable. 

In response to our petition, Maricopa County Animal Care and Control has merely ramped up their propaganda machine. They have done absolutely nothing to improve conditions for their employees, volunteers, or the animals in their care. In fact, they are now making up reasons to kill dogs. They are ignoring public record requests and are hiding dogs so they don't have to answer for their decisions to kill. They have a list of "FAQs" on their website and the first one makes the claim that they take in 70+ dogs on many days. That simply is a lie. The average intake is 54 dogs/day for 2022. They also claim they can't determine a dog's medical condition because they don't have the dog's history. They have purposely left out the option in their database to determine a dog's health upon intake. They claim they fill all public record requests, yet several individuals have had to file complaints with the attorney general's office because they aren't filled. They claim they don't kill for space, yet on the euthanasia document it lists a reason as overcapacity. They claim they are working on a strategic plan, however citizens have met with them and they do not have one. 

Instead of doing the hard work of taking good care of the animals they house, they spend their time stalking social media, harassing volunteers, hiring inexperienced individuals who will 'change public perception' and continue to deceive the public. Dogs still sit in their kennels for days and, often weeks, on end without getting out. They are killing healthy, treatable dogs. They are hiding distemper cases from the public, rescues, and adopters. Finally, they depend on the networkers and rescues to get the dogs out alive, yet refuse to treat these individuals with the respect, appreciation, and consideration they deserve. They continue to tout a high save rate, yet don't tell you that they are doing what they can to limit intakes - leaving dogs and finders on their own. 

Please reach out to anyone you know and have them sign the petition, reach out to media, and demand better from MCACC.