ANIMAL PEOPLE is the
leading independent newspaper providing original investigative coverage
of animal protection worldwide. Founded in 1992, ANIMAL PEOPLE has
no alignment or affiliation with any other entity.
Changings of the guard at Best Friends,
Alley Cat Allies, Farm Sanctuary, Toledo Zoo, et al
Bonney Brown, founder of the Neponset Valley Humane Society in Massachusetts
in 1992, and outreach director for the Best Friends Animal Society since
1998, has taken a similar post with Alley Cat Allies. “Alley Cat
Allies and Best Friends have always had a strong working relationship.
We look forward to future collaboration,” Brown said. Southern Animal
Foundation co-founder Paul Berry, with Best Friends since 2001, will fill
Brown’s former position.
Farm Sanctuary cofounder Lorri Bauston, who left the organization in July
2004 and resigned from the board in March 2005, has announced that she
will open a new 26-acre sanctuary called Peaceable Kingdom in September
2005. Contact info: 5200 Escondido Canyon Road, Acton, CA 93510; 661-269-0986;
info@peaceablekingdomsanctuary.org;
peaceablekingdomsanctuary.org.
William Dennler, executive director of the Toledo Zoo since 1981, abruptly
retired on May 4, 2005. Dennler on February 28 fired Timothy Reichard,
the chief zoo veterinarian since 1982. Reichard alleged that he was fired
for speaking frankly to the USDA about alleged management errors that
killed three giraffes, a hippo, and a pregnant bear who starved to death
after staff wrongly believed she was hibernating. The Reichard firing
brought the March 18 appointment of a 14-member county task force to investigate
the zoo management. The task force is co-chaired by Marty Skeldon, whose
father and grandfather were both directors of the Toledo Zoo, and whose
brother Tom is longtime head of the Toledo animal control department.
Also on March 18 the zoo dismissed management consultant Scott Warrick,
who had conflicted with Reichard.
The Animal Protective Association of Missouri, located in St. Louis, on
April 28, 2005 accepted the resignations of 10 of 16 employees, closed
for a day, and reopened with shorter hours, partially staffed by personnel
borrowed from the Humane Society of Missouri. Former Animal Protective
Association executive director Katherine McGowan resigned on February
8, and was not immediately replaced. Board president Bill Durham denied
claims by picketing ex-staff that the APA planned to install a gas chamber
and close an on-site vet clinic.
Phil Morgan, who on March 31 resigned effective June 30 after seven years
as president of the Escondido Humane Society, was relieved of his duties
three weeks later by the shelter board. He then took over as executive
director at the Northern Arizona Second Chance Center for Animals in Flagstaff.
Kate Rindy, 53, executive director at the Santa Fe Animal Shelter &
Humane Society since 1995, announced in April that she will retire when
construction of a new shelter is finished. Rindy previously resigned in
March 2003 during a dispute with the board over the design and size of
the new shelter, but was persuaded to return. The new shelter, 3.5 times
as big as the present shelter, is $1.4 million short of the $10 million
needed for completion. Rindy previously headed the Grand Forks Humane
Society, then for 20 years was director of pet overpopulation issues for
the Humane Society of the U.S.
Randy Keplinger, executive director of the Young-Williams Animal Center
in Knox County, Tennessee, since it opened in December 2000, resigned
on April 14. Veterinarian Michelle Williams was named interim director.
The Young-Williams center was created after the Humane Society of the
Tennessee Valley gave up Knoxville and Knox County animal control duties
to focus on sterilization and adoption. Keplinger formerly headed the
Oak Ridge animal control department. During his tenure the rate of shelter
killing in Knoxville rose from 20.9 in 2000 to 27.6 in 2004.
Responding to recurrent staff complaints about alleged religious proselytizing
on the job, the Montgomery County, Texas commissioners in late April demoted
animal services director Kelli Copeland to deputy director and announced
that a new director would be appointed.
Rebecca M. Stevens was on April 22 named executive director of the Hamilton
County Humane Society in Noblesville, Indiana, after a year on the board
of directors. Stevens will oversee the construction of a new county-funded
animal control shelter, to be managed by the humane society. She brings
to the job a background in franchise marketing and telecommunications.
Compassion Over Killing continues under longtime volunteer Erika Meier.
COK director Myun Park and cofounder Paul Shapiro on February 1, 2005
became director of farm animal welfare and manager of the new factory
farming campaign at the Humane Society of the U.S.
