A Louisiana State University teacher who manages a large dog shelter in Tangipahoa Parish is volunteering to help realign the Columbia-Marion County Animal Shelter.
Police Chief Michael Kelly, in talks with aldermen Tuesday, said he’s sought help from many sources as he’s tried to improve the facility.
Alderman Mike Smith said the man offered to consult at no charge. Smith said he planned to tour the shelter in Louisiana next week.
“They take in over 5,000 dogs per year,” Smith said. “He’s also going to give us free scholarship to training at LSU for a week. He can listen to every seminar that they do at LSU. I’ve got four animals at my house and every one of them are rescues, so I love animals. We’re going to make it the best we can. We appreciate the volunteers and we’re going to continue to need them.”
The changes come after rumors had circulated on social media that the city was about to close the shelter. But by the end of Tuesday’s meeting, a roomful of curious residents heard a very different plan about how the city wants to revamp the facility.
The controversy began when animals began being re-homed late last week, and shelter manager Amanda Bennett announced her resignation. The board accepted Bennett’s resignation Tuesday before the shelter was discussed and also approved hiring Zachary Parsons as a certified police officer, who will be assigned as an animal control officer for the city. He will be paid $10 per hour to begin.
“He’s going to be able to enforce all of our ordinances,” Kelly said. “He would start immediately.
Kelly said when he found out the police department was over the animal shelter, he talked to many people and they shared concerns about an insect problem and a major rodent infestation. He said he also found out some dogs had been out there for nine months and others for years.
“So I thought that we may need to do a realignment about how we take care of animals here in Columbia. Not take away services, but to improve on the services that we already offer the community,” he said.
His first order was to remove the 40-plus dogs so they could treat for rodents. The city plans to relaunch the shelter once that work is done, which will also include eliminating roaches and spiders and making sure dog food is stored in such a way that it doesn’t get wet and moldy.
Kelly assured the Board and citizens that he planned to stay on top of the process and find families for adoptable dogs and cats.
Mayor Justin McKenzie said the county owns the building and pays for utilities, while the city supplies a vehicle and manpower. The property was donated, and Wallace Conerly built the facility with inmate labor, the mayor said. Only the city has ordinances regarding leash laws, aggressive dogs and number of dogs.
McKenzie said the loss of state inmate labor when the Mississippi Department of Corrections ended that program has hurt. The shelter previously had Bennett plus three inmates every day.
“With a staff of four, they could maintain the facility,” he said. “When the inmates were pulled by the Mississippi Department of Corrections from our jail, they were pulled out of Justice Court, they were pulled out of the Sheriff’s Office and any other jobs.”
McKenzie urged contacting legislators about returning the inmates to regional facilities. He also said he and Kelly would talk to any sources, including Hub City Humane Society and other organizations, to find animals homes.
“We’re not a humane society; we’re not a long-term shelter; we are a dog pound,” McKenzie said. “We accept dogs from the county; that’s why they fund the building. Some dogs may need to stay there longer than three months if there is litigation or a criminal offense. As long as the dog needs to stay there, it should. If it doesn’t need to be there, it needs to be moved to a more adequate facility that can take better care of the dogs. There is no intention of closing the facility and stopping its operation.”
Pictured Above: Columbia Police Chief Michael Kelly talks about the Columbia-Marion County Animal Shelter with the Board of Aldermen Tuesday. | Photo by Mark Rogers
