Desperate situation: Without more funding, animal shelter may cut ties with Hamilton County

The Humane Educational Society plans to stop serving Hamilton County unless commissioners vote to increase the animal shelter's funding.

"The money is not for anything fancy," Bob Citrullo, executive director of the Humane Educational Society, said on Tuesday. "We simply cannot pay our staff and take care of the animals and address the desperately needed building repairs with the amount of funding we are given."

A dog stands by a kennel door at the Humane Education Society of Hamilton County on Highland Park Avenue facility in Chattanooga.

The ceilings of the 70-year-old building are caving in, broken chain-link cages are held together with rope and dogs and cats are continually sick due to the conditions, officials say. The nonprofit has worked to do its best with the $395,255 it receives annually from the County Commission, supplementing with fundraisers and donations, but the walls are falling and a line of credit remains open to make payroll each month.

"We cannot do this any longer," Citrullo said. "The lack of funding has finally caught up to us."

Citrullo and Board Chairman Tai Federico requested last week that commissioners increase the shelter's funding to $620,970. This request more than doubles what the shelter currently receives, and Citrullo said this increased level of funding is what the nonprofit should have been receiving for years -- and is still well below the national average.

If funding is not increased, the shelter will no longer be able to accept every animal that arrives at its door, and instead will only take animals they know will quickly find new homes.

Warren Mackey, who represents District 4, which is mainly composed of residents within the city limits, relentlessly questioned Citrullo and Federico during a budget meeting last week about their request for increased funding.

"You're gonna ask people in my district to give you money, and you're not going to do anything for them?" he asked. "Should Hamilton County government cut you out of their budget if you're not going to serve the people of Chattanooga?"

Councilman Randy Fairbanks responded to Mackey's questioning, explaining that the Humane Educational Society's funding works similar to the Sheriff's Department, and residents of the city pay both city and county taxes to fund those agencies under the established tax-structure.

Holes like this one in chain link kennel doors are patched using a variety of methods at the Humane Education Society of Hamilton County facility on Highland Park Avenue in Chattanooga.

It is not the shelter refusing to serve the residents and animals living within city limits, Federico told the commission. The shelter is not authorized or contracted to do so, but the Humane Educational Society often works in partnership with McKamey to provide care, he said.

The shelter currently serves all of Hamilton County and the municipalities that rest outside of the Chattanooga city limits. McKamey Animal Shelter contracts with the city to serve Chattanooga residents, and receives funds exceeding $9 per capita -- totaling $1.6 million a year.

The Humane Educational Society in contrast has been receiving $3.82 per capita for years. The national average is $8 per capita, Citrullo said, and the shelter's requested increase would mean they receive $6 for every person in Hamilton County living outside the city limits.

If the Humane Educational Society cancels the contract, the shelter will no longer accept stray dogs found on the side of the road in Red Bank. Officers from the shelter will no longer assist the Sheriff's Department when they respond to animal complaint calls in Walden or Collegedale. And the cost of adoptions from the facility will skyrocket for everyone, humane society officials say.

In the past 365 days, the shelter has taken in 3,714 animals, 2,456 of which came from the unincorporated areas of Hamilton County. The shelter has been able to transfer or adopt more than 80 percent of these animals. If the shelter no longer contracts with the county, care for these animals will be left up to commissioners.

A broken sewer pipe has caused this flooding in the basement at the Humane Education Society of Hamilton County facility on Highland Park Avenue in Chattanooga.

In some counties, Citrullo said, this means that neighbors take care of animal complaints, "and that often involves a shotgun."

A letter about the increased rate for service was sent out to the municipalities the Humane Educational Society serves, and Citrullo said that he has not received any complaints from officials or residents about the rise in cost.

Commissioners also questioned if this request for increased funds would be a one-time expense, and Citrullo explained they would continue at the increased amount, because that is how much it costs to keep such a facility operational.

Commissioner Sabrena Smedley said that she visited the facility and found parts of the buildings to be "beyond dilapidated," and affirmed the need for repairs.

She asked if the additional money would also be used to give employees a raise. Citrullo responded that he would hope to give the 23 members of his staff a 3 percent raise, due to the increase in the cost of living. Additional employees also need to be hired in order to continue operation, he said.

"We don't want to cancel our contract with the county," Citrullo said on Tuesday over the sound of dogs barking in one of the large dog kennels. "We just can't service somebody who doesn't pay for the service."

Contact staff writer Kendi Anderson at kendi.anderson@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6592.