LEE COUNTY, Fla. — On Tuesday, Lee County animal advocates spoke at the county commissioners meeting demanding better county shelter conditions for animals.
People said a major concern is the number of animals euthanized at the Lee County Animal Domestic Services shelter.
Watch Lee County Community Correspondent Ella Rhoades report below:
Geri Cerilli wants to see a change at the LCDAS shelter, and she believes the county commissioners help is the next step.
"We need the managers. We need the commissioners. We need the county's help. We're crying for help. We're not trying to make waves other than to better the facility and control the lives of these animals," Cerilli said.
Cerilli started the group Animal Justice Lee County which spoke at the commissioners meeting.
She said, "We need to fix what's going on right now and stop this horrific euthanasia for totally adoptable animals. That's got to stop."
Numbers from the University of Florida Shelter Animal Census shows the live outcome rate for cats and dogs in Lee County has gone down.
In 2019, 15% of cats and dogs died at the shelter, and, in 2023, 17% died at LCDAS.
Former LCDAS volunteer Michelle Middleton said she rescued a dog before the shelter could euthanize him.
"They couldn't treat him properly. They said that his allergies were too bad, and the clinic manager told me they would be doing him a favor. So, I ran into the clinic, and I fought for him, and I said, I'm taking him home...They tried to talk me out of it, saying that he'll be a financial burden," Middleton explained.
She took Bruce, her shelter rescue, to a vet who said he had a skin infection. Once he was on the right medication, Bruce got better in 2 weeks.
The county shared their policies on how they determine to euthanize an animal.
They also shared this document on their policy.
From January to July this year , the shelter euthanized 834 cats and 279 dogs.
Last year, the number of animals euthanized in Lee County was about the same as the state average.
Lee County Community Corespondent Ella Rhoades spoke with Assistant County Manager Marc Mora about the numbers.
Rhoades asked,"You guys don't refer to yourselves as a kill shelter?"
Mora responded, "No not at all...The true reality here is we're a shelter of last resort. We have to take every animal that comes in the door. Other shelters in our area can refuse to take animals that are either dangerous or have some health issues. We have to take every animal that comes through those doors."
In previous reports, the county tells Rhoades the shelter is near capacity.
They said, "Euthanizing dogs does not occur to 'create shelter space'."
For Middleton, Cerilli and others they said they won't give up and want to see a higher chance for the animals survival.
