MIDLAND, Texas — The City of Midland have responded to community frustration regarding a decision Midland Animal Services made the day before Thanksgiving.
According to a post made by Fix West Texas Executive Director Karen Patterson, the City of Midland told them that on Wednesday, the day before Thanksgiving, they would be need to perform euthanasians to account for the number of dogs being brought into the Midland Animal Shelter and the amount anticipated for when they open on Saturday.
The message was sent at 11 a.m., according to Patterson, and they gave them until 12 p.m. to send in tags and until 1:30 p.m. to pick up. They also provided a list of dogs that will possibly be added to the new euthanasian list. According to the post, the city said on Monday that there would be no list this week.
According to the post, the city understood the short window of time and thanked them for understanding.
After many people sent this post to NewsWest 9, we reached out to the City of Midland. They have since released a statement that reads:
"MAS (Midland Animal Shelter) acknowledges the confusion and potential contradictions in the shelter's communications issued on both Monday and Wednesday. We recognize the community's frustration, particularly during a holiday week. Although the shelter had initially not planned to release an urgent list this week, a decision was made to do so on Wednesday. We understand that a 2-hour rescue window is less than ideal, and moving forward, our aim is to provide a much longer timeframe.
On Wednesday, MAS, in collaboration with the Midland community, successfully rescued 6 animals-- an outcome that aligns with our aspirations. We are committed to enhancing communication both within the shelter and with our community partners as we strive for continuous improvement."
Stay with NewsWest 9 on Saturday as we dive deeper into this story.