MIDLAND, Texas — On Aug. 23, The City of Midland requested an investigation by a third party into the Aug. 12th accidental euthanization of a dog named Luna at Midland Animal Services.
According to a press release from the City of Midland, the investigation determined the cause of the incident, assessed policies and protocols of Animal Services regarding euthanasia and recommended steps going forward.
Luna was picked up by Animal Control Officers on Aug. 11 after they received a call from a resident of an animal under a house.
Although there was an illness in the shelter during the time Luna was there, it is important to note Luna was not ill at the time.
The investigation revealed the primary reason for the accidental euthanasia as a break in usual protocol for creating a list of animals for euthanasia due to the absence of the most experienced staff.
The shelter's deviation from its standard euthanasia list creation process was influenced by several key factors:
- The usual employee responsible for generating the list, utilizing the animal tracking and documentation software, was on leave and unable to compile the list.
- Although a new manager had been hired and was actively undergoing training, she had yet to receive comprehensive training on the software. Consequently, she relied on more experienced staff members to compile the list.
- These staff members were not accustomed to the task of creating euthanasia lists, which was outside their typical responsibilities.
- The resulting lists were handwritten and lacked the necessary criteria verification mechanisms specified by shelter management.
- Furthermore, an unidentified animal brought in as a stray, without any marking or tagging, was placed in a kennel previously designated for an animal euthanized due to illness. This kennel number was not removed from the hand-written euthanization list.
The investigation shows there are written procedures in place for euthanasia containing instructions for verifying the identity of the animal and what to do if there are discrepancies, however they were not available to all staff during the days leading up to the incident.
Moving forward, all staff at Midland Animal Services will be continuously trained in all policies and procedures. In addition, staff will be cross trained in varying levels of responsibilities as team members of Midland Animal Services.