Former shelter employee Judy Moody and Protect Pickens Pets are making plans to be at this month’s commissioner meeting to confront Rob Jones. At the meeting, they say they will be bringing the following concerns and demands:

-You should have the right to choose your family pet, even if it is a pit bull, German shepherd, or Doberman.
-Pit bulls, German shepherds, and Dobermans should not be condemned to a Pickens County Animal Shelter cage or euthanization on a Commissioner’s whim.
-Demand a solid plan to keep euthanization numbers low, so the label “Kill Hill” is never again used for our shelter.
-Our shelter should be managed by a private, no kill agency and out from under Commissioner Jones’ radical control. The shelter should be managed for the good of the animals and Pickens County citizens, not Commissioner Jones’ cronies.
-Shelter staff should be hired on merit and fired for cause, not based on their relationship with Commissioner Jones or any other politician.

On Monday July 24, 2017, Protect Pickens Pets will be organizing a peaceful protest from 11:00 AM to 1:30 PM in the Burger King parking lot in Pickens. The group has a permit from the local authorities and are encouraging supporters to create signs for the event.

The group made this statement on Facebook,

If you have not visited Pickens County Animal Shelter lately, please do so. You may not recognize it from just a short time ago. The adult cat room had feces all over and there was no water to be had. Adult cats are having to be packed into cages due to the volume of animals. Some cats have what appears to be untreated wounds and flies are everywhere. Sick kittens are in the same cage as the healthy. The cages were not cleaned and litter boxes were full. The shelter is maxed out with cats and they keep coming in. Dog kennel area had not been cleaned. Judy Moody’s discharge paperwork read: no longer needed. We and the animals at PCAS beg to differ Commissioner Jones. We hope you don’t plan to leave the current shelter employees understaffed and overwhelmed.

Within Moody’s public files her discharge papers did indeed read that her services were no longer needed. Citizens say they are bothered by the news asking,

If services are no longer needed, why is it being stated that the care at the shelter is declining?

Other citizens are questioning if protesters are focusing on the animals and what they need? If that be the rehire of Moody, hiring other employees, or replacing the leadership.

Along with discharge papers, a Voluntary Statement was made by one of Moody’s former co-workers. The statement did say that Judy told the kitten owners in an aggressive tone,

If you would have kept the kitten inside the kitten wouldn’t have gotten injured and run off. If you don’t want people to pick up your animals you should keep a better eye on your pets and keep them inside.

Commenters mentioned this wasn’t the first time that an incident like this has happened.

FYN will follow this story as it continues, or read Animal Shelter Employee Fired.