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"The animals deserve better": Former volunteers, concerned citizens protest Humane Society of Vilas County

The Humane Society of Vilas County
Erin Gottsacker
/
WXPR
The Humane Society of Vilas County

Joe Power stands near a busy sidewalk in downtown Eagle River gripping two homemade signs.

“What are your donations being used for?” asks one.

“The animals deserve better than 3 stars,” says the other.

Until recently, Power was a volunteer dog walker with the Humane Society of Vilas County.

A group of people protests the Humane Society of Vilas County in downtown Eagle River.
Erin Gottsacker
/
WXPR
A group of people protests the Humane Society of Vilas County in downtown Eagle River.

Now, he’s one of a handful of protestors gathered to bring attention to a shared history of poor experiences with the animal shelter.

“When I got in and I saw the way the shelter was being kept, and the way the animals were being kept, it shocked me,” he said.

Power describes dogs being left outside without water and kennels that were not adequately cleaned.

“What I saw was neglect by being in a hurry,” he said. “And what I mean by that is this: ‘oh, I have to lock this dog outside because he really made a mess of his inside pen.’ So, eventually you clean the pen, fill his food bowl and water bowl, but he’s locked outside. Then (the director) would leave, forget to let him in.”

He is not the only former volunteer who describes these conditions.

Karen Schmeling had a similar experience years earlier.

“When I was there, and apparently it’s the same way, two of the things that I think of is that the dogs had white five-gallon buckets to be drinking out of, and they were just filled with green slime. Their kennels weren’t kept clean. And in the winter, even if the dogs were outside cold, they would have to stay outside,” she described.

Both Power and Schmeling say they raised their concerns with the animal shelter’s director, Melissa McDonald, but they were not received well. Shortly after, both were on told on separate occasions that they would no longer be permitted to volunteer.

Now, Power and Schmeling are among a group of about seven protestors publicly demanding more accountability from the animal shelter.

They say McDonald should not be allowed to serve as both the shelter director and president of the board, that the facility should have public hours, and that it should be more receptive to volunteers.

To accomplish this, the group wants Vilas County to take back control of the animal shelter.

Erin Gottsacker
/
WXPR

Despite its name, the Humane Society of Vilas County is privately operated, and it has been since 2007.

At that time, the county transferred public property, including the humane society building and about 14 acres of land, to the private nonprofit organization. This means the humane society is no longer funded by the county, but it does charge townships a fee for taking in stray animals.

The animal shelter’s current director, Melissa McDonald, took over in 2009.

She’s faced complaints since then.

In that year, Larry Dale complained to the Vilas County Sheriff’s Office about the way McDonald treated people. He described her as confrontational and was upset with the way a cat was being treated there.

More recently, in 2019, a mother filed a complaint with the state Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection after she and her son tried to adopt a dog.

“This should have been a pleasant experience and it was horrible,” the complaint said. “The woman who worked there was extremely rude and not helpful at all. When we finally did get to see the dogs, we were told we could not touch them or spend any time with them. Most of the cages were dirty and water bowls empty.”

Despite these complaints, the most recent state inspection, which happened at an unannounced time in 2021, found no violations. The report notes the shelter was in good condition and clean, and that the animals had enough food, water, bedding and play time.

A report from two years earlier found the same thing, although a warning notice was issued then because dogs were chewing on part of a wall. That issue was fixed the next month.

I personally visited the Humane Society of Vilas County a few weeks ago, where I spoke with director Melissa McDonald.

Like other local animal shelters, McDonald has not held public hours since COVID. Instead, she asks people to fill out an application and schedule an appointment. She says this system works well.

“It makes more time for the animals, which is truly what we’re here for,” she said. “We’ve found that it’s run a little more efficiently because we don’t have the distractions of people coming in. By making appointments, we get them in our schedule.”

The humane society currently has one other employee. While I was visiting, one volunteer tossed a ball for a puppy. Another played with a room full of cats.

“I think we’re doing pretty good. Obviously there’s always room for improvement,” McDonald said. “But our main goal is getting the animals in, safe from wherever they were at, and into good homes that are a good fit.”

And McDonald says that’s what the shelter is doing. This June, for example, she says the shelter took in 15 animals and adopted out 13.

She denies allegations of neglect.

“That is not something that typically happens, and I can show you,” she said.

Despite protests in Eagle River, McDonald says the humane society has only received a single recent complaint, and it was anonymous.

“We really want to try to address concerns, but we haven’t had any brought to us,” she said.

McDonald, who is also president of the animal shelter’s board, says if anyone does want to file a complaint, they should send a letter addressed to the Board of Directors at PO Box 904, Eagle River, WI 54521.

Erin Gottsacker worked at WXPR as a Morning Edition host and reporter from December 2020 to January 2023. During her time at the station, Erin reported on the issues that matter most in the Northwoods.
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