Hundreds of small animals meant for adoption may have been frozen, fed to reptiles

[Armiyana]

Yeah.... I saw this post while recovering from surgery last week.

It's disgusting. Short and Simple.

There is absolutely no excuse for a reptile 'rescue' or breeder or general owner for that matter, to have taken animals in this situation and done what they did.

One or two animals in the case of extreme overcrowding? Maybe...
10? Eh... These are animals that deserved better and were pets, not 'feeders'.

Have I done something like this? Once... With a hamster at a pet store I worked at once. He was over a year and a half, no one would adopt him, he was getting old, sluggish and was always dealing with 70% baldness and constant itchiness due to alopecia and had terrible 'tude. My manager at the time and I both agreed that a CO2 gas was better than just letting him suffer away in small bin. So I 'adopted' him.

But this is someone looking for a quick buck with absolutely no care about the how, just some way to quickly feed their animals and make a few bucks at a show. These were animals deemed well enough to go to homes and be happy.


One of the ways they got caught?
The microchips on rabbits weren't getting updated with new info on ownership. So many animals with so many years they could have had.

It's sad overall and I hope this 'fertile turtle' gets the shunning that they need from the reptile community that knows them. They are making the whispers of your animals listed 'free to good home' means 'free snake food' true again. They're putting the worst kind of bullseye on the reptile community. And this is another cup not drop into the bucket that people keep adding to in regards to wanting reptile laws.

[Armiyana]

Arizona humane should absolutely be held accountable for their part as well...
I just expected better of reptile groups. Especially if they're also claiming to be a rescue

[Bogertophis]

Arizona humane should absolutely be held accountable for their part as well...
I just expected better of reptile groups. Especially if they're also claiming to be a rescue

Yes, for sure. The shelter didn't vet the "adopter" & should have been very suspicious at anyone taking in so many animals all at once. "Hello?" But in this case, the shelter put someone in charge that was dishonest & had their own agenda. Shelters generally cannot pay great wages & good (dedicated, hard-working & honest) help is hard to come by. I'm a former board member of a local humane society shelter in my town. Several years ago, we found ourselves with a very untrustworthy employee- not working in the shelter with animals, but supervising the thrift store that raises money for the shelter. What a nightmare some employees can turn out to be, no matter how thorough you think you've been when hiring them.

As far as the reptile "rescue"- there's a HUGE difference between calling yourself a rescue & actually BEING a rescue. There are plenty of animal hoarders (for all kinds of animals) with their hands out for any free "rescue" animals that are NOT qualified as rescuers...not even close! There are also plenty who claim to be a rescue to get a tax write off & other perks (free animals, & other donations) that just turn around & sell the animals entrusted to them, keep the donated money, or like in this case, use the animals as feeders.

Never take anyone's word for it that they're a "rescue". Check it out first...demand proof.

[Homebody]

I've been thinking about this and this is how I think this whole thing went down. The CEO or COO of the Humane Society of Southern Arizona (HSSA) realized that he could free up capacity in his shelter and make a few bucks at the same time. If it was the CEO, the COO went along with it to keep his job. If it was the COO, he did it behind his boss's back. After he sold off the stock from his own shelter, he contacted San Diego to get more. San Diego was so happy to be rid of them that they didn't ask questions.

Unfortunately, for the HSSA plotter(s), San Diego held a big old media event announcing the transfer. Had to make sure their donors knew what a good job they're doing. So, when the animals never showed up in Arizona, people noticed and started asking questions. This pressure caused the HSSA board to get involved.

This wasn't a plot built to weather scrutiny. At first, the plotter(s) lied and said they sent the animals to a private shelter. When they couldn't produce any paperwork supporting this, the board demanded they get the animals back. The Jones brothers then returned the 62 animals they hadn't managed to euthanize. This satisfied no one. A little more digging and it became clear exactly what had happened, and the CEO and COO lost their jobs.

I'm sure the Jones brothers knew what they were doing wasn't above board, but I think HSSA is the bad guy here. The Jones brothers were struggling to get their business off the ground. They just couldn't say no to a cheap feeder supply. They also may have told themselves that it was a victimless crime. They were only making use of animals no one else wanted. The HSSA plotter(s) on the other hand were entrusted with finding homes for these animals and instead sold them as food. Fearing a lawsuit, the HSSA board continues to deny culpability. Their denials ring hollow though, and I'm sure that, if there is legal action, the truth will come out and they'll be forced to pay.