![]() Darren Doyle, story and photo During the Monday, June 22nd Fiscal Court meeting, Judge Wil Cannon expressed his disappointment in a recent article on the Edmonson County Animal Shelter published by The Daily News in Bowling Green. You can read the article by clicking here, and Cannon said the photos were taken from odd angles and his quotes were taken out of context. "They've got a picture of one animal here that looks like its starving to death," Cannon said. "They should at least ask the question to the Carrolls (the shelter owner/operators) When did you pick this animal up?" Cannon said other photos of kittens with "goo in their eyes" were published. "They (Daily News) didn't ask the question of how long the kittens had been there, if they had, they'd know that the kittens were dumped there the night before. If they want to be fair, they should have asked those questions," he said. "If they want to put pictures of three-day old dog waste on there, that's fine, that was true and accurate, but the rest of the story is just painting the picture that they wanted people to see." Judge Cannon said that some of the published information was just flat out wrong. "One place in the article, they claimed that dogs in an outdoor kennel didn't have food or water. Well, I went over there, right behind those reporters that came in my office and said there was a cage up there that was dirty and didn't have food or water, so I drove straight up there," said Cannon. "I looked at that same cage and there was water in the bucket...it wasn't full, but if they'd bothered to look over into the bucket, they'd have seen water. And if they knew what they were looking for, they'd have known that the dogs had been fed, because dogs don't do what those dogs were doing (waste) without being fed." Cannon said that the Carrolls are feeding and watering the dogs every day, and felt that the article misrepresented what the shelter does on a regular basis. "There were some cages that weren't clean," he said, "and there's really no excuse for it, but the shelter got caught this one time." One time, he says, that's not the norm. He held up a copy of the paper in his hand for the magistrates to see. "It's not entirely accurate, and I wanted you all to know that," he said as he tossed the paper aside. Cannon urged the magistrates and others in attendance to visit the shelter and see for themselves. "What I think you'll find is that the cages are normally kept clean, and that this is an unusual occasion."
11 Comments
Pat Blair
6/22/2015 10:32:08 am
I didnt know that Edmonson County had a shelter and would be happy to volunteer some time to help clean cages.
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erin milton
6/22/2015 12:11:02 pm
When you click on the link to the article from Daily news and LOOK at the PICTURES. How could it be a misrepresented? The pictures speak for themselves.
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Raymond Hedges
6/22/2015 02:02:32 pm
Will Cannon is a Good Man Fair & Just to all, the Media reports alot of stuff one sided, Our Judge will get to the Bottom of the Issue & tell you the Truth, I stand behind Him 100%
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Sharon Sanders
6/22/2015 11:41:00 pm
I'm sorry, but the pic's look all full.
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Carolyn A. Miller
6/23/2015 01:35:51 am
Mr. Cannon there are a lot of questions that still should be asked of the Carroll's animal shelter. I have visited that shelter on several occasions and have ran into similar circumstances as described in the Bowling Green News. The hours posted are not correct. In fact, I sat outside in my car waiting and no one opened the shelter. the phone was not answered either. Are you aware they charge $50 for a dog with no shots, no chip identification? More importantly, these animals are not spayed or neutered, which is, as you are fully aware, the reason why we need animal shelters. Other shelters where I have volunteered included all this in the adoption fee. I know of individuals that complained to the previous judge but to no avail. I personally saw the food poured into a wheel barrel! What keeps the rats out? I say all of the people who think that shelter is appropriate should visit it on more than one occasion and unannounced. As far as accounting for the funds go any organization receiving government funds are required to maintain records and report at the end of the year, even non-profits. It is the tax dollars of the citizens of Edmonson County that keep the shelter running. Furthermore, legal private businesses account for all their funds and show expenses and so should this animal shelter. According to Bowling Green News they are receiving $104K a year from 4 counties, plus $50 per adoption, plus donations. In my book this is worth accounting for. I'm sure as a new Judge elected by the people of Edmonson County you will help with this matter.
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Brian Lewis
6/23/2015 11:22:04 pm
I hope so as well with this new judge. Lord knows the last judge turned a blind eye to ever complaint I have ever made on that shelter. From my numerous attempts to visit this shelter I. The past the BG Daily News article was right on.
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Beth Hawkins
6/23/2015 06:01:55 am
I wasn't aware we had an in-county shelter. There is a lot of information in the piece and the pictures are terrible. I'm wondering if the shelter has a foster option? If their facility is over crowded, perhaps the animals awaiting adoption could be fostered by volunteer families? It would be interesting to see an accurate account of income and expenses.
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Marla Kinser
6/25/2015 09:25:18 am
As anyone can see reading the article, the BG Daily News visited this shelter 5 times. Mr. Cannon states here..... "What I think you'll find is that the cages are normally kept clean, and that this is an unusual occasion." I will repeat, the BG Daily News visited this shelter FIVE times. I don't understand people turning a blind eye to this obvious disgraceful situation.
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6/26/2015 10:20:17 am
my name is LaDonna childress and yes i am the volunteer that was mentioned in the story that was told in fiscal court. i volunteered for 2 years& 8 months at the edmonson co. animal shelter. and the stuff that the daily news is a big fat lie.first of all if these things were true about our shelteri would not have stayed there as long as i did. and all these people that are quick to judge, well why dont you go help kim clean the shelter & take care of the animals. where would the animals be without a shelter to take them to, i have been there & done what she is doing & it is a non-stop< never ending job. and it is always easier to stand back & look & judge than it is to do it, And i have seen how hard they work & worry about those animals to try to get them a home instead of putting them down. but just stop & think before you judge them,what would you do if you wer the one that had to do all this by yourself. I had to quit volunteering because i had a very serious reaction to levaquin & it has got my health to where i cant do it anymore.But if my health was not so bad, i would be there helping instead of sitting back & judging. I was there for 5 & 6 days a week for anywhere from 6 to 8 hours a day. some days even longer. and i would go in on my only day off if rescues called & wanted to come get animals. There were animals that had been abused by their owners & it took me days for them to learn that i loved them & would not harm them. And there were animals that were brought in that were so sick & starved so bad, they died before i got back the next morning. So see dont judge unlss you have been there & done what we have done.And another thing if all the pet owners in our counties & other counties would have their pets spayed or neutered we would not have so many animals in our shelter to have over-crowding & have to be put down. So yes i will stand behind the shelter 100% theres only so much they can do. So you people that dont like how it is, get up & go help with the problem instead of sitting & running your mouth. And you will see just how hard & how much time & work that goes into this kind of job.And these newspapers can say & print anything they want, whether its true or not, so i call them out on what they wrote. and theres no way one or 2 people can keep a shelter spotless unless you have somebody ther 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. So all you people that dont like the way the shelter is, get your behind up there just one day & do it & then maybe you will shut your mouth. It is hard work to keep that shelter clean, i know cause i have done it. But when you have so many animals in there at once it is very hard to keep it spotless! So call kim & go help her & that way it will be better! So go do the work & see what its like, before you sit back & judge!
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Brian Lewis
7/3/2015 01:24:48 am
With all due respect many of us that have replied to this has either worked for a shelter or ran one.
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Susan Donoghue
6/28/2015 12:27:20 pm
I have lived in this county for 6 months. After moving here I tried on numerous occasions by telephone and leaving messages about volunteering at the shelter. I have years of experience with shelters and ran a boarding kennel and grooming shop for 30 years prior. I drove out to the shelter 6 or 7 times during posted business hours only to find no one around to speak to about volunteering. My phone messages were never answered. I since gave up and started volunteering in Warren County. If the shelter owner has nothing to hide and everything is as it should be, then she would have no reasons not to let people volunteer and let the public see the adoptable animals, and the shelter would be accessible to the public, since its out tax dollars that are paying for the upkeep. That is another issue in itself, how can government money be funding a privately owned business??? Next issue that I have is that I never see advertised pictures of animals that are up for adoption, and how come there is never any fund raising to help with the cost of properly caring and vetting the animals??? Running a shelter can be an over whelming task to say the least, but it can be successful and rewarding if done properly.
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