A Facebook group has accused the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) owner Malinda Barefoot for neglecting animals in a Clayton, NC shelter.
Susan Dunway, a former employee at the shelter, says that she had seen animals die from neglect and not enough were put up for adoption. This abuse drove Dunway into quitting her job.
“I had to quit because I was a mess. I couldn't stop it. I couldn't do anything,” Dunway said in a WRAL interview.
When a WRAL team went through the SPCA shelter, they found that everything was fine. The dogs had enough water, and they were being cleaned as well. The team asked to go into two rooms, they were told the rooms were off limits and workers at the shelter were reluctant to let WRAL’s team in. They were finally allowed in and they found many dogs without water and a dog trying to escape.
“This makes me mad because they need more care than dogs who have owners. They have been through more than domestic dogs,” said Ashley Ricks, freshman.
Barefoot has decided to close the SPCA shelter in Clayton when she retires in June. She has spent 29 years working with the animals. Barefoot will continue to work with the animals until she retires.
“The unfortunate thing is animal abuse isn’t taken seriously,” said Lauren King, science teacher at Athens.
A town meeting was called to discuss the case. Six people at the meeting spoke in front of the town. Two people spoke about how they though Barefoot did everything she could with less than a $50,000 budget. Four others believed Barefoot neglected the animals.
Barefoot believes that none of the workers are at the shelter long enough to fully observe how the animals are treated. Most of the workers only work 2 hours a day.
“I never saw an animal being fed there the entire month I was there,” Vickie Vonn, a former employee, told NBC 17.
No final decision was made on what to do about the shelter and Barefoot. The Clayton town council is considering the case and how to proceed.