Alley Cat Allies, a national organization that says it seeks to protect cats’ lives through advocacy, education and policy change, has accused the Summit County Animal Control Department of giving “grossly improper” doses of a euthanasia drug to cats, and dogs in its possession, in particular cats the department deemed “feral.”
In a lawsuit filed in Summit County Court of Common Pleas Dec.12, 2024, Alley Cat Allies alleges that it found cases through public records requests where the SCACD had to administer a second dose of the euthanasia drug to an animal. The first dose “should have been sufficient to kill an adult cat” if it were administered properly.
The lawsuit also claims that SCACD employees do not administer pre-euthanasia drugs in cases where they may have been needed to help soothe animals with increased stress levels.
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“[The SCACD] is improperly and inhumanely ‘euthanizing’ animals and killing cats for simply being deemed ‘feral’,” said the nonprofit’s attorney, DanaMarie Pannella, in a press release. “Stopping the senseless and inhumane killing of cats is our top priority.”
The lawsuit also accuses the department of failing to “provide adequate training, monitoring, and supervision of its employees.”
Lawsuit recommends changes for Summit County to make
The next step is for Summit County to create an agency that adheres to laws and best practices, Pannella stated in the lawsuit, including Trap-Neuter-Return. The TNR protocol calls for cats to be “trapped, spayed or neutered, eartipped, vaccinated and given veterinary care, and returned to the exact outdoor areas where they were trapped.”
Greta Johnson, the director of communications for Summit County, declined to comment on the pending litigation.
The lawsuit was filed less than a month prior to a Jan. 6 appearance by Jeff Johnson of Rubber City Rescue before Akron City Council to ask that it make space available to the nonprofit so it could shelter more dogs. The county shelter, he said, was at capacity and was not taking in new dogs, placing the nonprofit in the position of having to tell Akron Police they were unable to help.
