The general manager of the troubled Los Angeles Department of Animal Services is taking a two-month leave of absence and the department’s board president is out after a raucous board meeting last month.
At the same time, a new internal report on conditions at two shelters found several “failures of appropriate care” that were “deplorable and inexcusable by any reasonable standard.”
The development marks the latest drama for Animal Services, which is underfunded and understaffed relative to the growing number of animals passing through its six shelters.
Dog euthanizations are up sharply this year, according to department records. In all, 140 dogs were euthanized in June, an increase of 82% percent compared to the same period last year.
General Manager Staycee Dains did not respond to a message left Thursday. He previously worked for the city of Long Beach.
A spokesperson for City Controller Kenneth Mejia told The Times that Dains’ started on August 13 and the office has no other information about his presence. A separate internal city document reviewed by The Times said Dains’ leave will last until mid-October.
Assistant General Manager Annette Ramirez will serve as the department’s general manager during Dains’ absence, according to a memo sent to staff Friday. Ramirez previously served as general manager on an interim basis before Dains was hired by Mayor Karen Bass last year.
When he takes office in 2022, Bass vows to turn around the Animal Services department, which has long faced understaffing and overcrowding. The department runs a public shelter and relies heavily on volunteers to care for dogs, cats, rabbits and other animals.
Bass appointed James Johnson to the Animal Services Commission in the spring of 2023. He told The Times on Friday that he is leaving the commission on July 31, and declined to elaborate on his departure.
“The bottom line is that when you’re a commissioner, you serve at the pleasure of the mayor,” Johnson said. “I am no longer a commissioner. “
Johnson, a former union worker, chaired his first meeting as commission president last month, but the process quickly turned into a spectacle.
At first, Johnson became angry at public speakers who criticized Dains, and the meeting was temporarily halted. Then Johnson tried unsuccessfully to convince his fellow commissioners to award a $25,000 contract for “security and engagement” services that Dains had advocated, and offered to raise the funds after commissioners expressed concern about the cost.
Meanwhile, a new evaluation provides a clear look at shelter operations.
Best Friends Animal Society’s national shelter support team conducted assessments of the Chesterfield Square / South LA and East Valley shelters in July and August at the request of top department staff.
The Times reviewed the assessment, which found it “failed to incorporate no-kill policies and in some cases failed to meet minimum standards of humane treatment.”
Among other things, the report cited staffing problems and a lack of leadership. A representative for Bass and Animal Services declined to comment on the report.
“During our time there, we witnessed many residents coming to adopt, volunteer, and/or foster,” according to the assessment. “Unfortunately, staff’s distrust of residents is clear and that distrust has led to many people leaving when offers of support are not accepted.”
The report says most dogs come out of their cages only once every 10 to 14 days. The kennel was cleaned with a water hose, but the dog was not removed during the cleaning process, according to the assessment.
The report found that “the lack of human interaction, the daily abuse of being sprayed with a hose and the hourly confinement caused (the dog’s) normal behavior to quickly deteriorate.”
Asked about the shelter’s situation, Johnson told The Times that Animal Services has “significant challenges” and is “underfunded.”
“We need as a city to throw our arms around the department and the shelter and do what we can to get these animals adopted,” he said.
