Commissioners ignoring pleas for more funding for Clermont County Animal Shelter | Opinion

For almost a year, volunteers at the Clermont County Animal Shelter have been begging and pleading with the Clermont County commissioners to step up to the plate. The volunteers and staff have requested the commissioners provide them with the necessary funds, staff, equipment and supplies to address the overwhelming problem of the abandoned dog population at the shelter.

Earlier this year, a resident in Bethel surrendered 24 dogs. The Clermont County Dog Warden then followed up with a search warrant and seized an additional 34 neglected dogs along with an assortment of various other animals.

The volunteers have devoted thousands of hours at the shelter to provide love and care for the dogs there. Without the devotion of the volunteers, the shelter could not function. The situation at the shelter is critical, with 64 kennels filled and a total of 78 dogs on site, they have run out of space. Some of the dogs are living in pop-up crates for 22 hours out of the day.

The volunteers and staff decided to take matters into their own hands and solicited the following the following contributions and donations:

• Townescapes provided 22 tons of gravel for the shelter for the kennels.

• A Clermont County resident donated 150 pounds of pet specific infill for the artificial turf.

• A Clermont County taxpayer provided a roll of artificial turf.

• MM Concrete & Remodeling provided a plate compactor to compact the gravel and is providing an additional roll of artificial turf to complete the project.

• Bzak Landscaping donated four yards of mulch.

• Clermont and Warren County residents have provided an influx of crate donations to offset the shortage of crates.

This list can go on and on of contributions from the individuals in the community and the volunteers.

On April 6, a group of 13 volunteers from TQL Logistics, along with other volunteers, were responsible for spreading the gravel and mulch at the shelter. The Clermont Dog Warden provided a "dingo" machine to assist volunteers in the spreading gravel. There were other volunteers who donated and planted flowers at the shelter.

Last year, an industrial-sized dryer was donated to the shelter to clean the towels and rags necessary for the proper care for the animals. Almost a year has passed and Clermont County has failed to install the necessary gas line and electrical line to operate the equipment.

Volunteers have paid over $350 to outsource the laundry when they were backlogged as a result of the Bethel hoarding investigation. There was over 250 pounds of laundry clean at Tide Cleaners in Anderson Township. The volunteers had to take trash bags full of dirty laundry home to handle the volume of laundry.

The Clermont County commissioners have been MIA − missing in action. The commissioners have done little or nothing to address the problem and provide the necessary funding, staff, equipment or supplies for the shelter. The commissioners just keep "kicking the can down the road" and think the problem will go away. The commissioners don’t even respond to emails from the community requesting them to address the needs of the shelter.

Therefore, I hereby challenge the Clermont County commissioners to put on old clothing and spend four to eight hours at the shelter with the staff so they can fully understand their problems and needs. Their visit to the shelter should be without the press and photographers to eliminate publicity photo-ops.

Dennis M. Luken lives in Batavia.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Clermont County Animal Shelter in desperate need of more funds, staff