Complaints that cats and dogs were neglected at the Indianapolis Animal Care & Control shelter are so serious that the chairman of the agency’s advisory board says an external investigation may be needed.

A formal grievance filed with the board this week said injured or sick animals went untreated; dogs were jammed in tiny, filthy cages; and at least one botched euthanasia left a cat to languish in agony for hours.

Click here to read the full story at the Indianapolis Star. You can attend tonight’s board meeting from 6pm-7pm at 2600 South Harding St., or watch it and past board meetings online or on TV on Channel 16.

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Nathan Winograd is presenting a free three-hour seminar in Valparaiso, Indiana on Aug. 16. His recent weekend-long conference in Indianapolis was a tremendous resource for the animal welfare community (check out our previous podcast interviews with him for a taste), and this presentation will surely be another excellent event. More info is available at www.pawincpc.com.

When: Saturday, August 16, 2008
Where: Valparaiso University Union, 1400 Chapel Dr., Valparaiso, IN 46383
Time: 6 pm

Sponsored by: People for Animal Welfare, Inc.

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As Nathan Winograd mentioned in one of IAM’s previous podcasts, going No Kill can help animal shelters save both lives and money. This is an important point to consider, especially in light of the U.S. economy’s recent downturn.

Animal welfare organizations are often the first to suffer when people have less money to give. American Public Media’s Marketplace radio program visited the Washington Animal Rescue League to find out how economic circumstances have impacted the animal shelter: as foreclosures go up, so do pet surrenders. Listen to the story, and discuss how the economy is impacting animal welfare in your area by leaving a comment at Indy Animal Media.

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Martha Boden’s resignation from the Humane Society of Indianapolis gives many people (and animals) in the local animal welfare community cause for celebration. The installment of a new director in her place was a goal many activists had been working towards for quite some time, even before her decision to stop taking strays at HSI. So now that this first major roadblock in the way of saving more lives (and possibly moving Indianapolis to No Kill with the help of organizations like Move to Act) has been removed, where do we go next?

There are many organizations who’ve picked up in areas where HSI has dropped the ball (check out the links to the left), but roughly 40 animals are killed in Indianapolis every day, many of whom are likely adoptable. So with a positive vision for animals in mind, how do you think citizens and animal welfare groups in and around Indianapolis can reconcile their differences with HSI to move forward to act for the animals? Leave your comments and share your opinions about the future of animal welfare in Indy.

Also, be sure to check back this weekend (or sign up for email updates, subscribe to the RSS feed or the Indy Animal Media podcast) to hear or read the final installment of the Nathan Winograd interview series on No Kill. And if you have an idea for future shows, let us know! We’re always looking for interesting people to talk to (and pets to profile!)

Finally, check out videos of just some of the dogs available for adoption at Indianapolis Animal Care and Control at our sister site, adoptananimal.org and share with your friends, family and coworkers.

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