The Situation Gets Worse!!PLEASE TELL THE JUDGE TO HELP US!! DOGS SUFFERING HORRIBLY!! MOREHEAD, KY

UPDATE JUNE 23, 2007:  COME TOGETHER! THE SITUATION IS BEYOND EMERGENT HERE!!!
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/boycott-tourism-in-kentucky-mass-slaughter-in-rowan-county-ky
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UPDATE 6/20/07: 
THE STORY KEEPS GETTING WORSE!!  PLEASE HELP SHOW SUPPORT!!******************************
FROM JULIA "Had pregnant dogs and nursing mothers KILLED today. He killed dogs that HAD rescue lined up! He is a sadist in my opinion. It is also my opinion that he is deliberately tormenting the remaining STAR members because of the negative publicity the pound has gotten. This man does not even have a high school diploma! And he is a county employee that holds life and death in his hands!!!! Suzy Young and I are no longer members of STAR because we cannot work with inhuman monsters like Jimmy Hale that delight in the killing of adoptable innocent dogs! "
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Well folks, the dog warden has shown no compassion and the Co. Judge Exec. has done nothing to help us.  Please read the petition all the way through [I know it's long] and please contact your state level government officials.  Poor Julia and Suzy are just cooked from all of this.  They have been harassed, the pound has been vandalized and now one of Julia's dogs has passed away suddenly.  I'm calling out to you all personally to help these poor dogs!!!  See Julia and Suzy's site for more details:    http://www.petfinder.com/shelters/KY224.html and please help us!  Get Active!  I have contact info listed below!  Thanks
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The judge executive (title is a misnomer as he is only a fiscal judge) has decided to go back 100% on his campaign promises and he is killing adoptable dogs every 5 days. I have been told the dog warden seems to be very happy about this decision. I feel this is being done in retaliation for all the phone calls and emails and faxes. 6/11/2007.

GET ACTIVE PEOPLE!  CALL! FAX! TELL EVERYONE! WE ARE THEIR VOICE!
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KY Attorney General's Office:  attorney.general@ag.ky.govKY
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Governer's legislative liason: stacy.bassett@ky.gov
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Director of Correspondence for the Governor:  janh.harris@ky.gov
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Executive Assistant to the Governor:  tys.slone@ky.gov 
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All but four adult dogs and a few puppies are now DEAD.  Was a mass execution really necessary?? Rescue won't be able to get dogs out of there fast enough.  WHAT CAN BE DONE TO HELP THE DOGS OF THIS COUNTY?  HOW CAN WE DEAL WITH A REGIME THAT ACTUALLY SEEMS TO DELIGHT IN REFUSING HELP FOR THESE INNOCENT ANIMALS?ROWAN COUNTY DOG POUND LINK:http://www.petfinder.com/shelters/KY224.html

CO JUDGE EXECUTIVE:JIM NICKELL606-784-6188jnickell50@yahoo.com

GET INVOLVED! HELP US SAVE LIVES!!!!!http://phone.ky.gov/attorney.general@ ag.ky.govPLEASE VISIT JULIA'S SITE! SHE HAS WORKED TIRELESSLY FOR THESE DOGS!!!!    http://www.freewebs.com/juliatat/index.htm

PLEASE PLEASE HELP US!! URGENT IN MOREHEAD, KY***PLEASE READ PETITION COMPLETELY [SCROLL TO BOTTOM OF PAGE] AND READ MARY'S HORRIFC ACCOUNT OF HER VISIT TO THE SHELTER ON MAY 4, 2007!!

LOOK AT THIS FOOLISHNESS!!! TELL THE JUDGE WHAT YOU THINK AND TELL EVERYONE YOU KNOW!!!!Dog pound issues
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http://www.themoreheadnews.com/local/local_story_131105633.htmlBy Tonia Noe - Staff WriterRowan County Judge-executive Jim Nickell said recent allegations toward the county%u2019s animal shelter and its employees are slanderous and needs to stop. Over the past few days, dozens of e-mails have generated accusing the shelter of several faults including abuse, improper breeding and neglect. Julia Sharp, developer of the e-mails and animal rescuer, said a recent injury to an older dog was %u201Csimply neglect,%u201D and the county should pay for the vet bill. However, Nickell said once the dog was taken from the shelter, it and any accumulated medical bills become the responsibility of the person or persons who take the dog. %u201CThe judge does need to make arrangements to pay the vet bill for Max,%u201D Sharp said. %u201CHe does need to be held accountable and we need people whom know something about animal care working at the pound.%u201D Nickell said during Sharp%u2019s recent visit to the pound, Sharp went through paperwork concerning a sheltered dog she wasn%u2019t authorized to look through. %u201CI have not rummaged tough paperwork,%u201D she said. %u201CI pull intake papers to fill them out and adopt dogs. Jim Nickell lied to the HSUS and said that he turned the pound over to a local group. If his statements are true, then yes, we do have the right to do whatever at the pound since he stated nationally that he handed the pound over to a local group.%u201D Nickell said much of the information Sharp has been circulating over the Internet has slandered the county.%u201CThis lady has taken it upon herself to generate slanderous e-mails against the county,%u201D he said Thursday. %u201CShe has exploited this county in a negative way over the Internet. She is one person in the community - who isn%u2019t even a resident of this county %u2013 and she has told a bunch of lies and caused this problem. I just think it%u2019s all to bring attention to herself. As for going through the paperwork, she is not allowed to do that.%u201DNickell said he is aware there are times when overcrowding becomes an issue at the shelter. But, he said the large number of dogs dropped off by the community is the root of the problem. %u201CWe are getting dogs from our county plus Carter, Bath and Fleming counties and does make for overcrowding,%u201D Nickell said. %u201CPeople come by after hours and just throw the dogs into the holding pen or will tie them to the fence%u2026 The allegations about the neglect and abuse are just not true. There was a fight among the dogs, but dogs will fight and that is something we cannot help all the time. And as for a new shelter, we are working on doing just that. There are certain standards that have to be taken care of before we can move a shelter. I do care about the animals at the shelter, and I don%u2019t like or appreciate the allegations that are circulating.%u201D Sharp said Rowan County Dog Warden Jimmy Hale needs help with the shelter and claims Wayne Warren, part-time employee at the shelter, is %u201Cunqualified%u201D to work there.%u201CThe problem could be solved if the county would hire a decent assistant,%u201D Sharp advised. %u201CJimmy Hale cannot do everything by himself. I have no real issues with Jimmy, I do however have many issues with these unqualified people the county continues to hire.%u201DSharp said her complaints with the shelter are not to gain personal attention.%u201C

Personal gain, yeah right,%u201D she said. %u201CI barely eek by a living because everything I have goes to helping these dogs that this county ignores. Slanderous? No, it's the truth. I am an American citizen exercising my right to free speech. In the constitution of the United States of America it states that citizens have a duty and obligation to speak out against injustice and to speak out if they see problems in their government.%u201D

UPDATE 5/13/2007: MARY hi all, i wanted to take a minute to send a quick update on max and the shelter. i hope i am including everyone in this email. we have had such a tremendous response from so many caring people, it has been simply amazing. SHELTER UPDATE: myself and debbie hinkle re-visited the rowan co animal shelter yesterday. we went to pull some dogs that some rescuers had wanted to save, so we were anxious about the conditions we would find. when we arrived, we were met outside by jimmy (the aco). i had never met jimmy til yesterday. we aksed if we could pull some dogs. jimmy made a call to his 'supervisor' and we were informed we could not have any. we were upset to say the least. so we were leaving, and as we were backing out, jimmy flagged us down and said that he had another call, and apparently jim nickell (co judge) had told him to let us save dogs!! so we were excited that we could help some more dogs! when we went into the shelter, it was a much different scene from last weekend. it was a very calm and quiet atmosphere. they had approximately 30-35 dogs and all were very relaxed and seemed to be a nice enviornment for them. they were all very content and many were stretched out on the beds that was provided for them. unfortunatley, a lot of the sick and injured dogs were euth'd, but as over-crowded as i was, it did need to be done to keep the aggression under control. all the aggressive dogs were also euth'd. the gentleman that we encountered last week was also there, and he had made the comment that he was going to sue myself and debbie for slander of his name. i told him i had never mentioned his name....nor did i even know it. i told him we had proof of the suffering and neglect max had endured, and through the pictures, eye witnesses, and vet bills, he would not have a chance. it is people that lie, not evidence. it is anyone's guess how many times he walked past poor max laying there suffering, and not even gave him a second look. it is my opinion that this individual does not need to be working at the shelter. it is very apparent he has no concern for the animals there. i asked him why someone wasn't contacted saturday morning when he saw the shape max was in....his reply, 'there was nothing wrong with that dog'. for those of you who saw max's injuries, appauling isn't it? there was also an eye witness that said she had saw injuries to max's leg on weds, so that means he likely had his first attack weds morning, and was left in there.we can only hope that this situation will continue to improve and i pray it will not end up like it was last weekend. i know that this shelter accepts dogs from 3 counties, and the over-crowding cannot be helped sometimes, but i hope they will be made more aware to dogs with severe injuries, and will provide them with the adequate care in the furutre. i hate the fact that poor max had to endure the suffering he did, but hopefully it wil make the shelter employees aware that things were out of control, and i hope judge nickells will continue to monitor the progress of the conditions at the shelter. the local morehead paper did a story and i have attached the link below for those of you who has not read it.http://www.themoreheadnews.com/homepage/local_story_131105633.html

MAX UPDATE: now for max!!!! max got to come home yesterday! he is doing much better, and is trying to walk. his will to live really amazes me. he looks so much better in his eyes and his wounds are slowly healing. he has a LONG recovery ahead, but with his strong desire to live, i know he will overcome this and is going to be 100% again very soon.He still has a lot of injuries and some infection, but he is improving with each passing day. he has had so many wonderful people who have offered help and support for him, it has been over-whelming. i am still in the process of answering emails and returning phone calls from 1-2 days ago....i have had more responses than i can reply to! max doesn't realize how many wonderful people are praying for him and supporting him. he is actually putting his leg down sometimes to help balance himslef, so we are hopeful he will not lose the leg...but right now, it is really a waiting game as we dont know if any nerve damage has been done. his wounds on his head were unable to be closed because his skin was rotted and the vet said the skin was too deteriorated to hold the suture. they had to cut away some of the dead skin and tissue from his head, so he will have extensive scarring on his head. once he was completely shaved, he did have bite wounds scattered through out his body, so these dogs had really did a number on this poor guy. thanks to everyone for your paryers and support for max. this boy is amazing to me that he never gave up. maybe he knew help would eventually come...i dont know, but he is truely a 'miracle' boy. thanks again to everyone who has inquired about max....he sends his kisses to all his guardian angels!!!!

UPDATE 5/11/07: MOREHEAD NEWShttp://www.themoreheadnews.com/local/local_story_131105934.html

UPDATE 5/10/07:from a shelter volunteer:The pound is not locked down. What happened was someone came to the pound on Monday to take some dogs but could not show proof of being a rescue, did not want to pay adoption fees, and Jimmy Hale, the dog warden, did not want to release the dogs to an unknown person without proof of who they were. He was simply doing his job. This does NOT excuse what happened to poor Max and I will not make excuses for the negligence. Several aggressive dogs have been put down and it needed to be done to protect the other dogs. The dogs that mauled Max have been put down or are being put down. All the dogs are NOT being killed. TV36 Lexington has interviewed Suzy Young today at the pound. We are still allowed to pull dogs.

ROWAN COUNTY DOG POUND IS CRAMMED WITH DOGS AND NO HELP IS IN SITE.  THESE DOGS NEED BETTER CONDITIONS AND A WORKABLE BUDGET TO KEEP THEM ALIVE!!  www.dogpoundky.comTHE SHELTER VOLUNTEERS WORK TIRELESSLY, INCURRING ENORMOUS *PERSONAL* VET BILLS, AS A RESULT OF THIS POORLY MANAGED LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND THE HORRIBLE CONDITIONS AT THIS POUND.WE NEED RESCUES TO HELP, WE NEED DONATIONS AND WE NEED TO NUDGE TOWN OFFICIALS TO DO SOMETHING TO HELP US!!THE STATE OF THINGS AT THE POUND IS BEYOND EMERGENT!!PLEASE READ THE ENTIRE PETITION, SO THAT YOU GET A SENSE OF WHAT'S HAPPENING DOWN THERE, RIGHT NOW.PLEASE JUDGE NICKELL- PLEASE HELP US! WE CAN'T SLEEP AT NIGHT- HOW CAN YOU??http://www.petfinder.com/shelters/KY224.html

JULIA AT THE SHELTER/POUND SAYS:"Everything Mary describes is TRUE. Why am I constantly BEGGING for rescues to COME HERE and SEE with thier own eyes what we are dealing with in this community???? I have said time and time again, we need rescue to come here and get dogs. We get a few out, just a few ,and we are grateful for that BUT each day MORE and MORE and MORE come in and they leave the severely aggressive dogs to rip the smaller and weaker dogs apart. We find females on the male side and males on the female side of the pound. IS IT SO HARD TO CHECK THE GENDER OF THESE DOGS BEFORE SHOVING THEM IN THE VERY SMALL RUNS???? We cannot do this alone. I took 5 dogs out last week. Suzy took a litter of 4 pups. I guarantee more dogs came in than 5 adults and 4 pups.Mary and Deb both called me today crying and extremely upset over what they saw. I am glad they came, I am glad they saw it. Now they can verify what I have been saying all this time. I feel horrible about Old Max and it sickens me it took this to make everyone realize what I have been saying. When I saw him Tuesday he was OK, depresssed, but certainly not ripped up or I would have taken him out myself. WATCH THE VIDEO ON WWW.DOGPOUNDKY.COM  Even then you will get only a mere idea of how crowded and horrific Rowan Pound can be for these aniamls. Some people may think I've been overly dramatic...NO...I'm not dramatic. I am dead serious. We need rescue to come to Morehead and get dogs. We need the county officials to LISTEN to us, the voting citizens, when we say put that aggressive dog down before it kills one of these sweet dogs. We need hours more condusive to rescue. We need far too much to lsit here. We have frontline at the pound, the workers don't sue it. We ahve boradatelle but it's too "hard" for the workers to give it. Many dogs do not even have intake paperwork on them. Some dogs do not even get the parvo/distemepr shots.Our few hands cannot do this alone. We have NO room at home, vets are always full, vet bills out of control,  AND MOST SHAMEFULLY WE DO NOT HAVE LOCAL FOSTERS! I have begged everywhere locally for fosterrs, no luck at all. many people out of state offer to foster and that goes back to we have NO WHERE to hold dogs to get them transported to out of state foster homes. I honestly do not know HOW to make that statement ANY clearer. We do not ahve the money or resources to get them there ourselves. Suzy and I barely scrape by a living. Everything we have goes to these animals and it isn't enough. SHAME ON ROWAN COUNTY, SHAME ON IT'S UNCARING APATHETIC CITIZENS, SHAME ON IT'S "LEADERS". SHAME ON ALL OF THEM FOR LEAVING US TO CLEAN UP THEIR MESSES. Old Max needs vet bill help. He must live. He desreves to live with a little comfort before he leavss this world. He has apparantly laid in that run since being attacked some time after I left Tuesday afternoon. I persoanlly cannot be at the pound every single day. The workers have walked past Max and known he was not able to move for days. They LET HIM LAY THERE TO DIE. Mary was even told by the weekend worker that dog is going to die. IF YOU CAN HELP WITH HIS BILL, please contact Mary. Max is at her vets who kindly stayed late to accept Max and get him started on treatment. Mary and Deb, I am sorry you have been so traumatized by what you saw. But thank you for having the guts and strength to report it! Thank you for coming. Thank you for SEEING. AND THANK YOU FOR GETTING THAT POOR DOG TO THE VETS TODAY.Julia Sharp. Busting my arse every single day right along side the other handful of volunteers and getting no where in this backwoods community."HERE ARE SOME SHELTER REG'S- PLEASE DO SCROLL TO THE BOTTOM AND READ MARY'S POIGNANT ACCOUNT OF HER VISIT THERE!KRS Chapter 258 %u2013 Animal Control and Protection       Additional information available at:       http://lrc.ky.gov/KRS/258-00/CHAPTER.HTM Animal Shelter Standards "Animal shelter" means any facility used to house or contain animals, operated or maintained by a governmental body, incorporated humane society, animal welfare society, society for the prevention of cruelty to animals, or other nonprofit organization;258.195 Employment, appointment, or contract with animal control officers -- Establishment and maintenance of animal shelters %u2013 Intergovernmental agreements -- Authority of animal control officers. (1) The governing body of each county shall employ, appoint, or contract with an animal control officer, or shall contract with an entity that employs, appoints, or contracts with an animal control officer, and shall establish and maintain an animal shelter as a means of facilitating and administering KRS 258.095 to 258.500. One (1) or more counties may enter into intergovernmental agreements for the establishment of regional animal shelters, or may contract with entities authorized to maintain sheltering and animal control services. Animal shelters shall meet the standards provided by KRS 258.119(3)(b) within three (3) years after July 13, 2004. Governing bodies may adopt additional standards and ordinances related to public health, safety, enforcement, and the efficient and appropriate operation of their shelters and their animal control programs.258.119 Animal control and care fund -- Distribution of moneys %u2013 Eligibility requirements.(3) As used in this section, "animal control and care program" means a program in which the county:(a) Employs, appoints, or contracts with an animal control officer, or contracts with an entity that employs, appoints, or contracts with an animal control officer, as required by KRS 258.195, who is a high school graduate and has completed the training requirements set forth by the Animal Control Advisory Board; and(b) Maintains an animal shelter, enters into an intergovernmental agreement for the establishment of a regional animal shelter, or contracts with an entity authorized to maintain sheltering and animal control services, to provide services that:1. Segregate male and female animals by species in runs and holding areas;2. Provide separate runs or holding areas for ill or injured animals. An ill or injured animal shall be treated with proper veterinary care or euthanized;3. Provide quarantine for dogs and cats presented to the shelter when quarantine by the owner is not feasible or desirable, the cost of quarantine to be borne by the animal owner at the shelter's regular housing costs and fees. Quarantined dogs and cats shall be held in isolation for observation of symptoms of rabies for a period of ten (10) days from the date the dog or cat bit a person. If the dog or cat dies or is euthanized while in quarantine, it shall be submitted to the local health department for testing for the presence of the rabies virus. The cost of the testing shall be borne by the animal owner or the local health department may bear the cost at its discretion;4. Provide holding areas with protection from the weather, including heated quarters during cold weather. Holding areas shall be free of debris or standing water; shall provide adequate lighting, ventilation, and sanitary conditions to promote a safe, healthy environment; and shall provide adequate space to allow for normal movement, including standing to full height, sitting, turning, and lying down in a natural position without coming in contact with the top or sides of the enclosure or another animal;5. Provide runs and cages built of materials which can be readily cleaned and disinfected, including floors made of an impervious material;6. Provide access to the public for no less than twenty-four (24) hours in one (1) week, with the hours that the facility is open to the public posted in a visible location;7. Employ euthanasia methods specified as acceptable for that species by the most recent report of the American Veterinary Medical Association Panel on Euthanasia;8. Provide potable, uncontaminated water to every animal at all times, and palatable, uncontaminated food daily; and9. Maintain a record on each animal impounded. Records shall be maintained for a period of two (2) years and shall include:a. Date impounded;b. Location found or picked up;c. Sex of animal and spay or neuter status, if known;d. Breed or description, and color; ande. Date reclaimed, adopted, or euthanized.