Talk:Escambia County District 2

To the Honorable Commissioner Gene Valentino,

My family recently moved to the Pensacola area from the Big Bend area of Florida. We live in the historic Fort Barrancas officers housing on the NASP. These old homes though beautiful, they do have mice. We decided to adopt a feline from the Escambia Animal shelter on Fairfield Drive. We are familiar with rescuing animals. We already had a family pet, our beloved English Springer Spaniel that we rescued two years ago. I believe the experience we had recently in this county is worth sharing with you. We will be in your district for the next three years.

I took my daughters with me to choose the cat they wanted to adopt. They chose a 10 month old kitten. We paid the $50.00 fee. We had the kitten home one full day when she started sneezing out blood. We invested over $300.00 to a local vet. After our family nursed this cat back to health we were bonded with this kitty. So, now we are emotionally and financially invested.

Part of the adoption contract is to bring the animal back to the shelter of spaying. The appointed day we brought back our cat she was immediately moved out of our carrier and squeezed into a much smaller carrier. We were clearly told that she would be moved to the back room and placed in a larger kennel. I was then informed that the spaying would not take place that day, but the next day. I had been instructed to starve the kitten since midnight. Are you aware that cats can go into liver failure if they do not eat often?

As the day wore on my eight year old daughter and I kept having this feeling that something was wrong with the cat. Finally, my daughter asked me to go get the cat. Six hours had passed since we left the shelter. You can imagine the animal shelter staff was peeved that I came back. I asked for the cat. An employee brought her to us in the same small carrier they had squeezed her into earlier that morning. Then the staff member proceeded to tell my daughter and I that the cat would be mad at 'us' and most likely bite us because she had been left that carrier all morning. We had to literally dump that cat out. She could not move. No food, no water, no litter. My daughter and I placed her in our carrier and while we were walking out of the front doors, the snide remark was made to us... "Take your cat home so you'll know she is safe". Okay, if they must be so rude, can they do so out of earshot of my children?

Two days later I discussed this experience with our base vet. It was decided that we would not take the cat back to that shelter for spaying. We took the cat to Safe Harbor Vet Clinic where Dr. Nat performed the spaying. If you wonder why the Escambia Animal Shelter is full, maybe you should ask the staff there just how they interact with the public....and how they treat the animals. I would like the $50.00 voucher they 'were' giving to help offset the cost of spaying. I paid not only $50.00 to the animal shelter, but $65.00 to the local vet. I will not recommend the Escambia Animal Shelter to others on the base who are looking to adopt pets. It's a very sad state for the animals that are left there.

V/R Shana Hamilton 50 Hase Road Pensacola, Florida 32508