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Animal Shelter Practices Examined

http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/kcur/local-kcur-965191.mp3

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – At the end of the month, Kansas City's animal shelter will temporarily go back to be managed by the city, after two years of operation by a private contractor. In 2009, veterinarian Dr. Wayne Steckelberg won the contract to run the shelter, which was renamed Half Way Home Pet Adoptions.

As recently as last year, the privatization of the shelter was considered a success. But complaints from volunteers and a staff member led the city to reconsider.

Hear from Samantha Gooch, a former employee who filed a complaint against the shelter, Stephanie Henshaw, the current foster coordinator at Half Way Home Pet Adoptions, and Karen Sands of the Humane Society of Greater Kansas City, which has been praised for turning around the city shelter in Kansas City, Kansas.

Photos by Sylvia Maria Gross.

This story was produced for KC Currents. To listen on your own schedule, subscribe to the KC Currents Podcast.

Sylvia Maria Gross is storytelling editor at KCUR 89.3. Reach her on Twitter @pubradiosly.
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