ARIZONA, USA — The CEO and Chief Programs Officer of The Humane Society of Southern Arizona have been suspended after an investigation was launched looking into the whereabouts of hundreds of missing animals transported there from San Diego.
San Diego Humane Society transported 318 hamsters, rabbits, guinea pigs and rats to the Humane Society of Southern Arizona on August 7th to alleviate overcrowding at our local shelters. Of those 318 animals, 250 are unaccounted for.
“It would be impossible, literally be impossible to describe how angry, how hurt we are as an organization. We have worked with agencies for decades and have never seen anything along these lines, nor has anyone else in animal welfare,” said Humane Society San Diego Executive Vice President, Brian Daugherty.
Daugherty tells CBS 8 that animal welfare groups in Arizona were the first to shine a light on this issue after they called the Humane Society of Southern Arizona to check on the animals, only to learn staff members weren't even aware a large transport had taken place.
From there, the San Diego Humane Society started asking questions and were told they were given to a small family-run rescue, and adopted out in a matter of weeks, but Daugherty says there has been no documentation to back that up.
“They told us that the 250 animals have been adopted into homes. You need to take us at our word. None of the information they provided made sense with that and we've been asking for clarity,” said Daugherty.
The suspension of the Humane Society of Southern Arizona’s CEO Steve Farley and Chief Programs Officer Christian Gonzalez comes as animal groups based in Arizona claim to have discovered where the animals went, saying the family involved runs an online business that sells live and frozen feed for snakes.
On Monday, the Humane Society of Southern Arizona released a statement saying they are working to confirm the animals’ well-being adding, “….the Board presently has no evidence indicating the animals were harmed.”
Daugherty says it's a good start, but he won't be satisfied until we know for sure what happened to those animals and that those responsible never work in the animal welfare field again.
“Suspension is not enough. Our entire industry is built on trust and transparency and this has damaged the credibility of organizations across the country,” said Daugherty.
The Humane Society has set up a link to update the public on the investigation.
Watch Related: Questions remain about what happened to 250 small animals transported to Humane Society of Southern AZ (Sep 12, 2023)