RALEIGH NC; DEMAND SHELTER DIRECTOR'S RESIGNATION

On Thursday evening, November 7, Wake County Animal Services, under the direction of Dr. Jennifer Frederico, initiated an unannounced raid at the home of Carol De Olloqui, Founder of Calvin's Paws Rescue. In light of the irregularities and deviation of protocol that took place during this raid, where 60 cats were euthanized unnecessarily, please accept my formal request demanding the resignation of Dr. Jennifer Frederico. We ask the Department of Environmental Health and Wake County Commissioners initiate immediate action to terminate her employment.
We are independent animal rescue volunteers. We are not associated with Calvin's Paws Rescue. For the record, while we do not condone the total number of animals that were found located at Ms. De Olloqui's home on that Thursday evening, the extreme actions on behalf of Dr. Frederico in this case begs for a strict review and finally, her dismissal as Director of Wake County Animal Services.

Facts:

-Ms. De Olloqui was physically restrained and not allowed to provide veterinary documentation to support each animal
-Four of Ms. De Olloqui's personal cats were destroyed
-Four of the cats present on the property at the time of the raid were being held as a courtesy for an owner that recently lost her home in a fire
-Several of the cats euthanized were under various area veterinarians' care. The veterinarians were available but not allowed to present any documentation at the time of the raid
-Several of the cats euthanized were the property of other rescues
-Calvin's Paws Rescue and many other rescue fosters were in route to Ms. De Olloqui's home to retrieve animals and provide them with shelter but were turned away. Many are approved partners of Wake County Animal Shelter.
-Ms. De Olloqui granted access to Dr. Frederico and her team into the home of her own accord
-Calvin's Paws Rescue is an approved partner of the Wake County Animal Shelter
-This is not the first quick rush to euthanize animals by Dr. Frederico. In a recent raid at a home in Holly Springs, the media reported 42 cats were euthanized. In 2012, Sassy, an owner surrender dog to the Wake County Shelter was euthanized within minutes of being presented to the shelter. The owner had a change of heart and returned to the shelter to find the dog had been euthanized, the shelter staff citing aggressive behavior.

Points for consideration:

Per Section 3 of the NC Legal code, article 19A-49 , each animal cruelty investigator at his own expense must attend annually a course of at least six hours instruction offered by the North Carolina Humane Federation or some other agency. The course shall be designed to give the investigator expertise in the investigation of complaints relating to the care and treatment of animals. Failure to attend a course approved by the board of county commissioners shall be cause for removal from office.all animal cruelty investigators are to attend an annual. Do we know that the officers on site had the proper training to handle this type of case?

Where there have been other raids such as puppy mills, search and seizures in our state, the animals confiscated were reviewed and held. Only the most ill were euthanized. Citizens lined up at the shelter in one particular case to "adopt" the highly sought "pocket book" type dogs like Maltese and Pomeranians. Rescues took most of the dogs that had medical issues to foster and hopefully, rehome. Was there prejudice in this case because the animals that were euthanized, just CATS, and not the highly adoptable designer dogs that can provide the shelter with a great press coverage and quick adoption fees?

Government agencies are challenged with cut backs and reduced spending during these hard economic times. There were alternatives available that would have avoided impacting the tax payer and saved the animals lives. Why was Dr. Frederico given this latitude?

In the recent interview with WRAL reporter, Renee Chou, Dr. Frederico stated that available space at the shelter was one of the main reasons for euthanasia. Ms. De Olloqui has been charged with three counts of misdemeanor animal cruelty charges and the raid is considered a criminal investigation. In criminal investigations, the animals are considered "evidence" and are required to be held.

If the Dr. Frederico and her team did not allow the vet and rescue documents to be viewed and substantiate the status of each cat, by law, the animals would have had no "proof of ownership" and therefore are required to be placed on a stray hold by the shelter, typically 72 hours. This did not happen.

The reports released in the media changed daily. Initially, the cats were reported healthy. The reports the following week advised that 60 of the cats were ill and required to be euthanized. Where are the documents that support this decision? Why would you allow the opinion of one person, who is on record for being quick to euthanize and in previous documented cases, made questionable decisions, be allowed carte blanche when the lives of so many animals were on the line?

Dr Frederico references that when hoarding situations arise, "they are handled on a case by case basis". Not true. There is a protocol and it was not followed. This was a feline genocide.

The rescue community and animal advocates are outraged. The people that make up this network are tax payers and registered voters and as a group, demand this case it's due diligence.

As county commissioners and state government employees, the more important question to be answered is why does the State of North Carolina have such high numbers of unwanted and abandoned animals? Why are the county animal shelters and rescue organizations completely full? Continual pet overpopulation and lack of legislation to require mandatory spay/neuter for all companion animals is the crux of the problem, not people like Ms. De Olloqui as Dr. Frederico would have everyone to believe.

Dr. Frederico and Wake County ...