Harrison Counties Gas Chamber

You will see that animals slept next to where they died. The homemade gas box was in full view of other dogs, so they could hear the cries of those shoved into the gas box. It was barbaric and inhumane to say the least.

On October 1, 2008 we were thrilled when our request to close the homemade gas box, which had been constructed by local county garage workers, became reality. Dogs at the Harrison County Dog Pound are now euthanized by injection.

Nonetheless, Harrison County Dog Pound remains plagued with problems. The operation of this facility is substandard. There are no exterior walls. The facility itself is little more than a pavilion, on an old cracked concrete slab that directly adjoins a toxic waste site. Prior to the fall of 2007, it had no roof whatsoever.

Welcome Sign at Harrison County Dog Pound

It is often unmanned, which is part of the reason why they remain “high kill.” “It is difficult to rescue a dog from a dog pound facility when nobody is there on a regular basis during normal working hours. We brought our concerns to the County regarding the dog pound being unmanned. The County’s position is that it is not necessary. According to the Times Reporter newspaper, Assistant Prosecutor Michael Washington maintained, “…The dog drop-off area has to be checked only once every 24 hours”.

This is not acceptable. The animals are obviously not a priority at this pound. Robin McClelland, Ohio SPCA Eastern Counties Coordinator, has witnessed unsanitary conditions including dog feces discarded in empty dog food bags with used needles on the top in an area that is public accessible and eventually thrown into the same unlocked dumpster as the dead animal carcasses. She has witnessed new dogs entering the facility put into dirty cages covered in urine and feces where another dog had been. None of the bowls are washed regularly, if at all, and food is stored in rusty 55-gallon drums. The cost to pull a dog is a whopping $30, generally with no vaccinations, and spay/neuter is not an option. In short, Harrison continues to be a closed, locked, rescue unfriendly, and unmanned dog pound. Animals are not permitted to be posted on the Internet.

It is mind boggling that this operation flew under the radar for this extended period of time. It is confusing why this rural Appalachian County is anti-rescue, given the fact during a brief period from August 21, 2008 through October 26th, 2008, not one dog was put down due to rescue, and the county enjoyed more revenue during that period than they would see in an entire year from the sale of dog licenses and adoption fees. With the “winter wrap” still up in July, combined with no staff on site, these animals simply have little or no chance of being seen or adopted. Therefore, the Ohio SPCA was forced to file an extensive record request upon this County, requesting records for several years. In response, we received a mere 22 pages of documents. We will not rest until we have made a difference, through much needed reform. Please check back to see our progress.

Both Bo and Bella were brought into the Harrison County Dog Pound. Bo’s story is a happy ending, while Bella didn’t get a chance. She suffered alone and then died in a nasty rural county pound.

On a Thursday in late August, 2008, Bella, like Bo, was brought into the Harrison County Dog Pound by the dog warden.  She was unable to walk on her own and had to be carried.  Bella’s plight came to light when our volunteer downloaded routine dog photographs which were taken on Thursday, but not furnished to her until late Sunday night.  Alarmed and horrified, she immediately went to work on a plan for rescuing this poor gal once we could gain access to her.

There was no mention by the Warden that this dog was in such horrible condition.  Bella was found dead on Monday, having been left to suffer, untreated, from Thursday until she expired at the closed dog pound facility during the weekend.  There was no compassion or humane treatment given to Bella.  Unfortunately, help came too late for Miss Bella.

We rely on donations for vetting and emergency treatment for the animals, as well as routine operating expenses.  Seeking emergency vetting in rural Ohio may require a trip counties away to an animal hospital on a weekend. Support from a caring public is needed to support the efforts of the Ohio SPCA.

Bo received emergency and subsequental treatment for his many injuries and aliments, which included parvo and hospitalization. After a lengthy recovery period, today Bo is a healthy and happy neutered boy with little signs of the massive injuries he sustained. Thanks to the HarrisonCP virtual rescue group for all their efforts in raising much needed funding and a special thanks to LabMed, Inc. for their generous contribution!

Had the Ohio SPCA not shown up that day, Bo would have been left to suffer, from Monday until Thursday when he would have most certainly met his fate in a home-made gas box. Without donations for vetting, the financial burden would have been overly burdensome on the Ohio SPCA, but we would have somehow managed.