Leadership questioned at Indy's struggling animal care agency

Indianapolis Animal Care Services continues to struggle with ongoing changes and current leadership.

Kelly Diamond has been leading the agency for over a year, and was set to take on the role of director until Indianapolis City-County Council members delayed her appointment in response to community concerns.

Dozens attended a Community Affairs Committee meeting this week, and some spoke out about Diamond. Many were longtime volunteers, like Monica Griffin, who said Diamond’s leadership was lacking.

“This is my city. This is my shelter. I love the animals there and the animals deserve much better. And frankly, I deserve much better,” Griffin said.

Last year the shelter switched to emergency intake, reducing the number of animals in kennels. The shelter operated at critical capacity levels for years at its aging shelter on the west side. 

Members of the IACS staff spoke in support of Diamond. And Diamond said managed intake has given them more time to focus on strategy. 

“We now have this breathing room where we can start looking at what is working in other shelters across the country,” Diamond said.

Many said the intake change resulted in an increased number of animals on the streets and longer response times. A number of rescue owners said the move directly impacted their work. Angie Hill runs Sketchy Mutts and Underdogs and is a former shelter volunteer.

“Instructing the public to put dogs back out on the street is not working,” Hill said, “Independently funded rescues that are not supported by tax dollars are doing the work that IACS is mandated to do as an open intake shelter.”

Other people who spoke were unhappy with a policy change last year to stop using My Case, a website that shows individual legal infractions across the state. Diamond said people seeking to adopt were being unfairly discriminated against based on past cases. Others argued using the website was the only way to vet people.

City-County Councilor Micheal-Paul Hart urged Diamond to better cooperate with volunteers because IACS is in a unique position.

“I can pick any department that we have, we'll never hire enough people, but you have something unique that others don't, and they're all sitting right here,” Hart said.

The agency became independent this year, and a new shelter building is being built on the southeast side of the city. 

The full council will vote on the appointment of Diamond next month.

Contact WFYI Managing City Editor Jill Sheridan at jsheridan@wfyi.org.