"When the opportunity presented itself that others may be willing to manage the daily operation of the shelter, it brought a huge sense of relief to us," the statement said. "We are exhausted financially, physically and emotionally. In the best interests of moving forward with our organization, we made the decision not to submit a bid for our services."
Nicholasville City Commis-sioner Chris Moore has been serving on a committee, made up of two magistrates, a Wilmore city council member and himself, that has been working with the humane society to try to work out some issues brought forth by concerned residents of the county concerning the operation of the animal shelter. Moore also serves on the board of S.A.V.E.
"As part of my process in looking at how an animal shelter should be run and how other animal shelters in other communities are being run, I have met with a lot of frustration other communities have had in working with Jessamine County," he said. "A lot of other veterinarians have had problems working with ours."
Smith echoed Moore's stance in her presentation to the fiscal court.
"I've probably talked to at least 20 people," she told the magistrates Aug. 19. "I haven't gone out looking for negative input, but I've probably talked to about 20 people that are concerned and think that we can do better."
Kim Hurst, director of the Jessamine Humane Society, said it will remain open and will work independently of the county shelter.
"We're not closing our doors; we're not going out of business," she said. "We're actually in business to go out of business and not have any more homeless animals."
According to Moore, the humane society will be allowed to keep the money that was donated to it depending on how it was received.
"If the donor gave it to the Jessamine Humane Society, it's the Jessamine Humane Society's money. If it was given to the animal shelter, then that money should be given to the animal shelter," he said. "But there are concerns, and there have been concerns from citizens that have been voiced to me that money that they (the animal shelter) have been given was going toward the care of animals."
The fiscal court expects to begin taking bids for the management of the shelter next week.
Editor's note: To view a PDF of the statement from the Jessamine County Humane Society, click here.
