Major changes could be coming for Wichita Animal Shelter

A local rescue says a severely hurt dog, could've been better cared for while at the city's animal shelter. While looking into how injured animals get treatment, Eyewitness News found out major changes could be coming for the Wichita Animal Shelter.

Three-year-old pup, Jone, is healing from some severe wounds - she has most of her fur and skin missing on her right side and is healing from several broken bones.

Wichita's Animal Shelter says she got hit by a car ten days ago. Now she's in the care of rescue group, Beauties and Beasts.

"She went beneath the car and was actually stuck beneath it and they had to pull her out," said Randi Carter of Beauties and Beasts.

The shelter says Jone was brought to their vet contractor then back to the shelter. They contacted the owner to pick the dog up, but the owner never showed up.

"That was wrong in my opinion, she should've been left at a vet getting treatment this entire time. Not sitting at a shelter. That wasn't the place for her to be," Carter said.

Carter also says she didn't receive proper pain medication, and Jone was in severe pain when they picked her up.

The city says those are all things they will review.

"We're looking into some of the processes of when the animal was initially at our facility - from when the animal control officer picked up the animal to when it was released," said Captain Brent Allred with the Wichita Police Department. "Did we follow the right steps?/ It's always good to go back and take a look," he said.

Allred says the shelter is actually in the middle of re-examining processes for its entire operation.

It's asking vendors to submit plans to take over most of what animal control officers and the contracted vet do now. That includes daily cleaning, feeding, and medical care.

"It would be a big change," Allred said.

The change has nothing to do with Jone or the the current vet.The city says the reason is about efficiency.

"Being able to add additional officers out there would benefit everyone in the city," Allred said. "Right now the animal control officers are responsible for cleaning cages. I think they'd be more effective on the street, out there doing outreach education, enforcement, things like that."

City documents show the Kansas Humane Society is one of the vendors that's put in a proposal to take over services offered at the animal shelter.

A list of the vendors won't become public information until city council approves it - that's expected to happen in July.

Beauties and beasts is fundraising to help pay for Jone's treatment and looking for an eventual owner.

Find out more and how to donate here:

https://www.facebook.com/beautiesandbeastsrescue/posts/1356963834340352?hc_location=ufi

"She's a happy pup, she'd doing great, got her on a great treatment plan. She wants to live and she deserves it," Carter said.