Filing a grievance with the local SPCA shelter?

[crazycatfellow]

I seem to be the target of  opposite end of the spectrum for preferential treatment. From my perspective it seems as if one or possibly more volunteers have some kind of personal bias against me yet are friendly, respond accordingly and willing to assist anyone else without hesitance. This has been going on since I first reached out to the shelter when I started my TNR and rescue operation for neighborhood ferals around nine or ten months ago.

There's too much to type atm but I will share later. Including email responses from them. I was blocked from their Facebook page. They've been less than friendly paying little to no regard to me or my mother. My mother had a post deleted just for asking about rehoming kittens. Trying to get through to whoever is responsible for their emails and managing the Facebook page is like speaking to a brick wall. Whoever is being passive aggressive and purposely malicious. They've been giving me trouble getting cats in for low cost spay/neuter and it's always they are too booked or being told I'm not the only one doing this even though they have the clinics three times a month. I can understand that but if it weren't for having two spayed under emergency circumstances I would've only got three done in the past nine or ten months. Now it's going on four month since the last spay/neuter on June 5th and I haven't received any calls about bringing any more cats in. Everything else regarding my experience with this shelter will be shared later. I'm getting nowhere by email, social media and even phone now. I'm inclined to show up in person with my mother and get this sorted.

For the record I suffer from severe social/generalized anxiety disorder. I'm not fluent verbally so it's very hard for me to verbalize anything when my anxiety is up. I tend to freeze up a lot and what I want to say sometimes comes out entirely wrong despite going over and rehearsing in my head. For this very reason I tend to stick to email or social media and only talking over the phone when absolutely necessary.

I'd like to know what entity or organization has authority above the local shelters that I can file a formal grievance with if my local SPCA is unwilling to cooperate and rectify this matter?

Thank you.

 

[crazycatfellow]

Anyone? Does anyone know who I can turn to above the SPCA shelter? What can I do? I've tried calling them and leaving a voicemail but the haven't yet returned my call and I have a feeling they won't since three days have gone by. I hope my op was clear enough, I realized there were minor spelling and grammatical errors - it was later in the day/night and I was tired when typing that out. I can't seem to edit my above post anymore.

Thanks.

Edit: Forgot to add that I called one of the volunteers from the spay/neuter clinic and was going to voice my complaint with her but when she tried calling I missed her calls and she never tried calling back. I can't reach her directly, I have to leave a voicemail and then she'll return my call from a private number. I don't think I should be voicing my complaint/grievance with her, I should be voicing it with the supervisor or whoever is highest in authority. Then if nothing comes of that I need to know what entity in above the shelters, who audits and investigates them. I'm thinking it's probably best if I go in with me and my mother to talk to someone, that way they can't just ignore me which email, social media and phone/voicemail makes incredibly easy & effortless to do.

I reside in the USA btw.

 

[Kat0121]

I'm sorry that your original post seems to have fallen through the cracks. According to the SPCA Wikipedia page, they are all independent

In the United States, all organizations using the name SPCA are independent; there is no umbrella organization

Which location do you go to? Since there is no umbrella organization, I think the only thing you can do is try to get a hold of whoever is the director of that location. Since you mentioned that you tend to freeze up when you are stressed while in a face to face to face conversation, I'd suggest sending them an email or a certified letter with return receipt. That way you also have proof that you attempted to contact them. 

I'm also very sorry that they are putting you through this. 

 

[crazycatfellow]

Thanks, that's unfortunate to find out. Because I have no idea if it's the supervisor and if it is I'm sol it would seem. I would list everything here but despite my attempts to simplify and keep it brief there is just way too much to post unless I cut some stuff out. I need to get more cats in for TNR so I can start on the outdoor ferals/strays. It's been about four months now and they still haven't returned my call from Sunday. My frustrations and grief falls on deaf ears and remains unresolved. I believe the only way to clear this up would be to go in person with my mother or consult someone else to vouch for me. I'm thinking of using the ADA because they still insisted I call despite making it clear I'd prefer email or social media due to my anxiety and difficulty w/ verbalization.

At this point I feel helpless. I'm trying to do the right thing and I'm trying to give these cats a chance. I'm doing this for my community w/out expecting anything in return. No one knows I'm doing this other than a few people and the landlord. I'm the only one in the community afaik  that's doing this. If it wasn't for us the feral colony would likely be in worse shape, the majority of them are currently quite healthy. We've earned their trust and even socialized a couple of the outdoor ferals. The ferals we've socialized have became very loving cats. We've became the hope for not only the ferals but the abandoned strays or wandering cats belonging to owners that don't seem to care about them. They look up to us, they depend on us. They have our hearts as we do theirs. This one cat has stuck by my place for nearly the whole year and not once has it's owner called for it or went looking for it. I guess some people don't treat cats and see them like myself and my mother. To me and my mother cats are like family. We spoil them like parents sometimes spoil their children. They get sick, we help them get better. We get them vaccinations. They are well fed and cared for, loved. If they go missing or we don't know where they are we call for or go looking for them. If they go missing for an extended period we put up posters and contact shelters. Cats are similar to having kids except they're furry and the love is unconditional. They don't care if you are ugly, fat etc.. as long as you treat them well. I'd like to say they don't mouth back but having some very vocal cats I'd be lying if I said they don't lol.

If it weren't for the small, local out of the way vets I'd be paying upwards of $150 to $300 for a spay/neuter. The low cost clinic at the SPCA makes TNR operations even less of a financial strain . I'd only pay $50 to $75 for my own cats, not to do all the ferals and abandoned strays in the neighborhood.

 

[crazycatfellow]

I wanted to add the following..

I've always been very polite, cordial during my interaction with them. Even after what I've been through and despite my frustration I'm still far too patient, lenient with them. I've waited ample time for a response between emails, messages. I've gave them multiple chances to resolve my complaints. I've never once been rude or used colorful language. I did email them my frustrations in a civilized manner and said I would be escalating my complaint and mentioned they should be reprimanded for such conduct. My suspicion is that it's someone I or my family knows that might have some personal vendetta or grudge against us. We do have prior "history" with this shelter if you call it that..

Years back I found a sickly kitten, badly infested with fleas lying in the grass. My mother tried to give it a flea bath (it looked old enough) but it was in bad shape. She ended up having a friend take her and the kitten to the SPCA hoping they would be able to help it. My mother thought she was doing the right thing. The kitten ended up being euthanized. The SPCA accused my mother of cruelty and threatened to have her arrested. We had no involvement with this kitten beyond finding it outside, trying to save it and my mother taking it to the SPCA hoping they could help it. We found out one of the other tenants cats gave birth a while back and this was one of her kittens. If this tenant hadn't spoke up and admitted it was hers my mother would have been arrested and charged with animal cruelty/neglect. Despite my mother being cleared I presume they are still holding this against us for some reason. My mother is experiencing similar issues with this shelter. 

I've expressed to them I suffer from anxiety and it's less stressful and easier to email, message or write them but they still insist on me calling the spay/neuter clinic. Verbalizing anything for me is a chore. I either freeze up or suffer an extreme case of being tongue twisted. In the worse case scenario I blurt out something randomly. My mind runs at 100 miles a second and jumps from one thing to the next. Even though I rehearse w/ myself and go over it in my head I struggle with verbalizing it as intended. I keep interaction w/ others brief  because of that and the fact I lack the ability to keep a conversation going. I run out of things to talk about, I become bored (as do others) or I freeze up when my anxiety is gradually increasing during a conversation.

 

[crazycatfellow]

I'm sorry to double/triple post but I can't edit my post now. Seeing as replies here are slow (no big deal) I am just wondering if this is fine to send as an email expressing my grievance or if I am overstepping bounds? Any suggestions to shorten this while getting my frustrations and concerns across? I really don't want to come off as a donkey's behind. :/

I self censored any identifiable information.
Thanks for the feedback.

 

[Kat0121]

That's great. You'll definitely get their attention. Bravo to you for standing up for these cats that clearly don't have anyone else. 

 

[crazycatfellow]

Really? That's nice to know. I don't want it to be too long or come across as forceful and rude. I thought maybe I might be overstepping some bounds but I feel a bit more at ease knowing it's fine as is to send out.

Thank you.

 

[Kat0121]

 
Really? That's nice to know. I don't want it to be too long or come across as forceful and rude. I thought maybe I might be overstepping some bounds but I feel a bit more at ease knowing it's fine as is to send out.

Thank you.

I think it was polite, to the point and extremely well written. They have no right to treat you that way and I'm really proud of you for standing up for yourself (and all those lucky cats) in such a mature, civilized way.  

You remind me of my daughter's boyfriend. He also suffers from an anxiety disorder and when you describe how things affect you, it could be him talking. He's also intelligent and kind hearted as you definitely seem to be. 

 

[crazycatfellow]

I just wanted to respond to say no reply (yet) as I suspected. Nor any resolution. However right now this is the last thing on my mind since we are grieving the sudden loss of my father that passed away early this morning. It's been a real tough day and feels like a bad nightmare I want to wake from where everything will be alright..

 

[Kat0121]

 
I just wanted to respond to say no reply (yet) as I suspected. Nor any resolution. However right now this is the last thing on my mind since we are grieving the sudden loss of my father that passed away early this morning. It's been a real tough day and feels like a bad nightmare I want to wake from where everything will be alright..

Oh I'm so sorry to hear that. Yeah, you don't need to be focusing on this stuff.You need to focus on your family. You'll need to lean on each other right now. 

 

[crazycatfellow]

I think it's about time I talk to a lawyer. I don't have to go through with it and go to court, maybe having them served with papers will be enough to change their attitude towards me. I don't hold the entire shelter responsible, mostly it's whoever is administrating their Facebook page and taking emails. This specific volunteer has exhibited callous and passive aggressive behaviour towards me, singling me and only me out. It's been nothing short of insulting, disheartening and depressing. All the while causing me anxiety and grief because I can't for the life of me think of anything I've said or done to deserve this. This has been going on ever since I initially reached out via Facebook. I've always been as polite and cordial as could be. I've been extremely patient, much more than the average person and anyone should be. When I've taken cats in for a spay/neuter I was friendly, I made effort to make conversation despite my anxiety and poor social skills. I've just taken so much bull it isn't even funny and I've always been afraid to fight back to defend myself and my rights. This is blatant discrimination and I'm appalled by it. I'm just too nice to people, even those I'm wronged by.

Lets just say after I calmed down after grieving for my father I noticed the SPCA still neglected to respond. I already had suspicions I was being ignored by them but I couldn't prove it. I never want to jump the gun and come across as being paranoid or irrational. I sent another email, I wasn't happy so I kind of lost my cool and became belligerent with them. Used some colorful language in a generalized manner. Stated in the email I would have them reprimanded for their misconduct, mentioned I would see a lawyer and take them to court. After stating in the email my dad passed away they called the police. Supposedly (yeah right) they took it as a serious threat. The only "threats" were having this volunteer reprimanded for misconduct and I would see a lawyer if this continued to be and issue. Claimed they were afraid I would harm someone.

Considering no crime was committed I talked with an officer over the phone about this shi tzu. Cleared it up with the officer and explained what I was going through, the grief I was being given. I told the officer when he mentioned they thought I would harm someone that I would never do such a thing. I'm not that kind of person, I'm very reserved and non-violent. I'm too afraid to speak up even when I'm blatantly being done wrong. I can't even kill a fly anymore, I started letting them go outdoors whenever one gets in. I take so without speaking up or fighting for myself, I hold it all inside. Thank goodness for having family that's very understanding and empathetic with what I'm going through. Talking with my mother is better therapy than any therapist can provide.

I feel it's going to be difficult to believe me. Oh no, a volunteer for the SPCA would never ever act like that. I was even afraid to post here. Even though my issue is primarily with whoever is administering their FB a sizeable portion of volunteers in their spay/neuter clinic were cold, distant towards me. It felt borderline rude and discomforting to me, they were very unfriendly. It reeks of unprofessionalism. I can't help but worry about the shelter animals when their own volunteers act like this. I'm was just trying to reach out because I'm trying to help these animals. Thanks to their nonsense I've fallen way behind and the feral mothers had one litter since and are pregnant again. I still have a few rescue cats I've adopted I have yet to get in before I moved on to the feral mother cats outdoors. I would've had the feral mothers spayed then trapped, neutered and released the feral males. So this whole operation is now made much more expensive no thanks to them.

I guess the tl;dr version for this is there are going to be some bad apples (jerks) anywhere you go. Mystery solved, they were indeed ignoring me. 

 

[crazycatfellow]

I was adding a few things and making some corrections to my post above but I hit the time limit and errored when I went to submit it.

I think it's about time I talk to a lawyer. I don't have to go through with it and go to court, maybe having them served with papers will be enough to change their attitude towards me. I don't hold the entire shelter responsible, mostly it's whoever is administrating their Facebook page and taking emails. This specific volunteer has exhibited callous and passive aggressive behaviour towards me, singling me and only me out. It's been nothing short of insulting, disheartening and depressing. All the while causing me anxiety and grief because I can't for the life of me think of anything I've said or done to deserve this. This has been going on ever since I initially reached out via Facebook. I've always been as polite and cordial as could be. I've been extremely patient, much more than the average person and anyone should be. When I've taken cats in for a spay/neuter I was friendly, I made effort to make conversation despite my anxiety and poor social skills. I've just taken so much bull it isn't even funny and I've always been afraid to fight back to defend myself and my rights. This is blatant discrimination and I'm appalled by it. I'm just too nice to people, even those I'm wronged by.

Lets just say after I calmed down after grieving for my father I noticed the SPCA still neglected to respond. I already had suspicions I was being ignored by them but I couldn't prove it. I never want to jump the gun and come across as being paranoid or irrational. I sent another email, I wasn't happy so I kind of lost my cool and became belligerent with them. Used some colorful language in a generalized manner. Stated in the email I would have them reprimanded for their misconduct, mentioned I would see a lawyer and take them to court. After stating in the email my dad passed away they called the police. No joke. we didn't need that unneeded, additional grief when we were already dealing with my father passing away. Could they care any less? Supposedly (yeah right) they took it as a serious threat. The only "threats" were having this volunteer reprimanded for misconduct and claiming I would see a lawyer if this continued to be an issue. Claimed they were afraid I would harm someone.

Considering no crime was committed I talked with an officer over the phone about this shi tzu. Cleared it up with the officer and explained what I was going through, the grief I was being given. I told the officer when he mentioned they thought I would harm someone that I would never do such a thing. I'm not that kind of person, I'm very reserved and non-violent. I'm too afraid to speak up even when I'm blatantly being done wrong. I can't even kill a fly anymore, I started letting them go outdoors whenever one gets in. I take so without speaking up or fighting for myself, I hold it all inside. Thank goodness for having family that's very understanding and empathetic with what I'm going through. Talking with my mother is better therapy than any therapist can provide.

I feel it's going to be difficult to believe me. Oh no, a volunteer for the SPCA would never ever act like that. I was even afraid to post here. Even though my issue is primarily with whoever is administering their FB a sizeable portion of volunteers in their spay/neuter clinic were cold, distant towards me. It felt borderline rude and discomforting to me, they were very unfriendly. It reeks of unprofessionalism. I can't help but worry about the shelter animals when their own volunteers act like this. I'm was just trying to reach out because I'm trying to help these animals. Thanks to their nonsense I've fallen way behind and the feral mothers had one litter since and are pregnant again. I still have a few rescue cats I've adopted I have yet to get in before I moved on to the feral mother cats outdoors. I would've had the feral mothers spayed then trapped, neutered and released the feral males. So this whole operation is now made much more expensive no thanks to them.

This all seems really personal like someone has a vendetta. I have to wonder and hope this isn't the case this bologna has to do with that sickly kitten my mother brought in years ago. She was cleared of that back then because another tenant took responsibility - the kitten belonged to that tenant. I don't put it past the SPCA to be holding that against us despite my mother being cleared of it. Other than that it's some bitter person we might've known holding a grudge against us. Those are the only possible explanations I could think of.

I guess the tl;dr version for this is there are going to be some bad apples (jerks) anywhere you go. Mystery solved, they were indeed ignoring me.

 

[GoldyCat]

I don't have any suggestions for what you might do next, but I do have a couple of questions--just trying to get a clearer picture of what's going on. Is the low-cost clinic owned/run by the SPCA, or is it just the clinic that they happen to use? If it's not owned by the SPCA, can you contact the clinic directly, or do they only make appointments through the SPCA? Are there any other shelters, clinics, or vets in the area that you could work with?

 

[crazycatfellow]

All I know is the spay/neuter clinic is operated from the SPCA and surgeries are performed by students. I'm having two different or possibly similar problems with the SPCA. One with getting cats in for spay/neuter and the other is with the person taking emails for the shelter and administering their Facebook page. I'm not sure if myself and my mother got on some kind of blacklist with them. My mother was cleared of wrongdoing after a neighbor took responsibility for it. I found it lying in the grass, she tried treating it for fleas but it was in such bad shape. Worried, she tried taking it to the SPCA hoping someone might have been able to do something to treat it. The poor kitten ended up passing away at the shelter. Thing had a bad flea infestation and was severely anemic. They initially tried blaming my mother and threatened to file charges. They dropped it and cleared my mother after the neighbor admitted it was her cat and took responsibility. Somehow I fear they are still holding this against her and myself - that would seem like the most logical/rational reason.

The first two male cats were done in January. Nothing until March when I reached out to get a female in  for an emergency spay. I was offered a slot to bring a male in for neutering in May. The last cat I brought in was another female for an emergency spay in June. Heard nothing since then.

They've been giving the "cold shoulder" since I initially reached out to them last year.

I reached out to the SPCA in March concerning a lost cat that went missing last year and they posted it on their page w/ pictures of the missing cat. When I received a possible lead from a neighbor in June I reached out once more to inform them and provide details hoping they would post an update on their Facebook. After waiting for days without response I sent another email, that email was ignored as well. I sent another email before finally receiving a response..

"What is it that you want?"

I was baffled. Well duh, I only explained it in the email they ignored. I thought there was some miscommunication so I stated once again why I was contacting them and provided a detailed explanation incl. the lead I received. I received another response stating the following:

"There are not enough resources to address this problem that you are having. Hope you find your kitty or your kitty finds you."

So not only could they not be bothered to post an update on their FB page I received a rather cold, passive-aggressive response. Mind you it appears to only be myself and maybe my mother they've a problem with. They are pleasant to everyone else and have no problem catering to others concerning their lost pets. I believe to be receiving unfair treatment and that explains why I've so much trouble with setting up appointments for cats. They run these clinics three times a month yet I've gotten so few cats in and barely tickled the feral cat issue in my community. The whole TNR and rescue has became a far more expensive operation. Since I've started this the feral/stray mothers have birthed more litters and some of the kittens are reaching the age of maturity to produce more kittens. On another occasion when I inquired via email asking whether or not they microchip animals, specifically cats I was lied to and told they don't do that nor were they aware of anyone that does. I found out later via sources they do in fact microchip animals for a small fee. When someone asked the same question on their Facebook page I replied to inform them I was told they don't do microchipping and my comment was deleted..

The only other shelters are an hour plus drive away. There is a low cost vet but paying $45 - $50 plus a pop is still too expensive to spay/neuter so many cats and made much more expensive considering the lack of cooperation from the local SPCA.

-----

I don't need this grief. I suffer from a myriad of mental illnesses such as anxiety disorder, depression, adhd and ocd. Though I tend to panic often, through practice I've learned to be more patient than most. It's difficult for me to verbally express myself due in part to my debilitating anxiety, racing/disorganized thoughts and poor social skills. As my anxiety goes up so does my difficulties with verbalization. Though less profound, I am more articulate in written form than when speaking. I am usually a very friendly and laid back person. When I attempted to initiate conversation with the volunteers in the spay/neuter clinic they didn't seem all that receptive and rather unfriendly. Calling the police on me knowing my father had just passed away was a really low blow and quite uncalled for. No laws broken, nothing that would require the involvement of law enforcement all because they assumed I might do something. I am not a violent person. All I said is if their misconduct didn't cease I would file a formal complaint and have them reprimanded, mentioned consulting a lawyer to see if I have a case for a potential suit. Admittedly have no financial means to take them all the way to court. As they don't seem to be taking me seriously I may see if I get the desired response and resolution by serving them with papers & calling it off.

I may also contact my local news media to run a story. We are the ones out there trying to do something about the feral cats. We are the ones stepping up to take action, controlling the feral population rescuing them from dire situations, poor conditions. If it weren't for us the feral populations in communities would run amok, cats would be in poor health. We're controlling the feral population through fostering, spaying/neutering our own cats incl. fostered ferals, tnr and generally all cats are in good health because we are monitoring/caring for them. If we have the money, we take any sickly cats to the vet. A lot of these cats/kittens could've perished if not for us. We take care of and feed them regularly. They look up to and depend on us, we earned their love/trust. They are very appreciative in return for caring after them. We shouldn't be going through this, we are trying to do the right thing. I was relying on the SPCA to try to cut costs where I could and be able to provide proper care for them. Cut costs for spay/neuter to cover costs for food and vet care. Our SPCA appears to not want to or care to provide sufficient services or assistance to those in need. Forget financial assistance with vet bills and anything else. Unless this particular volunteer was "blowing me off", according to emails exchanged they do not appear  to have information on hand to refer anyone requesting assistance elsewhere if they cannot accommodate.

Sorry, I did not mean this to become tl;dr or post my life story.