When released, she went looking for her animals.
When she arrived at the “tin building with no air conditioners or fans,” that’s when she began to get a bad feeling.
“A man named Aaron unlocked the shed and took me down a dark, dirty narrow aisle and opened up an eye-level cage,” said Harmon. “Inside was my 12-year-old cat, ‘Girlfriend’, and she was so traumatized that she didn’t even recognize me.”
“Anyone who says that cats don’t change their expression is wrong,” she added. “My little kitty wore the face of despair as though she was waiting to die.”
“Then we turned to the dog cages and my heart was truly broken,” said Harmon. “My aging dog ‘Bambi’ and my lab mix Mollie were crushed in a small pen with two other dogs.”
According to Harmon, both dogs were covered in urine and feces with Mollie getting the worst of it with feces in her ear and matted on her coat.
To add insult to injury, the worker told Harmon that she would have to pay $225 for “sheltering” her animals for five days. Harmon only had $60 which she claims he begrudgingly accepted and put into his pocket without providing a receipt.
Crowley Mayor Greg Jones said he felt compassion for Harmon but disputed the fact that the shelter was without fans.
“As far as her charge of a city employee pocketing any money it will be looked into and we will properly handle the situation,” said Mayor Jones.
“Look, I realize that our shelter does need some work, but as most people know we are presently dealing with budget issues which make spending money on improvements very tough. We will look into the conditions of the shelter and its employees and see what we can do to improve the conditions as soon as we are able.”
The city went through protracted budget debate this summer. Its financial report lists several million dollars in reserve balance.
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