TOLEDO, Ohio — A former employee of Lucas County Canine Care and Control claims the outdated South Erie Street building and its 36 employees struggle to properly care for its 185 dogs.
"Over the year that I had been there, I'd seen how they had taken care of the dogs," said Cheyenne Wyland, who formerly worked as a kennel technician.
Her last day with LC4 was May 28 and she left frustrated with her experience.
"The end goal for me would be to just open up the eyes of management, for sure. Just so they can see what's going on and that there needs to be a change in that place," Wyland said.
LC4 will eventually move into a new facility on Monroe Street, expected to be open in May of 2025. But Wyland's claims are about bad conditions in the current facility, which WTOL 11 toured.
LC4 representatives declined to speak on camera and referred WTOL 11 to statements provided by the Board of the Lucas County Commissioners.
"The Board of Lucas County Commissioners is aware of the post on social media made by a former employee of Lucas County Canine Care & Control.
We do not comment on personnel matters, but we can confirm that our Human Resources Department investigated instances referenced in the social media post and took appropriate action.
We welcome members of the media or the public to tour the LC4 facility and learn more about the important and often difficult work that our LC4 team does.
The health and safety of the public, our staff, and the dogs in our care is of utmost importance to the Board. What is best for health and safety is not always easy, especially in this line of work.
It is no secret that the current LC4 facility has outlived its useful life and presents daily challenges. That is why the Board is investing $35 million to build a state-of-the-art canine care and control facility on Monroe Street.
The new building will provide much-improved ventilation and drainage critical to health and safety. It will also include large kennels, outdoor play areas, designated quiet spaces for anxious dogs, modern veterinary exam rooms, a bright intake area, and a separate public adoption lobby.
It is currently under construction and set to open in May 2025."
The building opened in 1965, and the board knows change is needed to maintain standards.
For Wyland however, she says that LC4 has failed to live up to said standards, especially in the instance of a mistakenly euthanized dog.
"Snoop (a dog), she became available for adoption, but her sibling that she came in with, she was actually put to sleep after her stray hold was up because she was too hyper," Wyland said. "Obviously I don't have the proof to show that that was why she was put to sleep."
LC4 officials told WTOL 11 that Snoop was not connected to the wrongful death of the dog.
WTOL 11 was provided with the documentation for the referred case: a pitbull named Ozzy was accidentally euthanized after labels were misread.
In an email, an LC4 employee told WTOL 11 Snoop and Ozzy were also not related.
LC4 addressed the euthanization in a statement also provided by commissioners:
"LC4 acknowledges this dog was euthanized when an employee misread a written kennel number and pulled the dog from the wrong kennel for the procedure.
LC4 has updated its euthanasia checklist and now requires a photo of the dog to be attached to the paperwork before proceeding to ensure this mistake cannot happen again."
WTOL 11 received Wyland's personnel file from the Lucas County Board of Commissioners, which stated Wyland began working at LC4 on Dec. 6, 2022 and submitted her two-weeks notice on May 14, 2024.
The file also included a May 24 report recommending Wyland be fired for failure of good behavior following an April 18, 2024 incident.
Wyland's personnel file also includes a report of a counselling session following an incident on May 23, 2023, when Wyland allegedly improperly cleaned kennels. She received two additional counseling sessions for infractions relating to sick leave, and a verbal reprimand for insubordination.
Included in Wyland's file were two employee performance reviews, one 30 days after she was hired, and another 110 days after she was hired. Both reviews were positive.
Editor's note: The video originally attached to the top of this story has been removed and will be reposted to better clarify the reason a dog was euthanized.