Cheyenne Animal Shelter releases external audit findings

Recently the City of Cheyenne City Council and Mayor tasked the Cheyenne Animal Shelter Board of Directors to have an external animal sheltering professional review of the Shelter’s operating procedures.

Trish McMillan with Loehr Animal Behavior, based in North Carolina, came to Cheyenne in early December 2018 to visit the Cheyenne Animal Shelter and review its current policies and procedures. She set forth goals for the Shelter and proposed a variety of ideas to streamline its behavior programs, which are detailed in her final audit report.

The Shelter can implement some of the changes at little or no cost, and staff is currently working on standard operating procedures to update employees on the new systems before they take effect. Over the next few weeks, we will be sharing information via social media and our website to notify the public of the changes that are being made to improve animal placement and quality of life for animals.

McMillan holds a Master of Science degree in Animal Behavior from the University of Exeter in England. Her business, Loehr Animal Behavior, specializes in personalized training and behavior modification plans for dogs, cats, and horses. She worked for the ASPCA in a variety of roles for more than seven years, doing shelter work, writing and research. She also performed evaluations and did behavior work with animals from dogfighting and hoarding cases. Before working for the ASPCA, Trish trained and showed horses in a variety of disciplines, managed dog daycares, worked with shelter animals, taught obedience classes, and took in board-and-train dogs. She currently does some contract work with Dogs Playing for Life.

Full details of the audit can be found on the shelter's website.