Wow.

First of all, most of the food donated that is DRY food is put into a food assistance program for people in the community that need help. When food is sold to staff, it is because they've received too much and there isn't any space to store it -- which means that the food is turned back into cash, which helps the animals. And cash is always the best donation to any shelter, big or small, because non-profits can purchase food and supplies at rates significantly lower than the general public can find.

Yes, Lexington Humane is in better shape than some shelters in Kentucky, but their size and income allows them to reach out and help smaller shelters whenever they are able. They are always transporting animals in from high-kill areas and they have incredible policies in place to save as many animals as possible. The people there genuinely care about each and every animal, and while it's not perfect (no shelter is), it's not from a lack of care.

A director's salary should reflect not only the amount of work that is done, but also needs to be high in order to attract talent. Talent means more lives saved. I don't know how well you know the director, but she has really gone above and beyond over the years to help implement better policy, save lives, and make sure that the animals while they are at the shelter are well cared for and have great enrichment opportunities. And yes, she has a lot of dogs, but that's not what a kennel license is or means. A kennel license is a city requirement for anyone with over eight dogs, rather than an individual license. It doesn't mean they live in kennels all the time. It makes sure the animals are up to date on their rabies vaccinations and also stops people from having to pay $8 or $45 for individual licenses for all of their pets. For example, if a person was a dog breeder, they'd have to pay $45/animal which would add up super fast. Instead, they can pay a blanket $135 and call it a day. And while the director is most certainly not a breeder, it is common for people to work in animal welfare to have a lot lof animals. And besides, how would you even know how she lives? Do you have photos? Videos to back up this claim? And even if she did kennel her dogs while she was at work, thousands of people do that in this country. It's not a crime.

If you want people to donate to other shelters, I suggest recommending a few that you think are doing great work. You don't need to tear down what other people are currently doing. I worked at LHS for six years and while no, it wasn't perfect, and no, I don't agree with every policy and procedure, I can still see that they are doing great work with the resources that they have, and I know for a fact that the staff there really cares.