They Killed Batman
You may think by the title that this is about a new action movie coming out, but it is not. It is about a 10 years old large 90 pound American Staffordshire Terrier. His name was Batman. Batman was at the Virginia Beach Animal Control facility where he was supposed to be taken care of and where he was supposed to get a new life, after his family gave up on him. Batman was a boy who was loved by many of the volunteers at the shelter. The pictures on the http://www.beachpetpals.org/ (this is the website showing dogs available for adoption at the shelter) and the write up about him are all you need to see to understand that he was loved. The description on the website said “I've never been a fan of so called "superheros". Let me state right here, right now, that has all changed. This big hunka love is BATMAN!!! And I must say I am his biggest fan! This boy is certainly an elderbull. His paperwork states that he is 10 years old. He is solid as can be. Probably weighs at least 90 pounds. At least. His big feet probably weigh 5 pounds each ;) He's not had an easy life. He came in a hot mess, with eyes almost crusted closed and his paws burned and swollen from standing in his own waste. He has come such a long way and he deserves a nice home to spend the remainder of his time being spoiled in! He is said to be housetrained and to like children. We took him out on a meet and greet with another chill dog and he did just fine. He was completely balanced. I would suggest bringing your dog with you if you are interested in making Batman a part of your family to make certain they will get along. He walks well on a leash. He is also smart. Yes, not only is he handsome, but he has brains, too!! He knows his basic commands. Sit, shake and down come easy. He also takes treats very gently. This big lug will steal your heart the first time he puts his big old paw in your hand and looks into your eyes for assurance that everything is going to be ok. Batman is available now at VBAC&AC, 341 S Birdneck Rd. His ID# is 1301-0436.”
Now that you know Batman is a dog, you’re probably thinking that he was put down due to space, or because he was sick or maybe because he was aggressive and un-adoptable. The shelter was not full and space was not needed, Batman showed no signs of being sick and he was a very gentle giant who loved to be with anyone who would spend time with him. So you’re probably asking yourself what happened to him. Why is he dead today? As it has been reported, a caregiver (those in charge of caring for the animals) put Batman outside midafternoon on Sunday. Batman was then forgotten outside, despite the fact that the caregivers are supposed to do a “bed check” to ensure that all dogs are in their kennel and accounted for prior to leaving for the day. If the check was done then how could this 90 pound, very large boy not be missed? He wasn’t missed since he was left outside. Batman must have been confused at some point, wondering why no one came to let him in and why he was forced to stay out in the cold. If you remember, Sunday was a very cold day, the wind picked up around 5:00pm and the temperature dropped. The temperature continued to drop throughout the night. The temperature dropped to the mid or low 20’s. Batman was outside this entire time, unable to get inside where it was warm, alone and confused, most likely even scared. At some point he couldn’t take the cold any longer and he died, outside, in the dark and completely alone. Batman froze to death. What could this sweet boy have been thinking as he was dying? Did he know he was dying and was he scared to be meeting the end. I have to imagine that the worst way to die is alone, hoping for someone to help you, but no one comes. You know something is wrong and you close your eyes for the last time. This was how Batman died, a terrible needless death that did not have to happen. Batman’s death was due to those in charge of caring for him simply not caring enough, maybe rushing through the shelter so they could leave for the day and sit in the cozy warm house.
At 5:00am on Monday morning, caregivers start to arrive at the shelter to start their day and to clean the kennels from the night before. There is supposed to be another “bed check” performed at this time. If that check was actually performed then you would think Batman would have been discovered outside, frozen to death. But he was not. Could this very large 90 pound boy actually be missed twice or is it more likely that procedures were simply ignored? You’ll have to be the judge of that and decide for yourself. But Batman was NOT discovered until late morning, around 10:30am or 11:00am. He was not discovered by any member of the shelter staff. He was discovered by a volunteer who went to see Batman and take him out for a nice morning walk. She was happy knowing that she would get to spend some time with this big guy that she had come to love. Instead, she found Batman outside, frozen to death, SIX hours after the morning check had been done to ensure that all dogs were in their kennel.
They killed Batman. They didn’t do it humanely. They didn’t euthanize him. They didn’t even know he was dead until someone came in and told them. What would happen to a dog owner who left their dog outside overnight to freeze to death? That owner would be charged with animal cruelty. So what will happen to the caregiver who left Batman outside to freeze to death? What will happen with the management that has become so lax that they let the shelter run itself, a management team who worries more about their days off than whether or not the animals are properly taken care of, a management team that won’t walk through the kennels to see how many dogs have no water until a volunteer fills the water bowls. And what will happen to the shelter director who hardly ever leaves her office, a shelter director who volunteers have brought many issues to with nothing being done at all. Something, possibly someone, must change. Batman can not die such a horrible death with no one caring. If you agree, please contact Virginia Beach Mayor Will Sessoms, Virginia Beach Police Chief James A. Cervera, Virginia Beach Police Deputy Chief of Operations Tony Zucaro and your Virginia Beach City Council representative. Tell them that this is unacceptable and that change must happen and must happen immediately.
Update:
The caretaker responsible, was never identified by the shelter and was never disciplined, other than she was transferred to working with cats until “things cooled down” That Caretaker’s name is Nicole Barrerra. And the reason that Batman was left outside to freeze to death? Because Nicole didn’t want to be late for a date with her new boyfriend. She is no longer at VBAC, as she has recently left and is now working as a caretaker at Best Friends Animal Society in Kenab, Utah. My only hope is that she takes better care of the animals there. This is also a woman who would walk by dog kennels with crap all over them and complain or actually yell at the dog, rather than taking the time to clean the kennel, or would downtalk the dogs she didn’t like so potential adopters would pass them up in favor of a dog she liked much better.
Juleen Balance, the Director of the shelter, has a history of covering things up that she doesn’t want known, as well as a history of threatening volunteers who question the decisions that are made, especially when it comes to euthanizing dogs. She has no idea who the dogs are, as she sits in her office pretty much the entire time she is at the shelter. And if you get called by Wayne Gilbert (her henchman) that he and Juleen want to talk to you, you pretty much know that another threat is coming.
I’ve been asked why this info wasn’t made public when it was learned that Batman had frozen to death outside. The simple answer is so nothing would happen to the animals that I or others cared about. Simply put, when you disagree or go against what the shelter management wants then the dog you care about “gets it to a fight”, “bites someone” or “gets sick” and had to be euthanized. It’s the way it is and it’s happened to many volunteers at the shelter. Since all of the volunteers have left, there is no worry about a dog suffering for one of us speaking up. When I say that Shelter Management made it very clear clear that it would be handled internally, that is an understatement.
Many, many very good volunteers have left since January of this year, volunteers who have been with them for 4 years and more. And I can’t blame any of them for leaving. Between Juleen and Wayne, they make it very clear that they want you gone and will push until you leave.
