An animal rights group has filed a lawsuit against the Animal Foundation, alleging the shelter is not complying with the Clark County code under which it operates and has resulted in high fatalities and euthanasia rates.
The lawsuit filed by No Kill Las Vegas alleges the Animal Foundation is violating municipal code, which they claim has resulted in fatalities due to negligence and animal suffering from a lack of medical treatment.
No Kill Las Vegas also claims the shelter has refused to accept animals despite saying on its website that it “takes every animal who comes to them in need.” The group also alleges the shelter has essentially turned to euthanasia as a way of managing the number of animals it has.
“We’re tired of having our dollars going toward them killing more animals,” said founder Bryce Henderson.
Henderson said they have been fighting with the shelter for a decade, including lobbying elected officials at the county and the city of Las Vegas, who both provide funding for the Animal Foundation. Henderson said he hopes a lawsuit will make a difference, forcing both sides to publicly present evidence.
“Our organization has posted dead animals that were killed due to their negligence, being left outside, animals that weren’t fed. We have their own data that shows back in 2021, there’s over 3,000 animals that came in to the shelter, that they have no outcome data for,” said Henderson.
He added, “I don’t think we even know the half of what’s really going on there. And once we get in there and are able to look at their books, we’re gonna discover that place is even a lot worse than we ever realized. ... I would love to see another organization running the shelter. One that’s progressive and honest."
No Kill Las Vegas said they will next officially “serve” the Animal Foundation, after which the shelter has 21 days to respond.
A representative for The Animal Foundation said it "does not comment on litigation.”
