31/10/2025
Melbourne. Our beautiful Melbourne.
Here we are.
Failing our companion animals spectacularly for decades.
We are a disgrace.
These past weeks, I have almost be brought to my knees with staff and ex staff of the Lost Dogs Home coming forward and telling me of their experiences. I have listened, heard them sob, and tried to offer some kind of hopeful compassion.
Today I know the horror is continuing in there. I know who is responsible. I know what you do - and how you are doing it.
And I will stop you.
Most important are the stories that are coming from the very people who, compassionate and fair, have been personally brutalised within those walls.
I want you to hear their stories.
Remember - any staff or ex staff who want to speak to me you can always email me at [email protected]
Melbourne City Council are now launching an investigation into the Lost Dogs Home for breaches. You can remain anonymous.
Contact is [email protected]
Here is the raw and utterly heartbreaking experience of an ex staff member.
This is what's happening to Melbourne's Companion Animals.
"When Business Trumps the Heart of the Stop Convenience Killing of Victorian Shelter Animals
My time at the Shelter was meant to be a mission of mercy, a commitment to animals in dire need. Instead, it became a heartbreaking education in the brutal realities of "business over compassion" and "politics over compassion." It is with a heavy heart and deep sadness that I expose the systemic deficiencies that fail the very animals this institution is sworn to protect.
I joined when the team leader was in charge, I was assured I wouldn't be responsible for the final, devastating call of euthanasia. My recommendations were reserved for the most extreme cases—where a dog's fear and suffering were so profound that continued life was genuinely inhumane.
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The Cultural Erosion:
Opposition Becomes Leadership
The moment the team leader left, a shadow fell over the behaviour department.
The interim team leader, who quickly reversed the former team leader's efforts to establish consistent, politically neutral assessments. This internal change brought with it the deeply entrenched institutional politics that resisted change. Much of the culture has been promoted or laterally moved from one department to another, carrying the existing internal conflict and subjective politics that corrupt the assessment process.
Meanwhile, a new Head of Department, represented an opportunity for change, but instead, they quickly embraced the existing toxic culture.
The Code of Euthanasia:
Under this new leadership, the code phrase "not within Shelter pathways" became a chilling euphemism for a death sentence. This outcome was highly subjective, dependent entirely on the assessor's capabilities and on their "grooming to assess an animal"—a process heavily influenced by politically-driven internal team and management dynamics.
The Haunting "Congratulations": The ultimate gut-punch came when the new Head of Department congratulated me for making a decision to euthanize a dog—a moment that haunts me on a daily, ongoing basis. This celebrated a failure of compassion, a surrender to expediency, demonstrating that even fresh oversight was willing to prioritize business expediency over rehabilitation.
When I voiced my ethical differences, I was given a chilling ultimatum by the Department Head: I had to make a choice of either leaving or accepting the ethics of the company and the process.
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Systemic Failures: Denying Basic Rights and Ethical Horror
The problems were not just ethical; they were operational and deeply political, limiting the animals' chances for a future across the entire facility:
Breach of Care and Safety:
I personally witnessed breaches of the code of conduct, including animal pen cleaning with F10 and washing out while the dog was still in the pen. Causing red raw paws on the dogs from the contact with the cleaner on more times than I can even bring myself to reflect on. I also saw the unacceptable sight of more than one dog in a pen due to a persistent capacity crisis. Dogs never leave their pen for days(lack of manpower). Dogs unwashed long fur with faeces for the greater part of the day(lack of manpower).
Flawed Record Keeping: The dangerous practice of backdating assessment information—sometimes 24 to 48 hours after the fact—compromises the entire assessment process, leading to the risk of inappropriate euthanizations.
Blacklisting Hope: The Shelter's internal politics have led to the blacklisting of some rescue organizations. This eliminates vital safety nets for animals and ultimately condemns them. (The “How do we feel about x, y or z rescue” one Vets exact words when I suggested a rescue that had capacity for a breed specific).
The Uttermost Betrayal: I had Animal Attendants describe difficult days where they had to assist and witness death.
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These agonizing circumstances are fuelled by a corrosive environment where the issues are only fractionally due to "public irresponsibility" (the blame phrase in the shelter that people dump dogs irresponsibly) The true poison is the cold, calculated business model overriding care, coupled with the ego and internal politics of departments. This culture allows people to wrongly reconcile their own internal conflict with the defence of, "I'm doing so much good," but enabling inhumanity to persist.
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To the many caring employees who work tirelessly within the Shelter: I know you are feeling the exhaustion, the compassion fatigue, and the cognitive dissonance of this environment. You are the last line of defence for these animals. Your silence only allows the broken system to continue.
Your conscience is your guide. The time has come to document the truth.
I urge you to use whatever means you can—be discreet, be careful, but bear witness.
Document Pen Conditions:
Take pictures of dogs remaining in their pens while they are being power-washed or chemically cleaned. Capture images showing instances where more than one dog is being kept in a single pen.
Record Political Obstruction:
Document any internal communications, emails, or procedures that show the unethical conduct around rescue organisations and attempts to limit their vital life-saving work.
Log and Witness the Unthinkable:
We need the truth about the most vulnerable. Any staff member who can come forward with witness testimony to substantiate the rumours.
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We understand your sadness and frustration—you are absolutely not alone. The path to change isn't paved just with external demands, but with the courage of every individual who witnesses this suffering daily. We must rise up and hold this institution accountable for its failures. Let's not just complain about the culture of business; let's tear it down and replace it with a culture of true compassion.
The specific details you've uncovered in the Code—the ones that are being conveniently glossed over or omitted in information sessions—are the keys. Please, before the investigation closes, notify the Senior Animal Management Officer City Safety, Security and Amenity at City Of Melbourne. If anything is going to change, it starts with you. You are not alone.
