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Ashland Source – Ashland County Ohio News & Info
Telling the Whole Story of Ashland County
ASHLAND — Ashland County commissioners approved the promotion of interim kennel manager Shannon Hamilton to take over the position permanently at their Thursday meeting.
Hamilton has served as interim kennel manager since Oct. 17. He was promoted to the position following the firing of his predecessor, Patricia Hootman, on Oct. 10. Hootman had worked as the dog shelter’s kennel manager since January.
Commissioners advertised the position beginning on Nov. 14. According to Nikki Hiller, the commissioners’ office clerk, 29 people applied for the position.
Commissioner Denny Bittle said Hamilton came highly recommended by the deputy dog warden, and that he’d shown himself as up to the job while serving as the interim kennel manager.
“(Hamilton) had proved himself over the last several months to really understand what we were asking to be done, and so we’re very happy to have him step up and do a very good job at this point,” said Denny Bittle, the commission’s president. “That being said, we discussed it with him that it’s more responsibility now.”
Hamilton will make $20 per hour as the kennel manager, a rate commissioners approved as part of their agenda Thursday.
Responsibilities of that position, according to a description from commissioners, include training, managing, hiring and firing other kennel workers. The kennel manager also oversees the shelter’s volunteer program, cleans cages, feeds and waters dogs and vaccinates and euthanizes dogs as needed.
Bittle said Hamilton will be tasked with “straightening up a lot of areas of concern.” For example, Bittle said the shelter had several different types of dog food, some of it that the shelter didn’t use. Hamilton will be in charge of ensuring the shelter gets the right kind of food moving forward.
Commissioners also unanimously approved salary increases for other dog shelter staff at its meeting. The salaries approved were as follows:
The dog shelter’s first year of operation has been marked by controversy. The controversy came in part due to a euthanasia policy approved at the beginning of the year. That policy, which stated “dogs that have been at the shelter for more than one year will be euthanized,” drew criticism from animal lovers.
County commissioners eventually revised the rule. As of Oct. 25, commissioners approved more robust guidelines for putting down stray dogs.
According to previous Ashland Source reporting, those specifics include considerations like severe illness or injury, behavioral issues, quality of life and “overpopulation and resource constraints.” Overpopulation happens when the shelter has more than 51 dogs — the maximum number the shelter can hold.
The shelter has also seen staff turnover throughout the year.
The county commissioners’ approval of Hamilton as kennel manager makes him the third person to hold that position this year. Commissioners fired Hootman, his direct predecessor. Megan Vaught, who held that position before Hootman, resigned Jan. 23.
Joe Eggerton, the dog warden from June 2018-May 2024, resigned on May 23. Ashland County Sheriff’s Deputy Curtis Hall replaced him, beginning the job in July.
This independent, local reporting provided by our Report for America Corps members is brought to you in part by the generous support of the Ashland County Community Foundation.
Ashland Source's Report for America corps member. She covers education and workforce development, among other things, for Ashland Source. Thomas comes to Ashland Source from Montana, where she graduated… More by Mariah Thomas
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