TUCSON, Ariz. (KVOA) – It's been a dark few months for the Humane Society of Southern Arizona after a small pet transfer went horribly wrong.
HSSA is trying to recover after it received the 323 rabbits, guinea pigs, hamsters and rats from the San Diego Humane Society August 7th.
A group of animal advocates tell News 4 Tucson they are now offering a $1,500 reward to anyone who can figure out what happened to a large shipment of small pets in the custody of the Humane Society of Southern Arizona.
HSSA transported the pets to a secret rescue that was later revealed to be a known reptile breeder Colten Jones.
The San Diego Humane Society said it's reviewing all legal options after the Humane Society of Southern Arizona didn't respond to their requests for verifiable proof of the whereabouts of 250 small pets it transferred to them last month.
The N4T Investigators exclusively obtained a text message sent from Jones to another reptile breeder August 8th indicating the pets likely were used as reptile food, as concluded by the HSSA's private investigator Terry Flores.
A group of more than 20 animal advocates held a protest outside the law office of Farhang & Medcoff Wednesday morning at the corner of Church and Broadway in downtown Tucson.
Flores identified several issues with HSSA's culture and policies and made several recommended changes.
On Wednesday, the HSSA's interim CEO Beth Morrison and new interim Chief Programs Officer Jose Ocano sat down for an exclusive interview with our Chief Investigative Reporter Chorus Nylander.
The battle between San Diego Humane Society and the Humane Society of Southern Arizona continues to boil, it's all over what happened to 318 small pets SDHS transferred to HSSA August 7th.
Ocano has only been on the job for three weeks but hopes to make a big impact.
“Part of what I am here to do is a program audit, operational audit and really start to forge a path forward,” Ocano said.
“Some are small changes we’ve already made others are going to take time and take resources,” Morrison said.
TUCSON, Ariz. (KVOA) — The HSSA Board of Directors announced this weekend that they have lau…
Trust may be the biggest issue they're facing right now. Some animal advocates like Jenna Amico are still not trusting HSSA's leadership.
TUCSON (KVOA) – At a news conference this morning, Humane Society of Southern AZ Board Chair…
Amico believes small pets aren't given the same care as dogs or cats.
HSSA told us small pets are a very small percentage of what they receive but Ocano made it clear that they will get equal treatment.
The new interim CEO at the Humane Society of Arizona is about to finish her first week on the job and sat down for her first interview with our Chief Investigative Reporter Chorus Nylander.
“I think whether we take in 500 small pets or two every single animal that comes to this facility deserves the same consideration,” Ocano said.
New info sheds light on fate of small animals that left Humane Society
Morrison is only going to be in the position until May, Ocano leaves in February.
In January, HSSA is going to start taking applications for the permanent CEO.
If you have a story you'd like us to investigate, email us at investigators@kvoa.com or call our tip line at 520-955-4444.
