WESTLAND, Mich. – Westland resident, Melissa Wise, thought it was odd when she noticed a Westland Animal Control truck pulled up next to a dumpster at an old firehouse on Palmer.
“That’s when we heard a loud thump,” Wise said. “And you’re wondering, what did Animal Control just put in the dumpster?”
When Wise opened the lid of the dumpster, she was horrified to find the body of a dog laying on top of a pile of garbage.
“I was disgusted,” she said.
Turns out, the Animal Control worker dumped the body of a pit-bull named Nina, which had recently been reported missing by her owner.
Nina ran away from home, and was later found dead on the side of the road after she was apparently hit by a car.
Wise couldn't believe Animal Control would treat someone's pet with so much disrespect, so she took the complaint to city leaders.
When confronted, the Animal Control worker said there was nothing he could do about the dog, that’s why he dumped the dog's body in the dumpster.
“I had to go pick up this other guy’s dying dog. There was nothing I could do,” said the worker.
The city, on the other hand, wasn’t buying that excuse and fired the worker and suspended the fire marshal and his supervisor without pay for five days.
The mayor told Local 4 that the incident should have never happened, and released this statement regarding the incident:
"Like you, I was shocked and appalled to see the photographs of a Westland employee throwing the body of a deceased dog into a Dumpster. After an investigation into the incident, the City of Westland has terminated the animal control officer in question, and his supervisor has received a five day, unpaid suspension. On behalf of the City of Westland, I want to apologize. This should not have happened. This animal was someone's pet and deserves respect and compassion just like you and I would want and expect for our pets.
The City of Westland is in the process of reviewing all of our policies and procedures with regards to Ordinance and Animal Control under a recent reorganization I announced a few weeks ago.
As a Compassionate City, our city values all lives, both human and animal. As animal lovers and dog owners ourselves, my wife Sherri and I wish to donate a proper burial of this beloved pet to his human family to help them say goodbye."