I am all for giving Mr. Rogers a chance, hopefully he will be given the freedom to make changes, If he is to just carry out the status quo, nothing will change hopefully the bad seeds will be removed and the employees that do their jobs will not be punished for having some compassion. I am behind Mr Rogers but my eyes will be opened wide.

Mayor Wharton says,"I only hope that we can continue to see even more engagement from citizens who want to come and adopt one of the beautiful animals from the shelter." At the rate you're minions are running people off from the shelter (dedicated volunteers who give of their time because they love the animals)together with the lame attempts at adoptions made by the shelter, I'm sure citizens are flocking to the shelter. When are you going to realize that these "citizens" are taypayers AND voters!! When was the last time you are at the shelter, Mr. Mayor, visiting these "beautiful animals"? Go take a peek at the dumpster outside the kill room and tell me how beautiful it is!! Get YOUR hands dirty, volunteer at the shelter (without the cameras and spin)...maybe then you'll understand the problems!

"significant, measurable progress" - wow, the Mayor likes to keep polishing that turd, doesn't he? And he's not afraid to make up statistics to do it. And the police are monitoring the cameras? Really? Because they don't have anything better to do, right? It's not like there's...you know...crime or anything happening out there. How about you let the taxpaying public monitor the cameras - they'll do a better job of it and they'll do it for free! I have every hope that Mr. Rogers is just what the shelter needs. Clearly good management has been nonexistent at MAS. I also hope that he is willing to work with local rescue groups to help get animals out alive, rather than in a dumpster, which has been SOP at MAS. Listen to the harsh critics, Mr. Rogers - they're not happy, but the information they have can only help you.

People management experience is definitely needed at MAS. Many of the employees are NOT doing their jobs and they get away with it. If all the employees were at least half-heartedly doing their work, there would be no starving dogs and no filthy cages. And because th have problems keeping up with all of the stats on every animal they intake (the city actually does admit that, amazingly), they need someone with logistics experience. BUT - the city could hire the best qualified (in all aspects) person in the entire world, yet if Hooks or Wharton do not allow that person to actually DO everything that needs to be done – holding employees accountable when they do not do their jobs, stopping the neglect and abuse (discipline or fire the people committing that abuse), fully utilize their Chameleon software, and really reach out to the community with tangible options for adoption, ownership, spay/neuter – then there will be no changes and it will be the same mess that it has been for years.

the blu noses will eat him alive

"Senior Manager for Customer Service Operations with the U.S. Postal Service," I really don't think this is much of a reference. IMOP And as sec1863 stated this man has NO animal shelter experience! Business a usual in the city Of Memphis.

This is a very sad day for all of the animals. Really, Mayor Wharton, this man has NO animal shelter experiemce. That says it all doesn't it?! Why bother trying to find a QUALIFIED person, WITH shelter experience, to run that concentration camp called MAS?! And your math is WAY off - if euthansia decreased by 20%, that means the number should be around 55% - but wait, it's at 75%.....maybe there was a decrease of approx FOUR, not 20% percent- 4% and that is NOTHING to be proud of - still killing 3 out of every 4 animals coming to the shelter. Not to mention all of the excuses you and Hooks/Hall come up with to blame everyone else but yourselves. Hey taxpayers - look what Mayor Wharton is doing with your tax dollars!!!! Lipstick on a pig- that's what the new shelter is!