They told me she had to be put down because she was in renal failure, so I offered to do hospice foster care or for anyone I could find to do so. They said no, and that was difficult for me, but I understood this. My manager kindly told me not to give up hope completely because her blood work hadn't confirmed this yet. But the only reason they were doing blood work instead of going straight to euthanasia was because Guilderhaven offered to kindly pay for it. Turns out her blood work said her kidneys were normal and she was not dying. She had a common issue, hyperthyroidism and could be simply treated with an iodine pil per day.
They said she would sill be euthanized for "lack of resources for sick animals" and that these resources are to be used on adoptable, healthy animals.
I offered to adopt (I couldn't because of a new policy stating employees can't adopt for 3 months) I offered to at least pay for her until she found a home but she was not going to be offered a chance because she would never be made available to the public. I offered for my dad to instead of me, because of the employee adoption policy, but I was told by the Volunteer and Foster coordinator I shouldn't be telling anyone, including my family, about the animals and what they did behind closed doors.
I was confused by this since my manager originally said my dad might be able to. She had taken off a personal day when I went to confirm this was okay and was redirected to speak to the shelter director because my manager was gone. She told me she didn't really deal with "us" (the lower/downstairs employees) and that she was only "dealing with me" because my normal manager was gone. She said my dad needed to come in and represent himself if he wanted to save her but she would first be asking the head of Guilderhaven who brought the cat in first if she would pay for her care and take the cat back. I have no idea what they told Guilderhaven she had but it seems they were under the impression she was dying.
My dad came in, upon request by the shelter director, but she was not there, my main manager was, and told him he needed to leave because it was "inappropriate" to offer medical care or adoption for an unavailable animal.
During each conversation throughout this, I said I didn't mean to bother anyone or to turn into a huge ordeal, I just didn't want her to die. Upon hiring, I was told they exhaust every option before euthanizing so I thought I was contributing solutions for this precious little soul who loved to be held and cuddled. They said don't apologize for having compassion, that they understood my feelings, so I thought all my efforts were acceptable. They weren't.
On her last day, I came in on my day off to say goodbye. I set her up with tuna and a heating pad and blankets. I was hoping they would euthanize her where she was comfortable but they made me clean everything up, put her in her cage, and euthanized her in the back on a steel table in the room next to the crematorium where I was not allowed to be (despite initially being told I could.) I was told not to come into work the next day and was getting sent messages from other employees asking why I wasn't there. The next day I came in and no one would make eye contact with me. I was brought in upstairs with a file with my name on it. They made me sign papers I could barely read from tearing up, they said I had to sign them to confirm I was being fired. I don't even know what they said other than "counseling" on the top. In hindsight, this was very stupid of me and I should have refused to sign anything. Everyone knew before me I was getting fired to make matters worse. I was fired for "disrespecting policy and procedures" including an email kindly asking if I could volunteer as well as being an employee. They felt this was not respecting "boundaries" and I was fishing to adopt (email attached). I was escorted to my car after being paraded through the break room, where everyone was standing watching, to make sure I had all of my personal belongings out my locker.
***UPDATE: The APF has responded saying they euthanized by the owners request because the cat was surrendered by its owner. This is a LIE. A volunteer found Pinky, dropped her off as a stray, and the APF has changed the story to say it was an owner surrender. The APF never attempted to find the owner. The real owner Bobbyjo Joralemon, who has three little girls, has come forward saying she has been looking for Snuggles (Pinky's real name) for weeks and had posted fliers. These fliers are also on the "Rotterdam Watch" page weeks back. She was in the hospital for a heart attack and even has a go fund me. She has come home to learn a shelter lied about an "owners request to euthanize" and killed her cat. #justiceforsnuggles. Please spread this update to the misinformation. Beware, APF is blocking and deleting many comments made to read more