MOULTRIE, Ga. – The Moultrie-Colquitt County Humane Society seeks a new executive director after Drew Durham stepped down from the position.

Approximately two and a half years ago, the MCCHS Board of Directors was dismantled. The Colquitt County Board of Commissioners and the Moultrie City Council appointed seven community leaders to serve on the board and rebuild the shelter.

Hiring Drew Durham as executive director was one of their first completed tasks.

Aug. 31 was Durham’s official last day, according to MCCHS Board of Director Maureen Yearta.

“He got us through a lot in the beginning, and he helped us with a lot of the operations. He was our first step up the ladder. We still have a long way to go, but he certainly helped us to establish what we did,” she said in an interview Wednesday.

Yearta acknowledged the emotional drain the position can cause.

“It’s like an emotional exhaustion,” she said. “You’re dealing with all these animals, and you can’t help them all. He volunteered his time to look somewhere else, so we accepted his resignation. We’re now in the process of trying to find a new executive director.”

The MCCHS has made several changes and updates to the facility since the appointment of the new board and Durham’s employment. Some updates include new trimming and awnings on the building, painting, landscaping, parking lot resurfacing, adding new office furniture, placing the dumpster on a concrete surface and installing a new security camera system.

The next facility update is resurfacing the kennel floors.

“We’ve made considerable [improvements]. They’ve not all happened overnight,” she said.

The MCCHS board’s next priorities are operations and budget, which the executive director will mainly manage.

“Now we’re looking at the operations and trying to put people in place that can really deliver an efficient and effective Humane Society,” Yearta said. “We’re looking for somebody that really does have a good business sense. It’s a lot more than just loving the animals. We’ve got the staff that can love them and take care of them. We need somebody that can run this like a business.”

The applicant must be able to develop a budget, complete pay schedules, speak to the public and make presentations. They must also manage staff and delegate responsibilities.

“We’re not looking for somebody who works with the animals,” she continued. “We’re looking for somebody who can work with the staff and make sure they’re doing what they’re supposed to do, who can run the business and deal with the donors and that can solicit a lot of support from the community.”

A letter of application and resume can be addressed to Dr. Maureen A. Yearta, Chairman, MCCHS Board of Directors, PO Box 2915, Moultrie, GA 31776. Two applications have already been submitted.

The Humane Society is developing a management contract with the Thomasville-Thomas County Humane Society. The contract will allow the TTCHS Executive Director Chandler Giddes to assist operations at the MCCHS until the new director is chosen and starts work.

It will not be finalized until the TTCHS Board of Directors meets and determines a decision.

Currently, MCCHS is at intake capacity with approximately 130 dogs and 30 cats including kittens. It lost its “No-Kill” status earlier this year, according to Yearta.

A “No-Kill” status means that no more than 10% of the animals taken into the facility are euthanized.

“I know that there is no animal that has been euthanized without careful consideration and deliberation,” she said.

The MCCHS works to adopt out their animals, posting the animal’s pictures on Facebook, sharing their profiles on PetPoint, taking them to PetSense, hosting adoption events and conducting transports to give the animals a chance at adoption.

They are working to implement a new protocol to decide which animals are put on the euthanize list.

“We came up with five criteria: how long they’ve been in the shelter, if they’re aggressive, if they’re heartworm positive, and how old they are. The last one is overall health is weak [or] the various health issues,” she explained.

The animals must fill four out of the five categories to be added to the list, and at least three out of the seven staff members must agree on the decision.

Community members can help the MCCHS by participating in the upcoming Clays for Strays fundraising event, by adopting a pet or by making donations in the dropbox located outside the facility. Wet or dry dog and cat food and cleaning supplies are always needed.

The pet adoption fee will be waived for all Saturdays in September this year.

The current MCCHS Board of Directors members are Chairman Maureen Yearta, Vice Chairman Steve Weber and Katie Jenkins, Jim Matney, Jon Schwalls, Johnny Hardin and Rich Gallagher.

They meet every third Monday at noon in Colquitt Regional Medical Center’s Friedlander Board Room. The meetings are open to the public.

The next scheduled meeting is Monday, Sept. 19.

The Moultrie-Colquitt County Humane Society’s operating hours are Tuesday to Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.