The head of Los Angeles' animal welfare system is out following months of speculation about leadership at the troubled agency.
Los Angeles Animal Services (LAAS) General Manager Staycee Dains resigned at the end of last month. The assistant general manager, Annette Ramirez, has been appointed as her replacement by Mayor Karen Bass.
Dains had been on leave since mid-August, with Ramirez serving as Acting General Manager. Dains’ hiatus coincided with a scathing internal report on “deplorable and inexcusable” conditions at L.A. shelters.
An L.A. Times investigation also found skyrocketing euthanasia rates. They were up 82% in June 2024 from the same time the previous year. Just before Dains took leave, LAAS Board President James Johnson resigned. All indications are that he was asked to step down.
LAAS has been a mess for years. Mayor Bass vowed to fix the agency’s problems when she was elected two years ago. While Dains was successful in streamlining the volunteer approval process, chronic issues like overcrowding, understaffing, and euthanasia have continued or gotten even worse.
When asked how Ramirez had been performing in place of Dains, Mayor Bass told the L.A. Times that she’s doing “absolutely fine.”