Memphis Animal Services director on leave effective immediately, investigation to follow

Memphis Animal Services Director Ty Coleman is on leave, effective immediately, Memphis officials said Friday. Officials said an investigation would follow, but did not specify what the focus of the investigation would be.

However, Coleman has come under fire from animal rescue organizations around the Memphis area after the death of a dog within MAS care earlier this week. And that comes on the back of years of issues for the shelter, which has been criticized for a high kill rate.

MAS posted a statement on June 26 on social media about the death of the dog and said it was likely from the heat. The post has since disallowed comments.

There is uncertainty among rescuers about the availability of vets on staff at MAS. The city said that there is currently an interim vet on staff and that the part-time contract vets are at MAS four days a week.

According to Suzy Hollenbach, founder and CEO of All 4s Rescue League, the dog who died was Lulu and that dog was microchipped to their rescue. The rescue was informed last week that MAS had Lulu and contacted All 4s Rescue League to come and pick up the dog.

All 4s Rescue League is a current pet placement partner with MAS.

When Hollenbach sent someone within her rescue to retrieve Lulu from MAS on June 24, they were informed upon arrival that the dog Lulu had died.

Lulu was located in the outdoor kennels, which at that point had no shade to protect the animals from the harsh sun. On June 24, the day Lulu died, temperatures rose to 98 degrees according to the National Weather Service, and a heat advisory was in place.

MAS said in the statement posted on their Facebook page that they "immediately adjusted" the outdoor play areas to include more shade.

After Lulu's death, Hollenbach said she tried multiple times to retrieve the dog's body. Because the microchip was listed to All 4's, Hollenbach said she is entitled to the dog's body.

Hollenbach said she was told that the dog's body had been transported to a university as a part of the investigation of the death on June 25, a day after the dog's death. According to information given to The CA, Lulu left the facility after noon on Thursday.

Hollenbach, in addition to numerous other rescuers within Memphis and Shelby County which The CA interviewed, said that leadership within MAS has ignored protocol and has put animals' lives in jeopardy because of the use of outdoor kennels.

Coleman was approved by a unanimous Memphis City Council vote in January.

Brooke Muckerman covers Shelby County Government for The Commercial Appeal. She can be reached at brooke.muckerman@commercialappeal.com and followed on X, formerly known as Twitter @BrookeMuckerman.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Memphis Animal Services head Ty Coleman on leave, faces investigation