MARLIN, Texas — “Everyone's entitled to their own opinion, and I just wish people would rely on facts rather than hearsay sometimes,” said city of Marlin mayor Susan Byrd.
It's been more than a month since the initial findings at the Marlin Animal Shelter where several dogs were found dead and neglected.
People in Marlin finally got the chance to share their thoughts with city leaders on Friday night.
“We hear that we need more training on cleaning or that we are looking at our policies but most times we hear silence. If you cannot properly care for the dogs in your community how do you properly care for the citizens in this community,” said protest organizer, Dorothy Sanders.
“And no one thought to get the dogs that didn’t die the much needed help that they needed or any medical attention. Were y'all too busy covering up the crime scene or covering up the suffering dogs that endured the much needed medical help that they deserved,” said Frances Fischer.
25 News asked Mayor Susan Byrd how she feels about the citizen comments.
“PETA has been talking to us. I mean we’ve talked to virtually everybody that there is to talk to that can help us or give us guidance on what to do within our means,” Byrd said. “And again… this problem is not unique to Marlin, Texas. This exists throughout the state of Texas and indeed throughout the United States.”
Some people are not satisfied with the mayor's response.
“Well I sure appreciate… well no, I don't appreciate it,” said Jeb Fletcher.
“I find that quite interesting because for the last few weeks or so we have been reaching out to the mayor to have a meeting. So to hear that she doesn't think we have facts or we don’t have evidence without her talking to us is interesting,” Sanders said.
Mayor Byrd told 25 News' Madison Myers the city is more than willing to get the help they need.
“And we are looking at everything we can look at and everything anybody wants to show us or give us we are happy to look at and see if it will work for us,” said Byrd.
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