Connecting the Dots: How Best Friends’ Policies May Have Contributed to Indianapolis Animal Care Services’ Decline
When Flawed No-Kill Policies Backfire: The Unraveling of Indianapolis Animal Care Services
When Indianapolis Animal Care Services (IACS) entered into a partnership with Best Friends Animal Society (BFAS) in early 2024, the collaboration was heralded as a transformative step toward achieving no-kill status. With BFAS embedding an Interim Manager to oversee operations and implement lifesaving strategies, expectations were high. Yet, as 2024 came to a close, data painted a troubling picture: a shelter in decline, a frustrated community, and unanswered questions about what went wrong.
The same day Animal Politics published its investigation into the challenges at IACS under BFAS' guidance, Mirror Indy released a detailed article highlighting operational struggles at the shelter. While Mirror Indy did not explicitly connect these issues to BFAS’ involvement, the overlap in concerns raised by both pieces suggests a pattern worth closer examination.
A Shelter in Decline
According to IACS’ own data, 2024 marked record lows in several key areas:
Animal Intake: IACS took in 46% fewer animals compared to 2019, far exceeding the national average intake decline of 11.3%.
Response Times: Citizens waited an average of six days for animal control assistance by December 2024—three times longer than in 2023 and ten times longer than in 2019.
Enforcement: Citations and summons issued by Animal Control Officers dropped to their lowest level since data became available, falling from a high of 7,097 in 2019 to just 1,709 in 2024.
Foster Program: The number of animals in foster care at the start of each month averaged just 140 in 2024, down from 477 in 2019.
These statistics point to a shelter struggling to meet its obligations despite having a BFAS-embedded manager tasked with implementing "proven" strategies to improve outcomes. The question is: why did this happen?
The Role of Best Friends’ Managed Intake Policy
One of BFAS’ core strategies is its Managed Intake policy, which limits shelter admissions to match capacity. This approach is intended to prevent overcrowding and improve live-release rates, but critics argue it prioritizes optics over actual outcomes. In Indianapolis, this policy coincided with a dramatic reduction in intakes and longer wait times for animal control services.
Anecdotal reports from community members indicate that animals turned away from IACS were often left to fend for themselves, creating a surge in stray populations and animal control complaints. The data appears to support this: while IACS’ live-release rate improved slightly from 84.89% in 2023 to 86.68% in 2024, this came at the cost of significantly reduced intake numbers and deteriorating service delivery amid escalating animal control complaints.
The National Shelter Embed Program
BFAS’ involvement at IACS was part of its National Shelter Embed Program, a high-profile initiative placing Best Friends staff members in shelters nationwide to accelerate no-kill benchmarks. The grant agreement between BFAS and IACS gave the embedded Interim Manager authority over program and policy decisions, including implementing Managed Intake, community cat programs, and enhanced adoption efforts.
Yet, despite having an embedded manager for an entire year, IACS saw performance metrics decline across multiple categories. This raises two critical questions: were BFAS’ strategies fundamentally flawed, or was their execution inadequate? Similar concerns have been raised in other cities where BFAS has implemented its embed program, suggesting a broader issue beyond just Indianapolis.
Implications for Indianapolis
The challenges at IACS go beyond operational inefficiencies—they reflect broader systemic issues within animal welfare that demand urgent attention:
Transparency: A lack of clear data on intake requests versus actual intakes makes it difficult for stakeholders to evaluate whether Managed Intake policies are effective or merely masking deeper problems. For example, while IACS reports a significant drop in animal intakes (a 46% decrease since 2019), there is no publicly available data on how many citizens attempted to surrender animals but were turned away due to capacity limits. This missing metric obscures the true demand for shelter services and raises questions about where these animals end up—whether with smaller rescues, unprepared citizens, or abandoned altogether. Comprehensive reporting on intake requests would provide a clearer picture of community needs and allow for more informed decision-making.
Accountability: The partnership agreement between BFAS and IACS explicitly states that all policy decisions remain under local control—raising questions about whether BFAS provided sufficient guidance, whether local leadership failed in execution, or whether the strategies themselves are simply ineffective.
Community Impact: As smaller rescues struggle to absorb animals turned away by IACS, public frustration is mounting. The combination of long wait times, limited adoption and volunteer opportunities, and reduced enforcement has left Indianapolis residents feeling abandoned.
Recommendations for Moving Forward
To address these challenges and restore trust within the community, Indianapolis must take decisive action:
Reevaluate Managed Intake Policies: Ensure that intake restrictions do not leave vulnerable animals without care or shift undue burdens onto rescues and citizens.
Increase Transparency: Publish detailed data on intake requests, enforcement activities, and outcomes to provide a clearer picture of shelter performance and identify areas for improvement.
Strengthen Accountability: Conduct an independent review of BFAS’ involvement at IACS to determine what went wrong and how similar partnerships can be improved in the future. This analysis would not only benefit Indianapolis but also serve as a valuable case study for other communities considering similar partnerships, ensuring that lessons are learned and best practices are adopted.
Invest in Prevention: Recommit to robust spay/neuter programs as a long-term solution to sustainably reducing shelter intake numbers.
Engage Stakeholders: Volunteers are the backbone of any shelter, providing essential support for animal care, adoptions, and fostering programs. IACS’ recent decision to limit volunteer involvement is a concerning misstep that risks alienating a dedicated workforce. Rather than restricting participation, the city should focus on empowering and engaging these individuals to help address shelter challenges.
A Call for Leadership
The challenges at IACS are not unique—they reflect broader systemic issues in animal welfare that often prioritize metrics and optics over sustainable solutions. The difficulties associated with BFAS’ policies in Indianapolis serve as a critical reminder: without robust accountability, transparency, and oversight, even well-intentioned reforms risk falling short of their goals and leaving communities and animals underserved.
What was meant to be a lifeline for IACS has instead become an example of the dangers of outsourcing critical animal welfare responsibilities to external organizations without proper checks and balances. The consequences—reduced intake, weakened enforcement, and growing public frustration—are now undeniable. Indianapolis must decide whether to continue down this path or demand real change.
Call to Action
On Feb. 19 the Community Affairs Committee is meeting. This meeting is a crucial opportunity for those who care about the future of animal welfare in Indianapolis. This committee oversees public services and government accountability, making it the most direct forum for addressing IACS’ challenges and pushing for urgent reforms. Public testimony is not just encouraged—it is essential. This is the opportunity for citizens, volunteers, and advocates to hold leadership accountable, demand transparency, and insist on policies that truly serve both animals and the community.
If city leaders fail to act, they will send a clear message that the welfare of Indianapolis’ animals and the concerns of its citizens are not a priority. If advocates stand together and make their voices heard, they can force a course correction before the damage becomes irreversible.
Make your voice count. Attend the Community Affairs Committee meeting:
📍 5:30 p.m. | Feb. 19 | City-County Building, 200 E. Washington St., Indianapolis
My Statement to the Community Affairs Committee
Ed Boks is a former Executive Director of the New York City, City of Los Angeles, and Maricopa County Animal Care & Control Departments, and a former Board Director of the National Animal Control Association. His work has been published in the LA Times, New York Times, Newsweek, Real Clear Policy, Sentient Media, and now on Animal Politics with Ed Boks.
GSD Indy Rescue posted about this issue yesterday on their FB page. Apparently they are being forced to house stray animals when IACS refuses to. What's not being documented is the negative impact managed intake in municipal shelters is having on private/non-profit organizations.
These problems are a common theme in several cities that entered into agreements with BFAS. El Paso turned into such a nightmare they cancelled their agreement with BFAS. Several California cities have been sued (and paid out millions of dollars) by residents who adopted dogs, known by staff to have histories of aggression, but were never informed of their history, per BFAS policy. Several of these adopters were horribly mauled and left disabled for life. BFAS comes in claiming to be the knight in shining armor who is going to bring the shelter to no-kill status, with their "proven" strategies. The only way they are bringing down number is by turning intakes away (managed intake) and telling the good Samaritans who found the animal that they should take the dog to their house for the stray hold period.