Montco SPCA executive director retires after scrutiny of the wealthy shelter’s operation

The longtime executive director of the Montgomery County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals retired Tuesday, two weeks after an Inquirer investigation revealed that the deep-pocketed animal shelter was dangerously run-down and plagued by mismanagement.

Montgomery County SPCA board president April Lownes-Hostler told staff that Carmen Ronio, 79, would be stepping down effective immediately. In a statement, Lownes-Hostler said the board has also formed a new “management committee” that will “provide greater day-to-day support and supervision of the leadership team” at the shelter.

“We know this has been a difficult time for MCSPCA employees and other critical stakeholders, but we’re confident we’re going to emerge stronger and more committed to our mission than ever before,” the statement read.

The board has not yet named a replacement for Ronio. Lownes-Hostler referred staff to shelter operations manager Ed Davies for questions about their day-to-day job duties.

Ronio’s departure marks the nonprofit’s first major shake-up since The Inquirer published a report on Sept. 19 documenting widespread mismanagement, troubling euthanasia practices, and squalid conditions at the suburban SPCA — the wealthiest animal shelter in the state.

While half of animal shelters in Pennsylvania have $4.5 million or less in assets, the Montco SPCA reported over $67 million at the end of 2023, and yet spent only about $3 million a year on operations. Despite its wealth, the save rate for animals at Montco’s main Conshohocken branch is the lowest among 11 shelters in the Philadelphia region, The Inquirer found.

» READ MORE: Euthanasia, understaffing, and broken kennels are rampant at Montco’s ultra-wealthy SPCA

In the wake of the Inquirer report, volunteers and animal welfare advocates launched a campaign to reform the shelter. More than 2,800 people signed an online petition seeking to oust top managers, and dozens protested outside the shelter’s main branch last week, holding signs with messages like “Ronio must go” and “How many animals need to die?”

Like many shelters, the SPCA relies on contributions from donors and wealthy benefactors who leave part of their estates for the shelter’s mission of saving at-risk animals. Outraged by the recent revelations about conditions at the shelter, several donors threatened to withhold financial support from the shelter until changes were made. One benefactor e-mailed shelter leaders as well as The Inquirer last week to announce she had removed the Montco SPCA as a beneficiary in her will.

Ronio did not immediately respond to requests for comment. He began working at the century-old suburban shelter 52 years ago and rose through the ranks. He was named executive director around 2000, and has long held a top position on the shelter’s board, overseeing operations at the SPCA’s three branches in Conshohocken, Abington, and Perkiomenville. His $250,000 salary accounted for nearly 10% of shelter’s operational costs in recent years.

Staff, volunteers, and animal welfare leaders in the region told The Inquirer that, under Ronio’s leadership, the SPCA was stuck in the past.

» READ MORE: 7 things to know about our investigation into the wealthy, yet rundown, Montco SPCA

Unlike most modern animal rescues, the Montco SPCA does not have foster programs, hold adoption events, or work with other rescues to place hard-to-home dogs and cats. Managers were allegedly “trigger-happy” to put animals down for any reason, current and former staffers said, and occasionally mistreated animals in the shelter. (The shelter’s sole full-time veterinarian, contacted for comment, resigned days before The Inquirer published its story.)

Meanwhile, poor conditions have persisted at the Conshohocken shelter for years, while tens of millions of dollars sat in investment accounts.

The Inquirer obtained photos and videos of animals whose faces had been gashed on frayed wire in the kennels. Dogs often escaped through perennially broken kennel gates, staffers said. This summer, whistle-blowers documented evidence of black mold in a feline isolation room and lodged a complaint with the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration, along with photos of other supposed dangerous conditions.

Ronio declined to talk to a reporter for The Inquirer’s investigation, and has not spoken publicly about its findings since. Lownes-Hostler said the board took the complaints “very seriously” and said improvements to the shelter facilities were underway. She said the board hired a firm to investigate the shelter’s practices, conducting interviews with staff, and make recommendations.