Abdul El-Sayed oversaw animal ‘slaughterhouse’ as over 4,000 puppies and kittens killed under his watch
Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed has campaigned heavily on his credentials as a doctor committed to healthcare access, but far less scrutiny has fallen on his oversight of Detroit's animal-control system while he ran the city's health department. According to records obtained by the Daily Mail, nearly 4,680 dogs and cats were euthanised by Detroit Animal Care and Control (DACC) between 2015 and 2017, the period during which El-Sayed served as executive director and health officer of the Detroit Health Department, despite him later claiming his team had "rebuilt the animal control system."
The figures were starkest in 2015, when DACC euthanised 2,260 animals, equating to a save/live-release rate of only around 20 per cent that year, according to rescue site Best Friends. The DACC did not publicly release its 2016 euthanasia data, though records obtained by the Daily Mail put the figure at 1,085 animals that year, while 1,417 were euthanised in 2017; save rates did improve to 60 and 63 per cent respectively over those years. Separately, a 2015 whistleblower lawsuit filed by former animal-control officer Brittany Roberts alleged overcrowded, unsanitary conditions, poor record-keeping and inadequate care for sick and injured animals at the shelter during this period.
- Nearly 4,680 dogs and cats euthanised under El-Sayed's Detroit health oversight, 2015-2017
- 2015 save rate was just 20%, later improving to around 60-63%
- Whistleblower lawsuit alleged unsanitary, overcrowded conditions at the shelter
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The case for
Critics argue that a health department leader is accountable for the performance and culture of city services within his remit, especially where vulnerable animals are concerned. They contend that the number of dogs and cats euthanised during this period warrants serious scrutiny of whether sufficient resources, oversight, adoption efforts and reforms were pursued, and that public officials should not evade responsibility simply because difficult conditions pre-dated them.
The case against
Defenders argue that euthanasia figures alone do not establish personal wrongdoing or indifference by El-Sayed, particularly in an under-resourced municipal shelter dealing with stray animals, illness, overcrowding and limited capacity. They may contend that responsibility was shared across city government and the wider animal-welfare system, and that describing the department as a ‘slaughterhouse’ is emotive language that risks obscuring the operational constraints and any efforts made to improve outcomes.