The Hawaiian Feathered Friends Network stands in support of Pacific Pet Alliance’s petition calling for an independent performance and financial audit of the Hawaiian Humane Society (HHS). We are adding our voice to this effort because we have seen, firsthand, how the absence of accountability at HHS has directly harmed the animals and people we serve.

As Hawaiʻi’s premier parrot rescue and education organization, HFFN has no formal relationship with the Hawaiian Humane Society. But we interact regularly with bird owners across the islands — people who have lost birds and people who have turned to HHS when they found birds. What they have described to us, repeatedly and consistently, is an organization that is not doing right by the animals in its care or the public that funds it.

Birds Found After Being Told They Were Never Turned In

Among the most troubling things HFFN has documented is a pattern that has repeated itself enough times that we can no longer consider it coincidence. A bird owner loses their bird. They call the Hawaiian Humane Society to ask whether their bird has been turned in. They are told no. They check the website, but no new birds have been added to the found list. HFFN urges them to go in person anyway and ask to physically look at the animals on the floor. They go. Their bird is there. It was there for several days even though they were repeatedly told: no your bird is not here.

That is what one of our community members was told by an HHS volunteer when they arrived and identified their bird — a bird they had been told over the phone did not exist at that facility. A bird that was not listed in the online database. This is not an isolated story. We have heard versions of it from multiple bird owners. And we have heard comparable accounts from dog owners in our broader community who experienced the same thing.

Whether this represents individual misconduct or a systemic failure in how HHS handles incoming animals and public inquiries, we do not know. That is precisely why an audit is needed.

Submissions to the Online Lost and Found Database Go Missing

HHS maintains an online database where the public can report lost or found animals. Multiple members of our community have reported that submissions they made never appeared in the database — and that this has happened to the same people more than once. When it happens repeatedly to the same individuals, it raises serious questions about whether the system is functioning as it should, and whether submissions are being processed fairly and consistently.

For a bird owner whose companion has escaped, every day matters. A submission that disappears into a system that no one is monitoring is a failure with real consequences.

No Accountability, No Response

When members of the public have tried to raise these concerns directly with HHS administration, they have been met with a wall. Phone calls are not returned. Emails go unanswered. When someone does pick up, they are told “I’ll call you back” — and they never do. There is no formal complaint process, no ombudsman, no mechanism for a member of the public to be heard.

This is not a minor operational inconvenience. The Hawaiian Humane Society receives over $4 million annually in Honolulu City taxpayer funds to provide animal sheltering, animal control, cruelty investigation, and other public services. An organization funded by the public at that level is accountable to the public. The current absence of any meaningful accountability mechanism is not acceptable.

The Last Audit Was Nearly 30 Years Ago

This is not the first time concerns about HHS have reached a tipping point. The last comprehensive performance audit of HHS was conducted in 1997 — nearly three decades ago — by Arthur Andersen LLP, commissioned by the Honolulu City Council. That audit identified significant problems: mixed results on animal control benchmarks, weak budgetary controls, inadequate complaint tracking, non-compliance with contract reporting requirements, and poor internal operations.

In 2019, City Council member Ann Kobayashi called for a new performance audit following an exodus of staff from HHS and allegations of animals being euthanized for treatable conditions. That same year, the Hawaii State Senate passed Resolution SR39 calling for greater transparency and accountability. A protest group, People for Animals First, was formed — largely by current and former HHS employees — who documented a hostile work environment, unexplained euthanasia of adoptable animals, and the silencing of internal dissent through non-disclosure agreements.

Despite all of this, no binding audit has ever materialized. The concerns raised in 1997 went unaddressed. The concerns raised in 2019 went unaddressed. And here we are in 2026, with community members still coming to HFFN with the same frustrations.

Birds Are Not an Afterthought

Parrots and companion birds are among the most frequently mishandled animals in institutional shelter settings. They require specialized knowledge, specific housing, and careful behavioral assessment. They are also among the animals most frequently overlooked — underreported, mislabeled, or simply not tracked with the same rigor as cats and dogs.

HFFN does not have a formal intake relationship with HHS. When birds come into HHS, they do not automatically come to us, and we have no visibility into how those birds are being cared for, assessed, or placed. The accountability gap that affects cats and dogs at HHS affects birds too — arguably more so, because there is even less public attention on them.

An audit that examines HHS’s operations comprehensively should include a specific examination of how non-canine, non-feline animals are handled, tracked, and cared for. Birds deserve to be counted.

Public Trust Requires Public Accountability

The Hawaiian Humane Society is not a private club. It is an organization receiving millions of dollars in public funds to fulfill public obligations. The people of Honolulu are paying for those services. They have a right to know whether they are receiving them — and to have a real way to raise concerns when they are not.

HFFN is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. We are accountable to our members, to the State of Hawaiʻi, and to the IRS. That accountability is not optional — it comes with the privilege of operating as a charitable organization. HHS operates under the same expectation. The difference is that HHS also holds a contract with the City and County of Honolulu that obligates them to specific, measurable performance standards. An audit would simply confirm whether those obligations are being met.

We are not calling for the dissolution of the Hawaiian Humane Society. We are calling for transparency. We are calling for accountability. We are calling for an organization that receives public money to operate as a public servant. A thorough, independent audit is the first step toward restoring the trust that has clearly eroded.