MCDUFFIE COUNTY, Ga. (WJBF) — Back in August, an investigation was opened after accusations of animal cruelty at the McDuffie County Animal Shelter, two full time employees of the shelter have resigned.

Jason Smith of Community Development says now they’re planning to move forward with the growth of the shelter.

“Transparency is what we’re about in the situation, and when these kind of allegations are raised we want to make sure that we are meeting them and that we are addressing them” said Smith.

Smith says they will create a new staff for the shelter and start renovations for the existing building.

“We’re starting from ground zero here, we have a building we’re in the process of completing some renovations to that building we had a grant from the Humane Society of Atlanta, Atlanta Humane Society,” said Smith.

Smith also says the focus is on the importance of animal services in the community.

“I think probably the biggest thing that we’re going to look at doing is refocusing animal services and having a much more community oriented animal services department, and what I mean by that is, we want our animals to be adopted by our residence” said Smith.

Smith says they also plan to discuss the importance of taking care of animals and partnering with rescue shelters in the area.