Mr Dalton said he treated Watchdog! with "the utter contempt they deserve", adding their belief they could call for Mr Jack's resignation was "just plain ridiculous."
Mr Dalton said Mr Jack was a "hardworking chief executive", who had "put his heart and soul into the role."
"Napier City Council chose Wayne Jack from a number, a large number, of candidates because he came to us as a change manager," he said. "We employed him because we knew we needed to change.
"He has brought change to Napier City Council, and change for the good."
Mr Jack took up in the role in September, 2013.
In a statement, group spokesperson Jessica Maxwell said she believed the council had not been upfront regarding the poor management of its pound.
Late last year the group raised concerns about mismanagement and staffing issues at the pound.
A letter from four Animal Control Officers written through their lawyer expressing concerns to Mr Jack was publicised, with the pound coming under public scrutiny after Watchdog! made claims about its conditions.
The group had requested the council commission an independent animal control review, which was not progressed by council.
Watchdog then "took the matter out of [Mr Jack's] hands", lodging a complaint asking MPI to investigate alleged breaches of the Animal Welfare Act.
"Thank goodness we did," Ms Maxwell said. "In the first of two reports, MPI has found a raft of shortcomings and made urgent recommendations for improvements."
Last month MPI released a report to the council on its investigation into the pound. The council issued a release on this stating it found there were no breaches of the Animal Welfare Code at the pound.
This was an "inspection" report from an Animal Welfare Inspector, who looked at the pound facilities and any issues in terms of compliance with animal welfare legislation/requirements.
Another report - expected to be completed in the next few weeks - was an investigation report which would deal with specific allegations of breaches of animal welfare legislation made regarding the pound.