AUSTIN, STAYING TRUE TO LEARNING THEIR LESSON THE HARD WAY

This is the second article talking about the overcrowded situation in Austin. Really, now? Miss Abigail talks about reducing intake, well her version is to turn owners away in order to do this. What will that accomplish? 
http://www.austinchronicle.com/news/2011-07-29/the-unintended-consequences-of-no-kills-success/


"So, the question is: Has it turned out that skeptics were right all along in arguing that the attempt to make Austin a no-kill city was bound to result in an animal shelter operating constantly over capacity, with animals living in every available space and staffers overwhelmed by a never-ending flood of new arrivals? The answer, Smith says, is yes and no."


"So yes, part of the reason the shelter is constantly at capacity these days is because of the city's no-kill status. But Smith says the shelter's consistently bulging population has not and will not result in increased euthanasia rates. The city's implementation plan may allow for euthanasia when no cage space is available, but Smith believes that has "nothing to do with what no-kill authentically is.""


Smith may be so drunk that she believes that but I will tell you what it actually means. It will mean more animals running the streets in Austin. It will mean more animals lying by the side of the road dying a long and painful death. It will mean more feral cats to deal with. It means disaster is awaiting right around the corner.


I am receiving messages that the staff at TLAC is overworked and tired. Does that mean that overtime is being paid? Money that could best be used for other programs. When staff is overworked, that means the animals suffer. Volunteers, most often, are more trouble than they are worth. Volunteers aren't reliable and if you depend on volunteers, then you are up the creek without a paddle. What happens if those volunteers don't show? Staff has to make up the difference. You don't put dependence on volunteers in an open door shelter or any shelter for that matter. To do so is a kiss of death.


Miss Abigail is overworking staff, stacking and crating them, and denying that there is a problem. Ah, that koolaid blinds Miss Abigail to the obvious, but not the rest of us.