UNETHICAL TRANSPORTS RESULT OF THE "NO KILL" MOVEMENT

I recently posted a story told by a participant in a transport. Seems it did create a little stir. I do want you to keep in mind that when pets are brough in from another area, local shelter pets lose their homes. This is not ethical. http://www.workingtohelpanimalstodaytomorrow.blogspot.com/2012/04/more-highway-to-hell-news-these.html


Here are some responses to that post found online.

This is about a BARC dog transported very recently.....everyone should read!  This is turning my stomach and makes me vomit!  WE ARE the eyes and ears for the animals and from this story this animal was failed miserably although luckily this dog is now safe due to someone who OBSERVED AND CARED!  I personally hope there is another side to this story.   There is a lesson to be learned in this for every rescuer out there! (There is and it is called the pressure and mentality of the "No Kill" movement.)

Please click and read....

http://workingtohelpanimalstodaytomorrow.blogspot.com/2012/04/more-highway-to-hell-news-these.html

Interesting take on rescue...and links to 'no kill'...there must be a way to check out the ultimate destination of the pets.  BARC is the open intake pound in Houston. (If BARC refused to release pets to rescues, imagine the uproar that would cause. "No Kill" is taking away the ability of shelters to do what is in the best interest of a pet as far as who can get them.)  BARC has stopped taking in animals , this from one of my board members in Houston, and is no a “no-kill” shelter ???.  Thisd is a bad joke. Barc is not a no-kill shelter, although they have been working on implementing  no- kill practices with the  help of "Friends of Barc". The Houston area does not have any no-kill shelters. They are the city shelter, so they never close intake except on days shelter is closed....and they are full right now with many dogs at risk as a result. My understanding is this was not the fault of BARC. Rather, an approved rescue let an individual pull the dog under their rescue name even though dog was not going to the rescue and rescue was not involved at all with dog ot screening where it was going. This has become a wide spread issue where shelters are deceived as to who is really taking the dog, and ignorant individuals that "brokered the deal" on Facebook put dog in harms way with help of rescue that allows pull with no due diligence and transporters that do not ask questions before helping.   (This is "No Kill", no concerns about the quality of life, just make those numbers. So there are BOGO sales, freebies, and additional work heaped on shelter staff so they can't take time to check things that need to be checked. "No Kill" has created the "Savior" rescues who only want to say they are alive, they don't care about the life afterwards.) Do a search on this blog for "transport" and read all the others. This isn't the only example and it won't be the last. How many aren't caught because of the mentality of not revealing mistakes of "No Kill"?

SUFFERING IN SAN ANTONIO FROM "NO KILL", WHERE IS RYAN CLINTON ON HIS WHITE HORSE?

Whoa, looks like that horse has done took off for parts unknown. Where is Ryan Clinton while this is going on? Taking a crash course from his Messiah in how to make excuses.


This is going around, an email describing the horrible conditions I have already reported about with San Antonio Pets Alive, a "branch" under Austin Pets Alive, of which Ryan is the volunteer legal counsel. Once again, "No Kill" turns a blind eye to the suffering it creates.


-----Original Message-----
From: 
Sent: May 20, 2012 2:49 PM
To: John Bachman
Cc: Joe Angelo , Sandee Bowman <4paws123@sbcglobal. net>,
"jburgess@gvtc. com" , "CPRExchange@ yahoogroups. com" , Mayor
Julian Castro , City Manager , Erik Walsh , Jeanne Saadi ,
Vincent Medley , "ellen.jefferson@ austinpetsalive. org" , Sherry
Derdak , Deanna Lee , "lone-star-1964@ hotmail.com" ,
"AAPAW@yahoogroups. com" , "saFeralCats@ yahoogroups. com" ,
"vtdavis@express- news.net" , "bchasnoff@express- news.net" ,
"bmylar@ksat. com" , "NewsFlash@woaitv. com"
Subject: Re: [AAPAW] Re: 140 KITTENS AT MARBACH KITTEN UNIT

I am forwarding this account from one of several members of my group who, along with me, volunteered on both Saturday and Sunday mornings at the SAPA kitten unit. We -- like many of you -- had heard good things about the SAPA program and we were eager to support it. However, there were some very disturbing things that we witnessed firsthand and she asked me to post her account in order to get the word out about conditions in the kitten unit.

This is an extremely long and detailed e-mail, but I hope you will read it in its entirety and then take whatever action you are capable of, and deem appropriate, to address this situation. A collective and public outcry will have more effect than any one voice could.
Vee DuBose, Cat Alliance | Trinity


Here is the volunteer's account:
l and several other members of Cat Alliance | Trinity have been volunteering our time this weekend at the SAPA kitten ward. We went down there because we wanted to make a difference, wanted to support what we had hoped would be a successful new program, and most of all, because we wanted to help the KITTENS.

I want to give you all a firsthand report of what's happening at the SAPA kitten ward, and I will do my best to report objectively and not totally emotionally. While I understand that others, apparently including executive director Ellen Jefferson of SAPA, consider the myriad problems this program is experiencing to be expected while this program is "getting started," I fervently disagree. There are some EXTREMELY SERIOUS problems, including lack of proper sanitation and disinfection, and improper or insufficient means to safeguard against disease transmission.

When a high volume rescue partner signs a legal contract with the City of San Antonio for a potential $200,000 payment, I expect to see a VERY well-thought- out, well-managed, fully-staffed, professionally- run operation in return for that investment. Instead, what we have received is a near (or, in my opinion, full-blown) disaster. 


Saturday morning at 5 am, this is what we found: No SAPA personnel on the premises, no point people, no instructions for procedure. The small handful of volunteers who were there "guessed at" what was supposed to be done, and did their best to handle the huge task of feeding, medicating, and cleaning the cages of 140+ kittens. Supplies were all over the place and disorganized. Facilities for hand-washing and correctly cleaning dishes were lacking or entirely unavailable: The hand sink in the women's restroom was missing from the restroom entirely, and was sitting in the middle of the main room's floor along with some other random plumbing equipment. This left us women (i.e., the majority of us) to wash hands in the "kitchen" sink, which was actually a mop sink in a small closet. The "disinfection" bowl (a large plastic bowl which was supposed to contain hot water and bleach for a final sanitizing dip after washing of nursing bottles and feeding syringes that were to be reused), was set in the bottom of the mop sink, where anything and everything could and did splash into it, including old food, used soapy water from dishwashing and hand washing, etc. In one minute the "disinfection" bowl was itself contaminated, and yet I saw volunteers dipping feeding equipment into that dirty water and in fact telling me to do so as well. 


Hang on. I've only just gotten started. Cages were dirty. Some of the KITTENS themselves were dirty and had fur matted with formula, and there was no place or method with which to clean them, except to wipe them down as best we could with a wet towel. We were -- and apparently every shift has been -- very shorthanded, so everyone did all the jobs, and, lacking good sanitation measures, you can see how it was not only unclean, but unhealthy both for people and for cats, to have a person bottle-feeding one minute, then cleaning cages the next, then over to medicating, then back to poop scooping, etc. There were no gloves on the premises. Can you imagine? People needed protection from the cats (excrement, bodily fluids, etc) and the cats needed protection from us and from each other (there should have been a glove change between cats, or at least between litters of cats to reduce the chances of disease spread). I am an admitted germaphobe. I am VERY aware of proper sanitation procedures. I cannot tell you how horrified I was to see how things were being done there. 


I will also mention that there is NO vet or vet tech on premises. I was told that a vet came only once a week, and that a vet TECH came by once a day. No medical staff was onsite to oversee emergency needs. I wonder if Dr Jefferson, who is herself a vet, has visited the facility, or if anyone from ACS has done so. If they have, I wonder how they could possibly have approved of the facility itself or the unsanitary conditions under which the program is operating. The SAPA kitten unit is basically functioning as a kennel and veterinary care facility, yet it does not have the equipment to act as such where it is located (in a large open office space in a strip center). This is not a one-day adoption event, where only healthy animals are present, and only for a few hours on that one day. Provisions for medical care and sanitation have not been made, and possibly cannot be made, within a strip center location.


After we finished our (very busy) shift, I talked with another person who had also volunteered Saturday morning. She fully agreed with my assessment of the situation. The more we recounted to each other the things we had seen, the more furious we each got. The kitten unit facility itself is inadequate, unsanitary, and dangerous to the health of people and cats, and in my opinion, cannot be "reorganized" or "rearranged" so as to be safe. A proper facility should have several separate and fully-functional washing areas including (1) a hand sink in the care area for people to use (in addition to proper sinks in both restrooms), (2) a dish sink for dishes, (3) an area for cleaning and sanitizing medical equipment (and some things should not be reused), (4) an area for cleaning kittens, and finally, (5) an area for washing out and disinfecting carriers or portable cages and litter pans.

Sunday morning at 2 am: I arrived to find that the supplies, at least, had been organized -- not by SAPA, but by volunteers from Saturday night. There was a SAPA person on the premises. She did go over procedure about bottle feeding with volunteers. My hopes were momentarily lifted. However, it soon became apparent that there was still not good sanitation in place, and the effects of the lack of sanitation procedures from the previous days were beginning to be noticed. On Saturday, we got a clean bottle for each kitten, or at least changed nipples between kittens in the same litter, and changed bottles entirely when going to a new litter. This resulted in tossing out some (yes, expensive) formula. On Sunday, however, bottles were filled and waiting for us in the refrigerator, with one numbered bottle per numbered cage. All kittens in that cage would drink from the same bottle. But what about the fact that MANY of the kittens were sick? The nipples on the bottles used by the sick kittens infected (1) any of us who touched the bottles and (2) each of the other kittens in the litter who drank from those bottles. All to save some formula, at the expense of lives. 


And here is what did it, ABSOLUTELY DID IT, for me this morning: Another volunteer and I were feeding a litter of kittens and I happened to notice that one of the kittens was jerking and lolling its head and neck around, but otherwise laying much stiller than its litter mates. None of us volunteers were vets, but we knew this was not right. In fact, one of this kitten's siblings seemed to be concerned about it as well, and kept nosing at the jerking kitten. We notified the SAPA person and was again horrified to find that the"procedure" for getting medical attention for this kitten -- who possibly had FIV or toxoplasmosis -- was to call and leave a message for a vet, then wait until the vet woke up and called back with advice, which turned out to be to have a vet TECH from ACS come and draw blood / pick up the kitten to test to see what was the cause of the lolling head. Mind you the condition was noticed and reported to the SAPA person on duty at about 2:45 am. The vet tech wouldn't be able to come until after 8 am. Meanwhile, the poor sick kitten was put BACK into its cage with its other siblings, and then that cage was put BACK onto the shelf next to all the other bottle feeders. You know what this means, as well as I do. ALL those bottle feeders have now beenexposed to whatever disease it might turn out to be. Not only that, but all the people doing the bottle feeding have been contaminated and are potentially spreading that disease around to the entire 140+ kittens, as well as potentially carrying it home to their own animals. What is happening here is that the SAPA program, as a partner with ACS and under their control and direction, has created a satellite ACS facility, complete with all the same -- and maybe worse -- unhealthy and unsanitaryconditions as those that exist in the main ACS facility. What is happening here is unacceptable. This is not an appropriate way to house or handle sick animals. Many of the volunteers, most of whom were either in rescue themselves, or friends of rescuers, were of the same opinion. I would do anything to help the kittens, but I cannot continue to support this program, and in my opinion it should be shut down immediately and permanently, unless or until an appropriately safe, sanitary, and professionally- staffed version can be designed than could replace it. 


It is not appropriate to ask untrained volunteers from the community (which is what I assume SAPA was hoping for, for community buy-in) to come do the work of professionals, without guidance, in an ill equipped facility. Nor is it right to expect rescuers to come do double-duty in the middle of the night in
unsanitary facilities that expose them and their own animals to disease. Again, I say that this program needs to be shut down NOW, with no more animals given to SAPA. I would hope that the poor kittens who are currently in the kitten unit could be taken in by fosters, either as singles or a litter at a time, to be CORRECTLY nursed back to health (at least those kittens who are infected only with the relatively minor ailments such as respiratory infections or diarrhea, or the two who were missing an eye). Those cats, in my opinion, were "promised" good medical care, and they deserve to get it from someone who can and will provide it. 


I realize that shutting this program down would likely result in many kittens being euthanized due to overcrowding at ACS, but that is more humane than letting them starve to death or die slowly from lack of medical care. Our only recourse for the moment may be in educating citizens trying to turn in kittens to this program through ACS: Tell them not to be so quick to assume that the mama cat has abandoned her kittens -- better to wait awhile and see if mama comes back. Emphasize to people that turning kittens in to ACS will not save their lives, but rather will end them. If people want to save kittens, THEY need to save the kittens. Teach people how to bottle-feed, and encourage them to do their part, with their one litter of kittens, to help San Antonio move toward no-kill (or just because it is the right thing to do). Better for the city to pay Good Samaritans or vetted fosters a bit to bottle-feed and take care of kittens than to make a huge and expensive contract for unqualified providers to take on too many to care for properly.


I will not go so far as to discourage other volunteers from going to help the kittens currently in the SAPA kitten unit -- and I applaud everyone who has gone down there to do their best to help -- but I would encourage each of you to also call for an IMMEDIATE STOP to this program, and for transfer of kittens currently in the unit to individuals or rescuers willing and able to appropriately provide for their health and well-being. These kittens deserve that much. 

CONFUSION, HOARDING, AUSTIN IS A MESS!!

This is so confusing. Let's see if I can get this right. 


Okay, there is Austin Animal Control (AAC), Austin Pets Alive (APA), San Antonio Pets Alive (SAPA) and maybe some more as we go along. Austin Pets Alive is basically SAPA. Same organization. Both headed up by Ellen Jefferson. They also started Dallas Pets Alive. Jefferson is a climber addicted to the spot light. Chronic habit of over reaching. SAPA got paid a large sum from the city of San Antonio to pull so many animals a month out of their  City shelter. APA also got a $400,000 grant from either ASPCA or the HSUS for their work in San Antonio. SAPA/APA  bit off more than it could chew. Now they don't have the staff or volunteers in place to take care of all the animals they pulled, leading up to the cat hoarding situation in which kittens are dying from a lack of attention, food, and medical care.


http://www.sanantonioferalcats.org/

Urgent Need For Kitten Bottle Feeders!

San Antonio Pets Alive! (SAPA!) program is overwhelmed and kittens are dying for the lack of volunteer help. There are 140+ kittens at 9107 Marbach Rd. Suite 109 in the SAPA Kitten Unit. If you can spare even just a few hours, please go there and offer whatever help you can.

Map link: http://tinyurl.com/6vh5ubz
It's not far outside Loop 410 on Marbach Rd.
To volunteer, go to this link and follow the instructions.http://www.volunteerspot.com/login/entry/242345634636056025

People are not showing up to feed or care for these kittens. About 40-50 are bottle-fed, others are old enough to eat gruel or soft food but in the evening there are only 1-2 people who have to focus on keeping the bottle babies alive so the older kittens are in dirty cages sometimes going without food and water.

Please ask your friends and neighbors if they have 1-2 hours to spare in their day to go there. You don't have to be a bottle feeder. They need people to wash bottles and syringes, clean cages, and put fresh food and water in older kitten cages.

As simple as this is - it's not being done as the people are focusing on keeping the bottle babies alive.

The evening time is the biggest need. No one is feeding through the night so the ones that die during the night are collected each morning and removed.

This went to a wide distribution in San Antonio, including city officials and Dr. Jefferson, so it should be okay to make it public here:

This was sent out yesterday after the author had visited the facility the night before. I `know that the situation was equelly bad last night and would have been a complete horror story if some people from a rescue group had not shown up and spent the entire night. No one from SAPA was there. No one with experience with kitties. There is a lack of supplies and equipment.- total chaos.

ACS should not be giving kittens to SAPA to just be left to starve to death or die of illness due to lack of care. This is the result of caring only about numbers. I would like to see the numbers of how many kittens were given to SAPA and how many died and they are getting paid to take them!

The city should have an independent Vet evaluate the facility and the care being given. If this were any other organization they would be charged with cruelty. I realize that Dr. Jefferson is trying to run SAPA and APA both and is only one person but that is no excuse for this chaos. The city and SAPA should immediately ensure this situation is corrected. They should purchase all necessary equipment and supplies and if necessary hire competent people to care for the kittens. The city responsibility does not end with shoving kittens out the door and SAPA is getting paid money to care for the animals they take.

This has to be corrected. Now.

John Bachman

WHY AREN'T CRUELTY CHARGES BEING FILED? WHY IS THIS DIFFERENT FROM ANY OTHER HOARDING CASE? 

WHILE WE'RE LOOKING AT THE LAME EXCUSES OF WINOGRAD, LET'S NOT FORGET HIS OUTRIGHT DISTORTIONS

Winograd sez:


"Washoe County, NV, is also made up of many towns and cities, too. Seventeen to be exact, including Reno and Sparks. When Washoe County created a joint powers agreement for animal services and merged into one large entity, it was an agreement with three separate municipal governments: the City of Sparks, the City of Reno, and Washoe County, representing all the unincorporated towns including Empire, Sun Valley, and others. As a result, Washoe County Animal Services became Washoe County Regional Animal Services servicing all of them and the others ceased doing their own animal control. Granted some of those communities are really small. Empire, NV, was a company town and the company shut down. It has just a few hundred residents, so maybe it is misleading to call that its own No Kill community. Maybe. But Washoe County is certainly not one No Kill community, it is at least three—Reno, Sparks, and the County—and as many as 17!"


Along with this "quote" comes a map which fails to show true county lines. 
Empire has 75 people on a good day. Sun Valley was listed in Ripleys Believe it or Not as the worlds largest trailer park. There are not 17 communities in Washoe County unless you count sub-divisions as communities, what a nut job. We are called a Washoe County Regional Animal Services because we serve WASHOE COUNTY not Carson City or Podunk Utah.

Only the two cities of Reno and Sparks merged with Washoe County and Sparks never had a Shelter it hired out to the County. Sparks animal trucks went to Washoe. Two cities merged with ONE COUNTY. There is one shelter for all the county and all the population is in Reno and Sparks.


Whinograd is trying to cover his ass again with all the Austin crap hitting the fan. Trying to make like "No Kill" is taking over. Sorry Whino, it ain't sticking on this wall. People are awakening to your lies, distortions, intimidations, and your house of cards is crumbling under your feet. With the likes of Ryan Clinton just waiting to take your place too. I don't know which is the lesser of two evils actually.

LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT WINOGRAD'S EXCUSE ABOUT AUSTIN

NATAN THE SATAN COMPLAINS THAT THEY MOVED THE SHELTER TO AN UNDESIRABLE LOCATION.  

It's about 5 miles due east of the old shelter. A ten minute drive from the old location. You can easily see the dome of the state capitol building from the new location and it's at the intersection of one of three main north south highways and 4 major intersecting streets. It's actually located at the east end of the very popular Lance Armstrong Hike and Bike Trail. 

The old shelter location was plagued with flooding problems. There are major infrastructure's ; high voltage electric towers and lines above , 72 inch water and sewer mains running below  the old shelter location making it very expensive to go down or up. The old shelter is located right beside a major rail road track meaning the animals constantly had to deal with the stress of every train that passes through Austin. The old shelter was also located by Auditorium Shores and Zilker Park; meaning every time there was a municipal  fireworks display the animals had a  front row seat. They also were subjected to the amplified music from every music event held at that location from impromptu bands to Austin City Limits Festival . Trust me there was amplified music at least one a month and usually more often. The new shelter is serene and tranquil located on over 50 acres. The City even plans to put an off leash park at that location; something they had no room to do at the old location.

An engineer showed up at the Council hearing over the shelter move. He showed up opposed to the move. As soon as City staff presented all the problems with infrastructure at the old site; he changed sides.

So Natan the Satan wanted the animals to continue to live under those conditions once again showing how very little "No Kill" cares about the quality of animal lives. But he had to come up with an excuse in advance and this was the one he grabbed at. In the new shelter, without all the noise and trauma, the animals will make a much better showing and hopefully that leads to adoptions. 

NATHAN WINOGRAD: MR. EXCUSE FOR EVERYTHING

Austin, poor Austin, poor Winograd, poor Ryan, boo hoo. NOT!! My sympathies are with the animals under the NKE program there. Caged for months on end so they can brag on their numbers. Overcrowding in shelters is not to be taken lightly. Disease, fights, are only two things in a shelter but what about a lack of time for interaction with people? Reports are that the Austin staff are worked beyond what is humanly possible. 


And along comes the Whino with his ever increasing list of lame excuses for his program's failure. If you will take note, Winograd always covers his ass ahead of time by offering a reason for failure so he can say he told you so. Just shows how little confidence he has in his own program. Here's his excuse via his biggest shrill, Cornbread. http://yesbiscuit.wordpress.com/2012/05/15/austin-in-crisis/ (This blogger, Shirley/YesBiscuit, lives in Columbia, SC. She is an ex-breeder now self proclaimed no kill expert. Shouldn't Shirley be able to explain why the no kill equation hasn't been implemented in her backyard? Not only hasn't Columbia South Carolina implemented "no kill" in the county's high kill public shelter but it seems challenged in even helping to keep it's no kill shelter open.)
http://www.wistv.com/story/15626545/decreasing-donations-put-bamberg-no-kill-shelter-in-a-tough-spot

BUT HEY, THEY KNOW ALL THE ANSWERS ANYWAY!!

Here is an excellent take on the situation from one of our favorite blogs. http://delawarecapa.blogspot.com/2012/05/austin-reality-check.html


Here's a few links about the overcrowding that is "forcing" Austin to push pets out the door. Now when this happens, the bunchers come running, the hoarders, the dogmen, the abusers. Free pets, heck yes, better than chasing them down the streets. How many of Austin's pets are now ending up in labs, as bait dogs, as fodder for fighting dogs, abused, tortured, and all because Austin wants to retain the title of "No Kill". 


http://www.statesman.com/news/local/no-kill-animal-shelter-increases-deaths-because-of-2356384.html
http://www.austinchronicle.com/blogs/news/2012-05-15/no-kill-nightmare/
http://kut.org/2012/05/gimme-shelter-no-kill-has-new-animal-center-straining/
http://www.kxan.com/dpp/news/local/austin/shelter-needing-to-kill-excess-animals
http://www.kutnews.org/post/no-kill-and-capacity-what-should-austin-animal-center-do-now


And of course, my own post. http://www.workingtohelpanimalstodaytomorrow.blogspot.com/2012/05/once-again-i-got-it-right-austin-fell.html


Now, let's hear a couple of the horror stories coming also from this shelter. 

Two long stories shortened both happened in the month.

1) Animal Services adopted a dog to a homeless man. The man went to jail. The dog got shot. After dog laid in the homeless camp for a day or two one of the other homeless guys to it to a non profit vet clinic. The dog was treated but had no place to go. One of the employees recognized the dog. It used to belong to a friend who got a job traveling and had to surrender the dog thinking it would go to a good home. She contacted the original owner. He took the dog back and is furious with  the shelter for adopting it to a homeless person.

ADOPTING TO THE HOMELESS?? They are homeless because they can't take care of themselves, much less a pet. If they will adopt to a homeless person, they will adopt to bunchers, dogmen, hoarders. This is shameful, and all in for the sake of claiming to be "No Kill", numbers, baby, it's all about the numbers.

2) I know an autistic family mother father and two 20 something sons; all autistic. No phone, no car, no jobs, no resources other than their SSI checks and welfare.. One of the sons wanted to go to the shelter and  find a dog to adopt. I took him thinking to myself; there is no way they would adopt out an animal to him. As I watched stunned the whole process was moving forward. I finally went in back and found a supervisor and explained the situation. The supervisor made a phone call and the process stopped.  But they would have adopted to him if I hadn't have stepped in and asked the supervisor to stop it..

A month later the one dog they already had chewed an 18 inch piece off his tail because he was so flea infested. I took them and the dog to the vet. Their dog is also heartworm positive. They have no money so guess who's paying for flea prevention and heartworm prevention?

Under the current No Kill plan the shelter  is under so much pressure to adopt; if I had not have intervened they would have had another dog. How long before it too became so covered with fleas it went crazy? How long before it had heartworm's too?  There is so much more to life than just living in misery.

Another example of how "No Kill" neglects the quality of life, it is all about the quantity that saves those NK numbers. These are only two stories, how many more are out there.

ONCE AGAIN I GOT IT RIGHT!!!!!!! AUSTIN FELL BY MY TIME SCHEDULE

I am in the wrong business, I need to become a fortune teller. I said Austin would fall in a year and it was a year in April that Abigail Smith began her term as warden for the Austin animal prison. This is a sure sign of the beginning of the end of "No Kill" in Austin.
http://austin.ynn.com/content/local_news/284752/more-animals-could-face-euthanization-due-to-city-shelter-overflow

"At some point, this council is going to have to decide what kind of resources we invest to maintain the services that we're providing," Martinez said.

All adoption fees are waived at the Austin Animal Center. Adopting a pet will include spay and neutering service, vaccinations and a microchip—a value of more than $200, according to the center.

Talk about cutting one's own throat, giving away taxpayer money just to make those numbers, will be a deal breaker. When that money lost from these free giveaways and the General Fund has to replace it, watch the fireworks, folks.

Not to mention continuing de-valuation of pets. Free means disposable. When it gets sick, why pay for a vet, let it die, get another freebie. These animals go to lab research, bait dogs/cats, abusers, hoarders. Do they really think that just normal folks show up for these freebies? To give away pets is an invitation for disaster.

http://www.statesman.com/news/local/no-kill-animal-shelter-increases-deaths-because-of-2356384.html

After celebrating the achievement of no-kill status this year, the Austin Animal Center euthanized 17 dogs Friday and might kill another 20 today to make space in the shelter, which is 18 percent over capacity.

On Monday evening, more than 530 animals — most of them dogs — were housed at the center, which is equipped to hold 450. Some dogs and cats were placed in staff offices and the quarantine area.

The city shelter recently moved from downtown to a new $12 million facility in East Austin, and officials said Monday that they are struggling because more animals are coming in as adoptions drop.

Of course, the adoptions have dropped. Austin has played out or rather burned out the foster homes and APA is bringing in pets from all over to compete with the shelter, taking away homes from the shelter pets. Duh.

Then, it is so bad and they obviously don't know what to do about it (kick it to the curb before it is too late) that they are asking for public input!!!!!

http://www.kutnews.org/post/no-kill-and-capacity-what-should-austin-animal-center-do-now

The new Austin Animal Center, opened only in November 2011, is already well over capacity. And the city is asking for your input on what to do now.

Have an idea that can help?  The city has launched an online discussion forum at www.speakupaustin.org, where participants can share their own ideas for alleviating crowding at the shelter.

I would like to see those ideas. Austin asked for this. Any time the public hears the term no kill, they have no reason then to go to a shelter to save a life. Not to mention that the public feels free to breed, take them to the no kill shelter when the litters become problems, don't have to explain to the kids. Let the kids see the miracle of birth. Before "No Kill" we could respond to those parents to also let their children witness the deaths of their irresponsibility. 

Austin, you are screwed. Better cut your losses because it only gets worse under the morbid "No Kill Equation".

Already Winograd is playing his pre-set excuse. If you notice, he always includes something to cover his ass in case of failure. He did with Brenda Barnette in LA. He is falling back on that pre-set excuse now to explain the problem in Austin. One day that little, fat man will run out of excuses and then he will be unable to function. Let's hope that day is soon.

Reno is next.

LMAO!! I TOLD YOU SO, LA, BRENDA BARNETTE WAS HIRED TO PRIVATIZE !!

It is bittersweet to say, "I told you so" to those in LA that Barnette was there to privatize. Many said no, resisted the thought. I fought Barnette in King County along side of the ACO Guild there, advising them about "No Kill" and how it operates. I know about this woman. She was part of a plan to privatize by undermining animal control. What is "undermining"? Lying, same difference. 


There are posts upon posts on this blog about this undermining, or "creating instability" as Barnette, Claire Davis, called it. Here is her letter to Dow Constantine, a partner in crime who is now the CAO of the County. http://workingtohelpanimalstodaytomorrow.blogspot.com/2010/06/terrorist-or-idiots-you-decide.html
This is a most excellent run down of the misdeeds of Breeder Brenda Barnette. I suggest you read it all.
http://www.citywatchla.com/lead-stories/3109-the-fur-is-flying-at-las-animal-services

(Barnette gave away a brand new shelter to Best Fiends) "The adoptions from the Best Friends shelter have been less than stellar … and I think that is because the agreement only allows them to take the 'leftovers' … meaning animals that are not adopted by the public or taken by rescue groups…so that means they are left with a whole lot of pit bulls, Chihuahuas and tabby cats … making it more difficult for rescues to get animals out of the shelter would leave more 'desirable' animals to go to Best Friends and thus improve their adoption numbers to justify a private group taking more responsibility by doing better," a key source tells me.

Some local animal rights activists agree with that appraisal entirely and think that a privatization contract will favor New Hope.  Others think that the second half of the statement only speaks of rescue agencies that aren't performing optimally.

"My feeling is that she is not a very good communicator, and that hinders the progress of any kind of partnership and progress in project management," animal activist and animal education proponent Paul Darrigo told me.  Darrigo spearheads a group that has provided education to Reserve Animal Control Officers (RACOs) whose vision has been to provide LAAS with fifty reserve, fully-empowered Animal Service officials, the way the Sheriff’s Department and the Police Department staff reserve officers.  But unlike earlier General Managers, Barnette has taken administrative actions that diminish the presence of RACOs within the city and many speculate that the only reason to do so is to pave the way for a single private controlling organization.

THERE'S TRAFFIC JAMS ON THE HIGHWAY TO HELL - EXCUSE ME SCAM JAMS ON THAT HIGHWAY TO HELL

This has to stop. There needs to be regulation of these "life saving transports" that the activists love to utilize. THESE ARE SCAMS AND THOSE WHO PARTICIPATE ARE CONDEMNING ANIMALS TO HELL AND BACK.


http://www2.turnto10.com/news/i-team/2012/may/01/i-team-dog-rescue-investigation-ar-1019758/

 The NBC 10 I-Team begins a three-part investigation into dog rescue organizations.  In Part 1, the I-Team focuses on a group called Help Save One.  The I-Team received complaints from unhappy clients who said the dogs they paid to save never arrived.
An NBC 10 I-Team investigation that took us to shelters in North Carolina and South Carolina found that Stracaluzi has left a trail of outraged animal adopters, broken laws, diseased animals being brought into Rhode Island and southern shelters wondering why Stracaluzi hasn't paid them tens of thousands of dollars for helping to rescue dogs.


I have blogged about the transport scams and horror stories many times on this blog. Just do a search for transport and read a few.