Submitting public comments for June 11th city council meeting.
What’s unfolding in front of you is not personal.
However how you experience it is personal and you have a choice of how to respond and react.
The city council meetings are eye openers for how much resistance and defensiveness there is to implementing new policies, practices and procedures at the Apple Valley Animal Shelter.
Over the last 15 years the adopted budgets (from 2009-2023) show a clear upward trajectory for the shelter…
Budget has increased
Number of employees has increased
Number of animals euthanized is excessively high between 57%-80+% It felt like the general feeling at the city council meetings are…. “We can’t adopt our way out of this.”
Would it be crazy to suggest.. “you can’t euthanize your way out of this either.” You are wasting the towns money, you are wasting tax payer dollars, you are wasting the money given to by the county and there will be no improvements to the shelter and the vitriol among residents, city council and shelter employees will not change unless you do the following:
1. modify the leash law to exclude cats
2. create a TNR program,
3. offer free, spay and neuter to residents. Your constituents can NOT afford spay and neuter so they forgo doing it which has created this mess.
Article attached on studies that show doing the above three items has helped cities/towns/counties switch from high kill to no kill and saved money, saved taxpayer dollars, then you can use that money on other programs:
What Happened at BCAS? Part 1: Animal Shelter
Reform
forwardbaltimore.com
Lastly…
A. NOT all cats that come thru the shelter show up on the AVAS website.
B. Some cats show up and have been at the shelter for 3 days, 7 days, sometimes weeks, sometimes months, and then are displayed on the website. They aren’t photographed and shown upon intake.
C. Some cats show up on the website on one day and are removed the next and euthanized, which means no opportunity to for the cat to get exposure.
D. The general public cannot access the west wing, aka the holding rooms and receiving rooms. Volunteers and networkers who create awareness for the cats would like access to these rooms in order to take video and improve shelter statistics. Can I get approved to do this?
E. When an animal is adopted out and the adopter does not provide proof they spayed/neutered the animal they don’t get their initial deposit back. Please use this deposit money gathered and put it in a general fund and offer it to people to use towards offsetting their costs to spay and neuter.
F. When an animal is rescued and the rescue does not provide proof they spayed/neutered the animal they don’t get their initial deposit back. Please use this deposit money gathered and put it in a general fund and offer it to people to use towards offsetting their costs to spay and neuter.
G. Please provide a copy of the financial report, statement, budget for Apple Valley Animal Shelter. It is a matter of public record.
H. Please publicly list or email out which cats are changed to “pending euthanasia” status so the general public and rescues are aware of which cats are most urgent. Please allow a minimum of 24-48 hours before euthanasia.
Sincerely,
Margaret Cashion