Category: No-Kill

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Special Report from ANIMAL PEOPLE: U.S. Kill Rates and how L.A. compares by Ed Boks

The official 13th annual ANIMAL PEOPLE analysis of kill rates in communities across the United States goes to press on July 20th. Merritt Clifton, editor of ANIMAL PEOPLE, just forwarded LA Animal Services this year’s projection compiled from the best available data of total U.S. shelter killing. Here is a preview of the soon to be released report:

“The good news is that the national rate of shelter killing per 1,000 human residents in the U.S. has dropped to a record low of 14.7, just slightly lower than it was before the economic collapse in 2001 that knocked funding for spay/neuter programs back, and simultaneously, while the feral cat population continued a steep decrease, and the pit bull terrier population exploded.

“Because the U.S. human population and pet keeping significantly increased since 2001, total U.S. shelter killing is still above the low mark of 4.2 million. However, at 4.36 million projected in 2005, we could achieve a new low in 2006.

“The bad news is that the rates of shelter killing per 1,000 humans went up slightly along the Gulf Coast, in Appalachia, and–most alarmingly–in the Southwest. Since most of the data is from fiscal years ending before Hurricane Katrina, that was not a factor.

“The rates of increase in all three regions were small enough to be within the margin of error for the survey method, but even if there was not an actual increase, I think it can be said that there was no demonstrable decrease. In all three regions, rates of pet sterilization are probably just barely getting to the 70% necessary to stabilize the population.

“Los Angeles city and county combined have cut their shelter killing in half since 2003, and at a combined rate of 3.94 are now killing fewer animals per 1,000 residents than San Francisco killed in 1994, the first year of the Adoption Pact that made San Francisco the first “no-kill city.” end quote

This is good news indeed and further proof that Los Angeles is on the right track and developing momentum. Consider that over the past five years, LA City’s dog euthanasia rate decreased 62 percent and our cat euthanasia rate decreased 19 percent. In just the first six months of 2006, we’ve seen another 12 percent decrease in dog and cat euthanasia compared to the same period in 2005. In the 05/06 Fiscal Year just ending, fewer than 19,500 animals were euthanized. This is the lowest number of animals killed in any one-year period in LA City history! 

We still have a long way to go, but together we are transforming LA into the safest and least lethal city in the US for our pets. Thank you all who are helping in a constructive way!

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LA City Council supports Senate Bill 1806 by Ed Boks

Today the City Council voted to place the City of Los Angeles officially on record in support of Senator Liz Figueroa’s bill, SB 1806, to outlaw the confinement of a companion animal in an unattended, closed vehicle.

The City’s lobbyists in Sacramento now can testify or lobby on the bill’s behalf. Until today, it was impermissible for City officials to claim to formally represent the City in support or opposition to the bill, though they could represent themselves as individuals.

SB 1806 passed out of the Assembly Appropriations Committee on a 14-1 vote yesterday (Thursday) and will now go to the Assembly floor, where it appears destined for passage.

Thanks to LA Animal Services Commander Diliberto, LA City Attorney Dov Lesel, and LA Animal Services’ volunteer Judy Mancuso, for this groundbreaking work made possible by the support of the LA Animal Services Commission.

Together we truly are making LA and California the safest place in the United States for our pets!

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4th of July Warning! by Ed Boks

While people all over the country are looking forward to the traditional Fourth of July fireworks show, it’s important to remember that what’s fun and entertaining to us can be terrifying to our pets.

Frightened by the explosions and bright flashes of light, it’s not uncommon for frightened animals to dig under or jump over fences. Even the best-behaved and most well-trained animals run when they’re scared. And once they’re out of familiar territory, they get lost.

The fifth of July is our busiest day of the year because so many animals get loose the night before. We receive hundreds of calls from the public who have lost their pets during the fireworks celebrations.

The behavior of an otherwise normal animal can change with loud noises. In addition to seeing dozens of lost, scared, sick and injured pets on July 5, we also see many distraught people in search of their lost companions.

Summer is an especially dangerous time for an animal to be lost and on its own. Without water, animals can easily suffer heat exhaustion or dehydration. Roaming streets and sidewalks that have been baking in the California sun often lead to burned paws.

Animal Services has some simple suggestions to help pet owners keep their animals safe this holiday.

First, keep your pets indoors. If you are hosting a party, be sure to watch for open doors and gates. Pets are quick and can slip away before you know it. If you do have to take your animal outside, make sure he/she is securely on a leash.

If you can, confine your pet to a single room where he/she will feel safe. Make sure there is plenty of food and water (but don’t overfeed) and lots of toys to play with. You might also consider turning on a radio or television to drown out the noise of the fireworks.

Whatever you do, do not take your animal to an event featuring fireworks. Between the noise of the show and the bustling crowd, chances are good your pet could get away from you.

Finally, make sure your animal has current identification. Make sure to include your name and at least two phone numbers on the tag. If your pet does run away, that will increase the chances of your getting your pet back safely.

If your pet does run away, visit the Los Angeles Animal Care Center closest to you. People who lose pets should also check our website at www.laanimalservices.com

Animal Services wishes you and your pets a safe and happy 4th of July! Together we can make LA the safest City in the United States for our pets!

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Comparing California Oranges to the Big Apple by Ed Boks

In the autumn of 2005 I did what few department directors voluntarily do. I asked for a top to bottom City audit to be conducted on my former agency, Animal Care & Control of New York City.

I hoped the audit would point out to New York City leaders the need for more resources to be invested in the operation. The City had conducted a scathing audit in 2002 that led to my being recruited to NYC to help turn the situation around. After two years and a 130% increase in adoptions, formation of over 150 New Hope partnerships, and a 30% decline in the euthanasia rate, I felt it was time to assess our progress with a full understanding of our shortcomings.

We still needed help, and we simply were not getting it from New York City.

Consider NYC Animal Care & Control has a $7.2 million budget to serve 8.2 million people. NYC has three animal shelters that the City had to condemn and take away from the ASPCA to give to a newly formed under budgeted and understaffed animal control program. NYC AC&C staff wages are 40% below the national average and the City does little to nothing to address this issue each year. Both NYC and LA handle roughly the same number of animals each year.

NYC’s three shelters serve 8.2 million residents. Queens, the fifth largest city in the United States has no shelter at all, neither does the Bronx. Staff are forced to transport animals over vast areas to the three full service, albeit, dilapidated shelters.

Compare this to LA with a $20.2 million budget serving 3.9 million residents with eight new state of the art animal care centers soon to be opened throughout the City. These facilities will rival the finest humane animal shelters anywhere in the country. While NYC’s Animal Care & Control’s budget never comes up in the NYC budget process, we were able to increase LA’s Animal Services budget by 11.6% this coming budget year, with an additional $3.3 million for one time tenant improvement monies, not to even mention the $150 million bond funding for constructing the new facilities and their campuses.

Clearly LA leaders and residents understand the importance of animal welfare in a community.

I requested the audit before I left New York City to highlight the lack of animal compassion in that community and to focus on three significant needs: 1) the need for more and better facilities, 2) the need for more and better trained and paid staff, and 3) the need for an adequate budget to fund humane, non-lethal programs. This audit does all of that and just in time for the current contract negotiations when this information is most needed.

This audit is now available and I believe it did exactly what I’d hoped it would do: It showed we were making progress despite the dearth of funding and support, but that there was much remaining to be done. You can read about the audit in the New York Daily News coverage via the link below, and view the audit itself via the other link.

Three important programs were inexplicably terminated shortly after my departure from NYC, the results of which are reflected in the audit. One was the termination of our PR program which helped keep the needs of the agency in the public eye every day. The second was a nationally recognized Shelter Dog Training Program that trained one hundred volunteers at a time to train shelter dogs making them more adoptable. The third was the elimination of the development department whose mission was to help offset the City’s inability to pay for these programs by conducting its own fund raising, a program recommended by the City Comptroller in the 2002 audit.

It is my hope this recent audit will be used by the current administration as it was intended, to make a compelling argument for more resources to save lives!

Soon after my arrival in LA, I met with LA Comptroller Laura Chick to discuss a similar audit of LAAS. We are working out the details and timing for that process. Audits, when used properly, are merely a compass. They tell you how far you’ve come, where you are, and how far you yet have to go. I’m hoping we can begin this process in LA Animal Services soon.

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Honoring Dr. W. Marvin Mackie, D.V.M. by Ed Boks

Ed Boks and Dr. Mackey
Dr. W. Marvin Mackie, DVM.

This past Friday morning, June 9th, the Los Angeles City Council honored a true animal welfare hero, Dr. W. Marvin Mackie, DVM. What follows are the comments I made at this prestigious event:

“Mr. President, members of the Council, I have been involved in animal welfare for nearly 25 years, and for as long as I can remember, every time the name “Dr. Mackie” was ever mentioned, no matter the setting or the audience, it always evoked a sense of reverence and respect.

Every meaningful movement in history has been led by transformational leaders, leaders like George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Frederick Douglass, Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, and Caesar Chavez. Inspirational leaders have always challenged us to not only change the way we view ourselves as a society but to change how we behave as a civilized community.

We in the animal welfare arena have such transformational leaders too; they are our own heroes, people like Henry Bergh, Albert Schweitzer, and Gretchen Wyler. Today we are honoring another such hero: Dr. W. Marvin Mackie. Dr. Mackie was, and continues to be, an instrumental force in transforming not just our local LA community, but the entire nation and other parts of the world from out dated catch-and-kill animal control methodologies to humane, non-lethal, no-kill animal care strategies and programs.

While a few self-described “revolutionaries” and so-called “activists” do little more than rattle off hate-filled emails from the comfort of their living rooms and occasionally get off the couch to harass and terrorize public servants under cover of night and ski masks, this giant, Dr. Mackie has openly and courageously transformed an entire generation by being the change he wanted to see in the world. Dr. Mackie is responsible for surgically altering hundreds of thousands of animals in the LA area; he has taught hundreds of veterinarians how to perform high volume and prepubescent surgery safely and humanely in communities around the world, and he taught many hardheaded animal control directors like my self that there is a better way.

We in Los Angeles have perhaps benefited most from the fact that Dr. Mackie is an Angelino, hailing from San Pedro. As a result of his inspirational leadership, over the course of his career, the number of animals needing to be rescued annually from the streets of LA by Animal Services has declined by 40,000. More significantly the number of animals killed in our local shelters has fallen from 60,000 per year to 19,000 and continues to decline significantly every year.

Consider this, 40% of the animals euthanized this past month were orphaned neonate puppies and kittens. What fact better demonstrates the tremendous need that we as a community must continue Dr. Mackie’s legacy until there are no more unwanted pets being born only to die?

The no-kill initiative that has taken hold in LA is beginning to take root in communities all across the United States thanks to Dr. Mackie and others. Imagine how far we have come in Los Angeles in the three decades since Dr. Mackie began to live his dream. Today his dream is embraced by the Mayor of Los Angeles, the Los Angeles City Council, the Los Angeles Animal Services Commission and the Los Angeles General Manager and staff. Los Angeles has risen up together to accept the fact that Dr. Mackie’s no-kill vision is an achievable goal! No small accomplishment for one man.

When you consider what this one man has accomplished imagine what we could do if we all worked together! Thank you Dr. Mackie for being such an inspiration to all of us!

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The Case For Mandatory Spay/Neuter by Ed Boks

The month of May 2006 came in like a lamb but went out like hundreds of sick and dying neonate kittens. I doubt any stronger case can be made for mandatory spay/neuter than what you are about to read.

North Central Animal Care Center experienced an unprecedented number of neonate euthanasias during the last week of May. This was due to an unusually high number of orphaned neonates presenting clinical symptoms suggestive of infectious diseases such as Notedris cati, chylmydia, panleukopenia, and corona virus etc. Diagnostics were performed through blood work and complete dermatology exams for infectious skin diseases confirming these diseases.

254 orphaned neonates were euthanized in the month of May in North Central with well over 100 in the last week. South LA Animal Care Center euthanized 247 neonates in the month of May, and the entire LAAS organization euthanized a total of 823 orphaned neonates of the 2,035 dogs and cats euthanized.

That represents 40% of the May euthanasia rate!

This situation points out three critical needs:

1) the need for more foster homes to care for neonates in our Bottle Baby Program,

2) the need for broader implementation of our Safety Net Program to help support people relinquishing neonates with the resources they need to bring them through the weaning process, and

3) more aggressive Big Fix Spay Neuter Programs throughout the City especially during the winter months. LAAS is working on approaches to address all three of these needs and will report on our progress in future reports.

As a result of this unfortunate and tragic anomaly in the North Central Animal Care Center, the overall organizational month of May euthanasia rate increased 12% compared to May ‘05, but decreased 10% compared to May 04.

East Valley showed a 17% decrease in euthanasia.
Harbor showed a 29% decrease.
South LA had a 1% increase.
West LA had a 2.5% decrease.
West Valley had a .05% increase.

North Central was on track to show a decrease in euthanasia in May until the Center was literally inundated with sick and dying neonates during the last week of May. Rescue efforts were complicated by that being a Holiday weekend and by a shortage of qualified Bottle Baby Foster Care Givers.

The month of May Cat Euthanasia rate is up 19% compared to May 05 but down 6% compared to May 04.

The month of May Dog Euthanasia rate is down 2% compared to May 05 and down 13.5% compared to May 04.

If there is a silver lining to any of this news, it is that the Calendar 06 Year To Date Euthanasia rate for dogs and cats is down nearly 17% compared to the same time period in 05 and down 29.5% compared to the same time period in 04.

Calendar Year 06 Cat Euthanasia is down 7.6% compared to the same time frame in 05, and down 24% compared to the same time frame in 04.

Calendar Year 06 Dog Euthanasia is down 26% compared to the same time frame in 05, and down 35% compared to the same time frame in 04.

Of the 2,020 dogs rescued by LAAS in the month of May, 68 were either dead on arrival or died of natural causes. Four dogs were stolen for a remainder of 1,948. 731 were adopted, 333 were New Hoped, 299 were returned to their owners, 16 are in foster for a total of 1,379 live releases. That is an extraordinary 70% live release rate for dogs! Only 20 neonate dogs were euthanized.

Of the 2,646 cats rescued by LAAS in the month of May, 81 were either dead on arrival or died of natural causes. Six cats escaped and nine were stolen for a remainder of 2,560. 508 were adopted, 355 were New Hoped, 21 were returned to their owners, 55 are in foster for a total of 939 live releases. That is a dismal 37% live release rate for cats. 803 neonate cats were euthanized. Neonate cats represent 55% of the cat euthanasia rate. Clearly we can see where we as a community must focus our efforts to end the killing! We must turn the faucet off on the sheer number of unwanted cats being born in our community.

May 06 Dog and Cat Adoptions combined were up 7.25% compared to May 05 and up 6.25% compared to May 04.

May 06 Cat Adoptions were down 2.5% compared to May 05 but up 10% compared to May 04.

May 06 Dog Adoptions were up 15.5% compared to May 05 and up 3.5% compared to May 04.

The Calendar 06 Year to Date Dog and Cat Adoptions are up nearly 8% compared to the same time period last year and up 9.6% compared to the same time period in 04.

May 06 Dog and Cat New Hope Placements were down 10% compared to May 05 but up 22.5% compared to May 04.

May 06 Cat New Hope Placements are down 26% compared to May 05 but up 10.25% compared to May 04.

May 06 Dog New Hope Placements are up 18.5% compared to May 05 and up 39% compared to May 04. This is a welcome increase in the New Hope trend for dogs this year and coincides with the final stages of implementing the New Hope program.

The Calendar 06 Year to Date Dog and Cat New Hope Placements are down 16% compared to the same time period in 05 and down 7.5% compared to the same time period in 04.

(For all of these statistical categories, raw numbers are available in the statistical reports posted on the LAAS websitewww.laanimalservices.com.)

It is our sincere hope and expectation that with the community’s continued help the Bottle Baby, Foster, Safety Net, and New Hope Programs will help right this temporary reversal in our continued progress towards lowering the kill rate. Other efforts are underway with the help of various community partners to help get the word out to help LAAS in its lifesaving mission. Clearly, we will never adopt our way out of this crisis. It is time for all Angelinos to get serious about spaying and neutering their animals.

Rescue organizations too must be held accountable. No rescue organization should adopt an animal out that is not spayed or neutered. If such an adoption does occur the rescue organization must follow up until the sterilization has been confirmed. This holds true for LAAS as well. We will be monitoring every intact animal released to any rescue group or individual for medical reasons to ensure the animal is altered as soon as it is healthy enough.

In order for LA City to achieve its No-Kill goal we must add a No-Birth initiative to our strategic plan as exemplified by LA County’s recent spay/neuter law, even if it is for a limited number of years, long enough to get a handle on this problem. At some point we have to turn the faucet off. There are simply too many unwanted kittens being born.

We must also bolster our Operation FELIX (Feral Education and Love Instead of X-termination) Trap/Neuter/Return Program and our Big Fixspay/neuter efforts for cats. It is my hope that all Angelinos will support any responsible initiative that will help us as a community to end the killing.

I understand very well that this is a controversial issue for some, but I hope we can all agree that the misguided accidental and deliberate backyard and puppy/kitten mill breeding must be stopped if we ever expect to end the killing.

(The May LAAS GM Report is now available on-line.)

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Best Friends United by Ed Boks

Best Friends Animal Society, a primary partner of LAAS, hosted its annual Pet Adoption Festival on Sunday, June 4 in Manchester Park. There were celebrity guests, dog agility competitions, pet psychics, children’s activities, cool pet products, food and refreshment, and Radio Disney for additional entertainment.

But best of all there were over 60 wonderful rescue organizations coming together for a day of fellowship doing what we do best, saving the lives of lost and homeless dogs, cats, rabbits and other critters. Dozens of organizations brought hundreds of animals most of which found homes during this five hour event.

LAAS adopted or placed 113 animals (50 dogs, 56 cats, 6 rabbits, and one guinea pig). At the end of the event LAAS made all the animals that were not adopted available to our New Hope Partners at no charge. And as if that was not good enough, an amazing partner and benefactor of LAAS, who prefers to remain annonymous, offered $100 to every rescue group who took a dog and $200 for every rescue group that took a dog that had any pit bull or rottweiller in him or her!

96 LAAS volunteers attended this fantastic event. That is more LAAS volunteers than have ever attended any single event in LAAS history. I want to thank all our wonderful volunteers, employees both at the event and working in the Centers, and all our partners for playing an instrumental role in helping to make this year’s Pet Adoption Festival such a great success, especially for all the lives that were saved!

Events like this prove that by working together we can make Los Angeles the safest City in the United States for our pets!

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Dog-Gone Cat-tastrophe Averted! by Ed Boks

The Daily News ran a great article on East Valley’s Dog-Gone Cat-tastrophe Adoptathon! The event ran from Friday, May 19 through Monday, May 22. Last year LAAS adopted 42 animals on the third weekend in May. This year, thanks to this promotion, adoptions were up 159%. 109 dogs and cats found loving homes from our East Valley Animal Care Center in North Hollywood.

Several radio and tv stations and newspapers came by to report on the event. The Daily News article follows:

Adoption options  Looking to adopt a pet? You should have checked out the Dog-Gone Cat-tastrophe Adoptathon last weekend at the East Valley Animal Shelter in North Hollywood. 

Missed it? No worries. The Los Angeles Animal Services Department now keeps city shelters open on weekends. 

The schedule makes sense: Most would-be pet owners can’t make it to shelters during the week. They have jobs; their kids have school. Opening up the shelters on weekends helps facilitate adoptions, which is good for the animals, the owners and the city alike. It should also help to cut down on the number of animals euthanized at city shelters. 

For more information, check out LAAS’ Web site (http://www.laanimalservices.com/).

LAAS wants to thank the media, the public, and our wonderful partners for the overwhelming response to this pressing need! Thanks to the public’s response to LAAS’ needy animals LA’s euthanasia rate has been reduced over 30% compared to the same time period in 2005! All stats are on the LAAS website.

But the crisis is far from over. LAAS is still rescuing over 100 lost and homeless dogs and cats every day! Please help get the word out that there are many wonderful pets waiting to lavish unconditional love in return for a home. Please visit our website or any one of our six Animal Care Centers.

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“Dog Gone Cat-tastrophe” Hits the East Valley Animal Care Center by Ed Boks

Responding to the annual spring population explosion of homeless animals, the Department of Animal Services (LAAS) is teaming up with rescue organizations from all over the city to stage a “Dog-Gone Cat-Astrophe Adoptathon,” an unprecedented four-day event at the
East Valley Animal Care Center
13131 Sherman Way
North Hollywood 91605
The event runs from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, May 19, and Saturday, May 20, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, May 21 and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Monday, May 22. (Monday is for rescue groups only and they must request an appointment.)
This special event makes dogs and cats available to the public at special discounted adoption rates: $55 per dog and $35 for one cat and $50 for two cats. Adoption fees include spay or neuter surgery, a microchip, and a license for dogs.
It’s even better for 501c3 rescue organizations. In honor of the launch of LAAS’ New Hope Program, rescue groups in good standing with LAAS will receive animals for free plus they will receive a $100 cash gift made possible by an anonymous benefactor.
“The spring is typically the most difficult season in our shelters because of over-crowding,” explained LAAS General Manager Ed Boks, “and East Valley is especially hard hit this year. We want to make it as easy as possible for these great animals to find a loving home so we’ve teamed up with every rescue group in L.A. to address this ‘dog-gone cat-Astrophe.’”
The special $100 offer to rescue groups is only available at the East Valley Animal Care Center to rescue groups. To qualify for special “New Hope” rates or subsidies call 213-485-8613 prior to visiting the shelter.
“I hope families, individuals and rescuers will visit East Valley Animal Service Center this weekend and take advantage of this unique opportunity to find new friends for life, and to give these animals a fresh start,” said Boks.
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Keep Those Cards And Letters Coming! by Ed Boks

LAAS appreciates all the help we are receiving from the community in the form of compliments, suggestions, and even complaints. Your feedback helps us focus all our efforts on becoming a better, more responsive organization every day to both you and the animals we care for.

To make sure your feedback is not overlooked and has its intended impact, LAAS developed a quick and easy feedback process that will direct your comments to the appropriate LAAS division director for a quick response (2 weeks or less is our hope, depending of course on the nature of the issue).

To send your compliment, suggestion, or complaint to LAAS just click on this website:  http://www.laanimalservices.com/servicefeedback.htm 

There is also a button in the quick-links menu on the left side of our Homepage that says “Feedback Form”, as well as a tiny blurb with link in the body of the home page.

Don’t be shy; let us know how you think we are doing and what we could be doing better. Your feedback, help, and support are always welcome and appreciated!

Thank you for your continued support of LAAS!
Ed