Reports of serious viruses now striking ACC dogs offer another reason why animal advocates (and particularly rescue groups) should attend the
Wednesday, June 24th Animal Care and Control Board meeting . The ACC will report on its much-heralded progress.
Indeed, the ACC has made progress. But that doesn't change the fact that the ACC operates in underfunded, overcrowded, and outdated buildings that breed more and more novel diseases.
What's ironic is that NYC's Department of
Health (which controls the ACC) may find itself faced with an unprecedented
health crisis ... one of its own making.
That said, here are the 4 top reasons you should attend the June 24th board meeting:
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1) WHERE'S THE "CARE" IN THE RENAMED ACC? Animal Care & Control just announced a major "
rebranding." They've ditched the off-putting word "Control" from their name in favor of "
Animal Care Centers of NYC."
ACC Management also says that so far this year they've exceeded a 90% "Live Release Rate" (the percentage of ACC animals leaving the shelter alive). If they keep up that pace, by year's end the ACC will declare themselves "no kill" (which a shelter can do if it kills no more than 10% of its animals). Then animal advocates can turn their attention elsewhere because NYC's animal homeless problem will have been solved.
Uh, not so fast.
ACC readily acknowledges that this 90% statistic would be impossible without its rescue partners. According to ACC statistics, rescuers account for almost 3 out of every 4 "placements." What the public doesn't realize is once the ACC declares itself "no kill," those partners will be left holding the bag.
While 90% of its animals leave the ACC alive ... far too many are just barely so (meaning, alive). FACEBOOK is abuzz with pleas for donations by ACC rescuers who are buckling under the weight of vet bills.
Unfortunately, the ACC won't be able to live up to its new name of "Animal
Care Centers" as long as the Department of Health is in charge.
(2) WHAT'S IN STORE FOR THE BRONX AND QUEENS?
As Comptroller Scott Stringer recently noted, adding state-of-the-art shelters for the Bronx and Queens would relieve ACC overcrowding. Overcrowding in turn generates shelter diseases. Yet, with the ACC's help, the Department of Health recently
derailed the Shelters Bill. Neither the DOH nor the ACC has described the
specific services they say will serve the Bronx and Queens as well as full-service shelters. That's certainly something animal advocates would like explained to them at the Board Meeting.
(3)
NEW FACES ON THE ACC BOARD. Six months ago the DOH announced it would allow the ACC to expand its board by adding 2 more "independent" board members. Will these new members be extraordinary individuals who will challenge the
status quo and the DOH? Or the same old, same old?
To blunt the impact of Comptroller Scott Stringer's recent
audit of the ACC, six months ago the DOH promised to make certain capital improvements to the existing shelters. But the DOH has been fuzzy about exactly
when they'll deliver on those promises. That's a great question for next week's meeting.
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With these issues affecting NYC's homeless animals, pet owners, animal advocates, and rescue groups alike, the June 24th meeting is a must-attend. Please join us at the meeting.
