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ACO sessions at Getting to the Goal conference |
Communities
that are most successful at saving shelter pets' lives are doing so with the support and commitment of their animal control professionals. Several sessions at Michigan Pet Fund Alliance's
Getting to the Goal Conference will address issues
relating to ACO programs.
The sessions, open to ACOs and general conference attendees, are:
ACO Certification - Is it time to up the requirements?
- To become a certified Animal Control Officer in Michigan, a person must first complete the required 100 hours of training /field work, such as a day shadowing a current officer, a day with a veterinarian, a half day with the local authority, county commissioner, or city manager discussing local policies and procedures, and a day spent with the sheriff or police chief discussing laws, enforcement policies, how to issue a summons, serving of warrants, and public relations. Once training is complete a summary of activities is submitted to the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development for certification approval. Substantial change and complications have occurred in animal welfare since these standards were established. Hear three Animal Control experts give their perspective and launch the dialogue for change.
Becky Neal, Michigan Association of Animal Control Officers; Matthew Pepper, Michigan Humane Society; Jeff Randazzo, Macomb County Animal Control
Changing Animal Control Practices from Punitive to Positive - Your animal control program can be more successful by implementing positive, rather than punitive, practices in your community. Community engagement leads to fewer cruelty complaints and impounds, and more positive experiences in the field. Learn which law enforcement organizations to partner with, the benefits of using deferments over citations, how to educate owners for long-term success and how to keep animals that are not shelter adoption candidates in homes where they were successful.
Karen Sparapani, Milwaukee Area Domestic Animal Control Commission
Meet the presenters:
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Becky Neal
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Becky Neal is currently the President of the Michigan Association of Animal Control Officers, sits on the Small Animal Companion Board, MI-SART Board, and active as a legislative representative for MAACO. Becky has been employed by Eaton County Animal Control as an ACO for the past 20 years. She is a graduate of Michigan State University, where she attended the Horse Management program. Becky was previously employed at a veterinary clinic as an exam room technician for 5 years prior to becoming an ACO. She lives on the family farm where she raises Hereford cattle with her husband and two boys.
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Matt Pepper
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Matthew Pepper joined the Michigan Humane Society (MHS) as its President and CEO in August 2014. He came to MHS with more than 15 years of animal welfare experience including leadership roles in animal care and control in New Mexico, Tennessee, and Louisiana. He began his career in Michigan working both with Kent County Animal Control and the Humane Society of West Michigan. He holds a B.S. in wildlife biology from Grand Valley State University and has taught law enforcement and animal care and control professionals in four states - primarily on complex animal cruelty investigations and related topics.
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Jeff Randazzo
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Jeff Randazzo currently serves as the Chief Animal Control officer for Macomb County. He is the recipient of the
2014 Michigan Pet Fund Alliance Award for Innovations & Best Practices - Creating Transformational Change
. Jeff attended Michigan State University where he studied Equine Science & Livestock Management which prepared him for his employment with the City of Detroit as a horse trainer and instructor for the Detroit Mounted Police. For the last decade Jeff's professional career has concentrated in various aspects of welfare for homeless cats and dogs from animal evaluator, adoption counselor, to veterinary and surgical assistant, to animal control for both municipal and not for profits shelters. Jeff takes a "problem solving" approach to animal control. Under his direction Macomb was the first in the state to institute higher professional standards for Animal Control Officers; a shelter, neuter, release program for community cats and dog play groups.
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Karen Sparapani and Jake
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Karen Sparapani is the Executive Director of
Milwaukee Area Domestic Animal Control Commission (MADACC). MADACC is the sole animal control provider for the 19 municipalities of Milwaukee County taking in 11,000 animals per year. She is a member of the Milwaukee Animal Cruelty Task Force, the Milwaukee County Hoarding Task Force, and is part of a coalition of progressive Wisconsin s
helter leaders who
recently worked to successfully make important and lifesaving changes to Wisconsin State Statute 173. She recently appeared in a Discovery Channel special discussing the dangers of the private ownership of exotic animals and has presented extensively on evolving animal control practices.
Michigan Pet Fund Alliance's 2016 No Kill conference,
will be held September 15-16 at the Holiday Inn Gateway Centre Flint - Grand Blanc.
Exhibitor information is here.
Sponsorship information is here.
We have already had requests for scholarships but the scholarship fund is dry!
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Scholarship opportunities for Getting to the Goal conference
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Michigan Pet Fund Alliance is accepting applications for scholarships which will cover 70%
of the
conference registration fee. Scholarship recipients will pay a low price of $25 for a day and a half of learning, lunch, continental breakfast, snacks, cocktail reception appetizers, networking, and conference materials. The scholarship will pick up the remaining portion of the fee.
To apply, please complete
this form, save it to your computer, and attach it to an email to
conference@michiganpetfund.org. If you are approved, you will be sent a registration code to authorize you for the $25 scholarship price, and then you can complete the registration process.
Access the scholarship application
here.
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About Michigan Pet Fund Alliance
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The single mission of the Michigan Pet Fund Alliance is to stop the killing of healthy and treatable homeless cats and dogs in Michigan shelters.
MPFA is an all-volunteer
organization collaborating with shelter and rescue organizations to achieve No Kill through training, technical
assistance,
education and advocacy.
For more information:
877-FUR-PALS
(877-387-7257)
Contributions are tax deductible.
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