Advocates Ask Dallas to Improve Animal Shelter Services

Budget cutbacks and scandal within the Dallas Animal Services department are changing the way the city handles the pet population. These changes, which will affect management of the city animal shelter and enforcement of local animal ordinances, could affect your quality of life and may mean thousands of healthy, innocent animals are put down without ever getting a chance of being adopted by a loving family.

Among the cutbacks proposed for next year's city budget is the elimination of the position of Division Manager of Animal Services. That doesn't sit well with a coalition of animal advocates, who have begun a campaign asking for changes in how the City of Dallas Animal Shelter operates.

Called "Now or Never for Dallas Animal Services," the campaign is asking that the division manager position be reinstated with a qualified candidate who has the authority to make necessary changes and decisions at the shelter.

One of campaign organizers, Jonnie England of the Metroplex Animal Coalition, believes without a qualified manager in charge, the quality of animal services in the city will decline. "Right now, people (in animal services) are having to answer to city supervisors who do not understand what animal services does. It is just micromanaging," she said. "Animal services is under the control of city code compliance, and that is not where it needs to be." Advocates are asking the city to move animal services into the public safety department.

Problems at the Dallas Animal Shelter were exposed when the shelter manager was indicted on animal cruelty charges in August. The manager, now on leave, left a shelter cat to die after it became stuck inside the building's walls.

Poor management is only one of the challenges facing animal services. According to England, over 23,000 dogs and cats were placed in the city's shelter during a nine month period from October 2009 through June 2010. Only 23% were either rescued by a group like the SPCA or adopted. That leaves nearly 18,000 dogs and cats that were euthanized during that period, almost 2,000 every month. It is a sobering fact most people are unaware of.

Several years ago, I called animal services to pick up a couple of collarless stray dogs that wandered into my yard. The worker who came by opened my eyes to the reality of his job. Even though the dogs, two black Labrador Retrievers, were in good health and very friendly, he said the shelter was so filled with dogs already that the labs would probably be euthanized immediately after they arrived. Labs are just not a popular choice for adoption, he told me. I decided to keep the dogs and eventually, the Dallas SPCA took them in and was able to find them homes.

With so many unwanted dogs and cats coming in, animal services needs enough resources to handle such a load and the right management to make sure the job is done properly. England says both adoptions and animal rescues are up this year, because dedicated staff are committed to saving animals. Now, they only need a commitment of support from the city.

The "Now or Never" campaign has a website, DallasAnimalAdvocates.org, asking citizens to contact the Mayor and their city council member in support the campaign's proposals. Phone numbers and emails for each elected official are listed. A few minutes of your time, with either an email or a phone call, could change the mind of a city council member and bring about needed change at animal services.

Only the Dallas police and fire departments handled more calls for help than animal services last year, and yet, they do not have priority at city hall. The only way to change that is with your voice. You can speak for the dedicated workers who work on your behalf, as well as for thousands of animals who will be euthanized because there aren't enough resources to give them a fighting chance at life. For England, the logic is simple. "We should never punish animals just because they were born."

Sources: Personal interview with Jonnie England, Dallas Morning News: Layoffs, DallasNews.com: Animal shelter manager, DallasAnimalAdvocates.org,