Tuesday, December 20th, 2016 Animal Advocates and Fort Bend Pets Alive! Persevered the Six Month Efforts in Clarifying Myths of No Kill and Advocacy to the City Council of Rosenberg.
In the last city council meeting on December 6th, 2016, several City Councilors along with Mayor McConathy of Rosenberg unwaveringly asserted there were confusions about what no-kill means and doesn’t mean. Concerned Fort Bend citizens and animal advocates took the time during the holiday season to offer another presentation of clarification to the council after multiple attempts.
Ms. Ann Gardner, an animal lover who has been volunteering with a no kill group for sixteen years, urged the council to understand the definition as the first step forward towards helping more animals and becoming no kill. No kill means that no animals are killed for space. No healthy or otherwise treatable animal should be killed when alternatives exist to save them.
Today,
1) almost 1,000,000 people live in communities where the municipal shelter is saving at least 98% of the animals;
2) at least 10,000,000 people love in communities where the municipal shelter is saving at least 90% of animals;
3) and over 40,000,000 live in communities saving at least 80%.
And the numbers continue to grow. The “adopt some and kill the rest” paradigm which has dominated our nation’s shelters for so long is being replaced.
City of Rosenberg is far behind in joining the national trend of municipalities and counties across the United States being on the cutting edge of investing in animal welfare. Our connection to our pets is a strong indicator of our wellness in all aspects of our life. It is also the vitality of the economy both now and for the future. There is no reason not to save lives.
Mr. Paul Christy, an animal advocate from Richmond, Texas emphasized his independence from any group, Fort Bend Pets Alive! in particular, to ensure the council’s worries and concerns of a non-profit organization crossing the political line as expressed in the last city council meeting, was not valid. He urged folks to see the light and be part of the humane, civilized solution. Some folks do not care for children but they do not stop supporting child welfare services. Saving lives of homeless animals should not be a controversy as accounted by Mr. Paul Christy. Fifty cats killed in the month of November is not acceptable but “we are all guilty” of letting it happen.
Ms. Danna Psencik, a Rosenberg resident, continued her effort to strongly suggest to the City Council of Rosenberg to learn about no kill in depth. No kill is science based with statistics she said. The solutions are measurable and targeted. It can help utilize limited resources to save more lives. NO KILL is a national social movement and it WILL turn America No Kill.
In response to the City Council’s expressed intention to work with a no kill group in the prior meeting, Ms. Claudine Vass, President of Fort Bend Pets Alive! sincerely urged the council to pursue a no kill group that is reputable to help the animals. The first step is to make sure the monthly reports use the same national yard sticks to collect and analyze data. A wrong total number of intake affects important decisions on daily operations, staffing issues and budgeting for the next fiscal year. The bottom line is, it affects tax dollars being spent on saving lives or putting animals down unnecessarily. It is crucial to assess the situation and identify solutions to save more lives. Ms. Vass also invited the City of Rosenberg to embark the meaningful journey together to save at least 90% of the companion animals in Rosenberg shelter in the new year.
Advocates gave the council warm wishes for the holidays.
About Fort Bend County Pets Alive! FORT BEND PETS ALIVE! is a non-profit, 501(C)3 organization, dedicated to help make Fort Bend a no kill community through programs such as adoptions, education and community outreach, low cost spay and neuter surgeries, fostering, Positive Alternatives to
Shelter Surrender (PASS), and promote rescuing from euthanasia list.