KC DOG BLOG

Roeland Park, KS repeals BSL - - details and thoughts on focus & equal time

On Monday night, Roeland Park, KS, a first ring suburb of Kansas City, MO with a population of 6800 people, passed dramatic changes to its animal control laws.

Part of the law change was to repeal the city's 27 year old ban on pit bulls -- and this is the part of the law that has gotten the most attention -- from the media headlines to the public commentary. 

But I think the focus of all of the attention on "pit bulls" has done a major disservice to the public commentary about public safety and effective animal control legislation, and that's too bad.

In the world of striving to be first with the news, and 7 second sound bites, a deep dive into the ordinance isn't something that is really getting done, well, anyway. But there were a lot of great provisions in this law, most designed to increase public safety, and all of that has gotten lost in the chatter about the BSL repeal.  Below are some of the provisions that will make life better for animals in Roeland Park, and make the community safer:

1) A well-defined section on nuisance animals -- which protects residents from owners who's animals emit excessive noise, property damage, running at large, jump on, chase or injure another domestic animal. 

2) A solid definition and restriction of "Dangerous animals" (regardless of breed) - as an animal that bites or injures a person or domestic animal. 

3) A separate definition of "Vicious animals".

4) It allows members of the community to institute TNR for cats. Previously the city was paying for animal control enforcement to pick up cats and paying a daily hold fee at their shelter for feral cats. The city will no longer incur those costs.

5) Adding an entire section on tethering within the definition of animal cruelty -- including attaching chains directly to dogs without a proper collar, continuously tethering a dog for more than 1 hour, and the use of a chain, leash, rope, collaring device or tether that weighs more than 1/8 of the animal's body weight or is so heavy to inhibit free movement within the tethering area, or the tethering the dog in a manner that could cause injury, strangulation or entanglement. 

I think when you look at the laws that were added, I think they do a particularly good job of INCREASING the ability of the public to protect themselves from potentially dangerous dogs -- regardless of breed or appearance. Also, the definitions of tethering within the cruelty section allow for dogs to be removed from a cruel tethering situation before a toddler unwittingly walks up to the dog -- which also increases public safety.

I think when you look at these provisions, it allows residents take a proactive response to potentially dangerous dog situation and irresponsible owners before a major incident occurs. It allows for them to take proactive steps regardless of the breed, or appearance of the dog. It also still allows them to target 'pit bulls' (or Chows, or Labradors) that might be potentially dangerous based on their actions -- without wasting resources on dogs or owners that are not a threat to the public. 

It's a complete win/win.

Roeland Park is a small community, and a relatively safe one. But I suspect the new ordinance will continue to increase the quality of life for its residents. Several members of the city council and the community spent nearly a year working on this legislation and I really wish more of the focus would have been on the thoroughness and well-thought out nature of the changes, and not just solely on the pit bull ban getting repealed.

Yes, I'm happy about the ban being repealed. It needed to happen. I just wish the importance of the other elements hadn't gotten missed.

I really feel that if the changes had been fully explained by the media it could have opened up a far better dialogue on public safety, and what leads to animals being aggressive and a public safety risk. And it's disappointing that the opportunity was missed.

Equal Time

There is one other unfortunate thing that has come out of the media follow up is the need to cover "both sides" of the issue vs telling the story of what really happened at the public debate. 

One example is from Fox 4. While their worst report isn't available online, they have several segments that are (I'm a bit forgiving of the Monday night newscasts for all the stations as the final vote happened about 20 minutes before they went on air).  

In the Fox 4 report, they noted that while many people supported the repeal of the pit bull ban, "others were outraged at the decision". They interviewed one person who spoke in favor of the repeal. And one who opposed. Both sides represented. Fair. Balanced.

But here's the deal. The person they interviewed in opposition to the repeal was the ONLY citizen who testified against the repeal. At the meeting which housed the final vote, there were 13 people who stood up and testified in favor of the repeal. People who testified in favor of the repeal included 9 residents, a couple of animal welfare professionals, the director of the shelter that handles the city's animal control contract, a person who moved from the city because her dog was determined to be a pit bull,  and the certified dog trainer who handles dog training classes at the city community center.

Only one person favored keeping the ban.

In an earlier testimony on the ordinance in November, 20 people testified in favor of the repeal. Only 3 opposed it (including the same individual who opposed it Monday night).

Councilwoman Megan England noted that she was "saddened and disappointed" in the council for approving an 11th hour amendment that would prohibit ownership of more than 1 pit bull without a permit until 2018. "Shame on us for thinking this was a controversial ordinance. We don't usually have this many people for an issue and it not be controversial...." noting that almost everyone who testified at both meetings and resident emails favored the change.

It just seems that in an effort to show "both sides" of the issue that the media missed the story about how the public forum was clearly and exceptionally one-sided, in total numbers, and in the expertise of those who presented. 

And maybe in an effort to give "equal time" the media failed to give the public a clear picture of how overwhelmingly supported the new legislation was. 

Congrats to the community of Roeland Park. You got it right. I just hope others can see that what was right about this went far beyond the breed ban repeal, and really is good for animals and humans in the community.

2014 KC Pet Project - The Year in Numbers

In January 2012, KC Pet Project embarked on a journey to take what once was a high-kill Kansas City municipal shelter and turn our city into a No Kill Community.

In July of 2013, we celebrated our first 12 consecutive months at operating above a 90% Live Release Rate. 

In spite of many challenges in 2014, KC Pet Project had another amazing year of growth, success and recognition.

In March, KC Pet Project opened a second satellite adoption facility. This one, a 2,000 square foot space inside a Petco retail store. 

This location, along with our first satellite adoption facility in Zona Rosa Shopping Center, have been crucial for the increase in adoptions, and thus lives saved at KCPP.

In November, our Zona Rosa location celebrated its 3,000 adoption -- in less than 2 years of being open. 

In May, several folks from Kansas City Pet Project were invited to San Diego to receive a major award. KC Pet Project was honored to be selected by the Petco Foundation to receive the first ever Paul Jolly Compassion Award.

Paul Jolly was the founder of the Petco Foundation 15 years ago -- with the idea that he could leverage the strength of the nation's largest pet retailer and help pets in the process. Mr. Jolly passed away earlier this year due to ALS. The Petco Foundation chose to create the Paul Jolly Compassion Award to give to individuals or organizations that turned their compassion for animals into action -- and KC Pet Project was the first ever winner. I couldn't be more proud. 

KC Pet Project also was invited to present our story at the Best Friends Animal Society Conference, American Pets Alive Conference,No Kill Columbia, 1 Million Cups, and at the Missouri Animal Control Association Conference. We also received the Community Engagement Award as a part of the ASPCA 100K Challenge. We received generous grants from Best Friends, ASPCA, HSUS the Petco Foundation and generally our number of donors and donations have risen substantially.

The Numbers

But all the recognition doesn't mean a lot if we aren't also doing the right things by saving the lives of the animals that come into our care. And with that, it was a banner year also.

For the year 2014 (these number respresent dogs & cats only):

Total Intake: 9,476 (6,029 dogs, 3,447 cats)

5,986 Adoptions (3,391 dogs, 2,595 cats)

1,244 Pets returned to owners (1202 dogs, 42 cats)

1,024 Transferred to other rescue groups (688 dogs, 336 cats)

8,450 total positive outcomes

In total, we performed 650 euthanasias for health or behavior resasons and 94 owner requested euthanasias.

Our Assilomar Live Release Rate for the year was 93% (93% for both dogs and cats). Our modified Live Release Rate (which includes those that died in our care) was 91% (92% for dogs, 88% for cats). 

The Challenges

The biggest challenge this year was handling the 16% increase in total intake (+10% on dogs, +28% on cats) on the year. This number was MUCH higher earlier in the year (it was more than 21% YOY in July) and finally tapered off toward the end of the year. 

While animal control impounds still make up most of our intake (45%), the  vast majority of the increases were from Owner Surrenders (+53%) and public stray dropoff (+16%). 

And generally, our very small, outdated, 42 year old shelter continues to be a challenge as, at 14,000 square feet, is roughly 1/4 the size of a shelter that would be necessary for an intake of roughly 10,000 animals.

We also continue to struggle with the large number of breed bans in our region that are causing many pit bulls to become unnecessarily homeless and also eliminate many potential homes for the ones that are in the shelter. 

We are also seeing more and more shelters in the area make it increasingly difficult, if not impossible, for people to surrender their pets which is pushing more people toward KC Pet Project. It is a huge concern for KCPP that if intake continues to increase at the current rates, that the size of the shelter, and the significant increase in intake (now up 40% in just 2 years) will put a huge strain on our ability to save lives at the current rate.

Major Successes

While they were many, one of the major successes was a 33% increase in adoptions. In 2014, we doubled the number of adoptions compared to our first year in 2012.  

We also increased the number of animals returned to owner by 17%. 

Another major success was a decrease in the number of animals that died in our care by 25% (In spite of the increased intake). Improvements in our training programs, veterinary clinic, parvo ward and in our ability to find even more good fosters for juvenile kittens has really improved our success there. 

Overall it's been another great year at KC Pet Project and I'm very proud of the success and growth of the organization as a start-up organization just 3 years ago. We continue to get a lot more community support, adopters and volunteer support, which has been, and will continue to be, huge for us. 

And I'm very excited for the year to come as we have a lot of new initiatives that we are looking forward to sharing.

The 10 Most Popular KC Dog Blog Posts of 2014

In the 8 years that I've been writing this blog, this may have been the least active year on the blog. Time just got away from me and the changing nature of internet activity has led me to post more articles simply on the KC Dog Blog Facebook page vs writing entire posts about the topics. 

However, I alway enjoy a look back at some of the most popular posts on this blog over the past year -- to see the things I hope resonated with people. 

It's been a big year on many fronts. Two more states have prohibited cities from enacting breed-specific ordinances and many cities have come to the same decision on their own and repealed their ordinances. Shelter Life-saving has increased to as more and more shelters are taking proactive measures to increase the number of animals that they can put into rescue groups and homes.

All of this is good stuff. 

So with that, let's take a look at some of the most popular stories of the year on KC Dog Blog:

1) Fatal Dog attack in Dayton - on breed, the media, common denomenators, reckless owners and ineffective animal control -- Back in February, 57 year old Klonda Richey was tragically killed by her neighbor's two dogs. The story highlighted a lot of elements, including irresponsible dog ownership, an animal controll department that knew the dogs were a problem and failed to do their jobs and highlighted how stories by particular breeds of dogs are covered more by the media than others. This was, by a fairly large margin, the highest read post of the year.

2) More acceptance for open adoption policies - -At this year's HSUS Expo, there was a solid presentation about open adoption policies for shelters and the importance of working for ways to say "yes" to adopters vs denying adopters that we don't feel are "good enough". The practive of loving our adoptable pets to death is fortunately falling out of favor and being more open with adoptions is gaining more momentum. And I'm glad this was a popular post, and hope it will continue to be so.

3) BSL Continues to be an embarrassment for Springfield, MO - -this post, from just last week, ended up #3 on the list. Advocates in Springfield, and the city itself, continues to have to work around a law that is getting in their way, costing taxpayer dollars, and is constantly being reviewed. A city-appointed task force recommended more than a year ago to repeal the law, but no action has been taken.

4) Bonner Springs, KS Repeals ban on pit bulls and great info on the story you need to know - In January, Bonner Springs, KS repealed its 24 year old law banning pit bulls. In the process, they wrote a very compelling testimony about why they repealed the law -- including noting that those who support breed specific ordinances relay on skewed and inaccurate statistics.

5) More research on the health impacts of spay/neuter -- where should we go from here? -- For decades, spay/neuter has been a critical component of animal welfare advocates and controling animal population, and as a result, the number of animals killed in shelters. However, a lot of new research over the past couple of years highlights some potential negative health consequences of spay/neuter. This is a look at the new science, and some potential options moving forward.

6) Seven facts about Aurora, CO's breed ban before next week's vote -- In November, citizens of Aurora voted to keep it's 9 year old breed ban. The ban has been expensive and ineffective at doing anything other than causing the mass slaughter of a bunch of innocent dogs, none of which the mainstream media reported upon. 

7) More deceit from Merritt Clifton attackign shelter pets, information availability and how Time magazine got it wrong (again) -- Merritt Clifton is one of the more active anti-pit bull voices in the US, and has essentially made a career out of making up information and skewing "statistics" to support his agenda. This article discusses Clifton's agenda and lack of reasoning. But don't just take my word for it, more here.

8) A truth, two mistruths, an important factor and a telling quote -- An Associate Press Article discussing the "Softening reputation on pit bulls" allowed a couple of its anti-pit bull sources to make statements whose facts went unchecked - -but a telling quote from one of those sources definitely highlights an agenda.

 9) Behavioral differences among breeds of dogs - current status of science - This blog entry analyzes a peer-reviewed research paper that highlights the current status of what is known about breed differences in behavior based on science (not bloggers, or hysteria). It's a good read for anyone in animal welfare, or city government, that may make you question what you think you know about breed stereotypes, and what science tells us.

10) Some interesting data on pit bull intake and adoptions in shelters - shelters everywhere are full of pit bulls. But some interesting data from Dr. Emily Weiss at the ASPCA highlights that pit bulls are really very highly adoptable dogs (they are actually the third most adopted breed from the shelters she studied) but that other issues, including breed-specific housing issues, are leading to many of their challenges. 

 

January 1, 2012 -- a look back at KC Pet Project's first day

Today is the 3rd anniversary of the start of Kansas City Pet Project. Maybe I'm feeling a little nostalgic, but with a lot of followers and supporters out there, I thought it was only appropriate to take a look back to three years ago today.

Actually, the story begins a bit sooner than that. In May of 2011, the City of Kansas City issued an RFP for individuals or organizations to bid on the operating of the city animal shelter. The shelter had for decades been a high kill shelter, and the city was (rightfully) convinced that a private organization running the shelter would be a better option for the city than the city running it themselves. When the city had operated the shelter, it ws only saving about 35% of the animals that came in, however, after two years of private operation, the live release rates were nearing 60%. Yet, there were still problems, and the City sought a new shelter partner.

Proposals were due in mid-July. And, the due date came and went, with no one submitting a bid to run the shelter. The deadline was extended three weeks, and during that three weeks, KC Pet Project was formed by a small group of individuals with a vision of what we hoped the shelter could become.

After several rounds of negotiations, KC Pet Project was awarded the contract to run the shelter on November 25, with a takeover date of January 1. That 5 weeks was largely spent working to hire staff so we could even open the doors on January 1.

On December 31st, we collected the keys from the old staff, and on January 1, KC Pet Project began operations with a shelter full of animals and a staff of 18 people. 

It would have been expected that we would have been closed on January 1. It's a holiday afterall, and all of the other shelters in our community are closed on that day. It was a day the shelter had traditionally been closed. And, it would have made a lot of sense to let our new staff, most of whom had never worked at an animal shelter before to learn a bit about their jobs, get some training, etc. 

But we didn't do what was expected. We knew that KCPP had to send a strong message that things were going to be different, and we were going to do everything we could to save lives. So, we not only were open on New Years Day, we held a ribbon cutting and an adoption special ($20.12 adoptions) to encourage people to come out. While, the cold "event" was modestly attended by a singular city council member, one independent journalist, and about 30-40 adopters, it made for a crazy day with a staff learning their jobs and animals leaving the building. 

I've laughed about that day with one of the members of our training staff who was an adoptions counselor that day and she said she was afraid we were going to fire her because she didn't know what she was doing. I told her that I was just glad the entire staff didn't quit after that. 

It's been a crazy 36 months -- the past 30 of which we have operated with a greater than 90% live release rate as an open intake shelter for the city of Kansas City.

Our staff has grown from the original 18, to more than 60, who also serve our two satellite adoption locations.   Amazingly, 8 of our original 18 staffers are still with us (bless you all!).  Our numbers of fosters and volunteers has expanded exponentially, as well as our number of adopters, and support from the community. Without all of the support, and without the dedication of staff, a 90%+ Live Release Rate would not be possible, and literally thousands of animals' lives depend on the support every single day.

So KC Pet Project is starting 2015 the same way it started. We're open on New Years Day while all of the other area shelters are closed, and we're inviting everyone to come out to adopt with all adoptions for $30 today only. Because, that's how our team rolls. 

Thanks to everyone who has joined us in this journey. We have a lot in store for 2015. But I think it's only fitting to look back, while we continue to move forward.

Happy New Years Everyone.