Don’t know if anyone’s been keeping up…but the Dallas Animal Shelter is a mess, an embarrassment to the city, and in a complete tailspin and dive…not that it always hasn’t been…but usually the mess is swept under the rug, AND fairly successfully too! Well, it appears it’s now “full” under the rug, and the dirt is spilling out for all the world to see. And there’s nowhere to hide it anymore. The rug simply isn’t big enough. So I thought I’d share a little bit of the dirt…as a foundation to my next blog entry. I would also like to thank a handful of bloggers ALL of whom have been more than helpful in lifting up the rug, AND beating the hell out of it! Their devotion to animals, justice, and the TRUTH is inspiring!
PJ Boosinger pjboosinger.viviti.com/ PJ’s site is a varied one, but often includes animal topics, usually issues surrounding owners, with her own unique and highly critical eye.
Larry Powell http://readlarrypowell.typepad.com/ Larry is on top of all things “rescue”, “shelter”, and animals and events supporting them all, in the DFW/North Texas area.
Feline Provocateur feline-provocateur.blogspot.com/ This is the website for all things DAS from a public perspective. This site is critical reading for anyone wanting to keep up on shelter policies and politics!
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IT ALL BEGAN….earlier this year, with the Gideon “case”…which started horrifically for the Gideons, and ended up being a complete embarrassment to the city of Dallas. Sadly, it was one completely within Shelter Director, Kent Robertson’s, ”discretion”. He was not “discrete” nor did he choose wisely. As a result, Dallas was left with a great deal of “egg on their face”.
(By the way…A LARGE ”shout-out” to my bud…Judy Griggs at R-PAL and her “posse” in the rescue community, for bringing this to light…and for working non-stop on the behalf of the Gideons…along with many other bloggers, including the trio above, who made a critical impact!)
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Rpal/109995675684666
http://www.r-pal.org/rpal_news_066.htm
And more on the Gideon case...and a special thanks to their attorney, Byron Woolley, who ultimately “saved” the Gideon’s pets.
http://pjboosinger.viviti.com/entries/general/gideon-case
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AND THEN…there was the “cat-dying-in-the-wall” incident. Resulting in the indictment of the manager, Tyrone McGill. Links are easier to provide and if you google the words Dallas, shelter, cat, wall, and Mcgill, it will , unfortunately, result in so many articles on the story, you will simply be overwhelmed.
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/081110dnmetcatinwall.29c92e8.html
html http://www.scribd.com/doc/35638779/Tyrone-McGill-Affidavithttp://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local-beat/Cat-Dies-Trapped-in-Animal-Shelter-Wall-100433709.html
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AND THEN…the Director, Kent Robertson (yes, “THE” Kent Robertson of Houston BARC infamy) either “resigned” , or was “down-sized”, depending on who you believe (City Manager, Mary Suhm, has since “reinstated” the “position”…under significant public pressure), but either way, Robertson, is thankfully, gone. The same Kent Robertson who allowed puppies to “wash” down uncovered drains, and die, at BARC. (Well, at least he’s consistent. The horror stories surrounding this man abound!) And yes, more links for your reading enjoyment…
feline-provocateur.blogspot.com/
(and an excerpt from www. zootoo.com:) “Then, just a week ago an employee supposedly tried to remove a frightened cat from the overnight drop box using a catchpole. Another employee caught him beating the friendly, chubby cat with the pole. Her jaw was broken in several places & several of her claws were ripped out. She also suffered strangling, an injured leg, & hemorrhaging in her eyes.
Daisy survived her attack, was taken into rescue & is being treated for her extensive injuries, but how many more nameless cats & dogs are going to be allowed to suffer before the city steps in & cleans up this House of Horrors?”
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BUT WAIT!!!! We’re not done…yet. Latest gossip…is that a DALLAS ANIMAL CONTROL OFFICER tried to FORCE A DOG WHICH HAD BEEN HIT, and was laying alongside the road (due to a very empathetic Dallas Police Officer stopping to keep the dog from moving back INTO traffic…) WITH SHATTERED BONES in its rear legs TO STAND AND WALK, and when IT DIDN’T, PULLED it up by THE FUR, and when itSTILL DIDN’T WALK on it’s own, and was CRYING IN PAIN…decided DRAGGING IT WITH THE CATCHPOLE was a satisfactory option. When is it going to stop?
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/090910dnmetdog.24fc9a9.html
http://dallasanimaladvocates.wordpress.com/why-change-has-to-happen-now/
Excerpt from Larry Powellhttp://readlarrypowell.typepad.com/read_larry_powell/2010/09/on-a-rainy-day-reasons-to-be-moody.html?cid=6a00d8341c4e0853ef0134871fd3a5970c
“Word zipped around yesterday afternoon about an unpleasant handling of an injured dog by an animal control officer.
According to the folks at Dallas Animal Advocates, and to some discreet e-mails, this event was witnessed by the Dallas police officer who had called Dallas Animal Services for help in dealing with the dog.
The report is that the police officer kept the dog from going back into traffic while waiting. When the DAS officer arrived, he immediately got out a catch pole. The injured dog “wasn’t aggressive until he tried to get it to stand on shattered legs and then pick it up by its rear fur….only then…and it didn’t try to bite him.”
This insensitive handling has set off a storm in the animal community. As it turns out, the dog was transported to Dallas Animal Services, examined by a veterinarian, declared to be too injured to save and euthanized.
(Larry aside: Had it been my dog or your dog, perhaps it would not have been too injured to save. But it was a stray and it was in the Dallas Animal Services system and, as you know, the philosophy of the City of Dallas is this: “Got an animal problem? Let’s kill it.”)
Elaine Munch, president of the Metroplex Animal Coalition and moving force in Dallas Animal Advocates, distributed a reliable account of the event and uses it to call for change at the City of Dallas, specifically moving Animal Services out of the Code Compliance Department and making it a separate department led by an animal-knowledgeable individual.
And, Rebecca Poling, president of the education program Companions for Life and a member of the Dallas Animal Shelter Commission, wrote Mayor Tom Leppert and the City Council yesterday about moving Animal Services into a separate department and giving it strong leadership.”
…and for a good, overall condensed version, visit Larry Powell, September 08, 2010, pm edition…
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NOW…I have basically brought you up-to-date, and laid the foundation for my next blog entry…. :>)