NC animal shelter statistics finally released

The NCDA&CS finally released the 2012 animal shelter statistics. Virginia releases theirs on March 1 every year like clockwork, but down here in Cackalacky things move much more slowly. The NC numbers come out whenever they come out (last year they were out on April 23.) You can get the reports at the NCDA&CS website in PDF and Excel format.

Many counties did not bother to report, and some of the numbers look obviously bogus. For example, the Pender County pound reported the exact same numbers of intakes, adoptions, reclaims and kills for cats as they did for dogs:

The cat numbers shown above are clearly a complete fabrication because according to receipts obtained through a public records request, the Pender County pound sold 660 dead cats to LBS Biological Inc. for $4 each between June 26, 2012, to Jan. 31, 2013,  or slightly more than seven months. What’s more, records obtained show that the Pender pound killed almost that many cats and dogs from Aug. 1, 2012 to Jan 31, 2013 alone, so the real number is certainly much higher.

There is no auditing or verification of any of the numbers in the report, so they could all be complete hogwash for all anyone knows.

Good riddance to the Sampson County gas chamber

The Sampson County gas chamber is gone at long last.

Photo: Sampson County Animal Shelter. See the whole series on Facebook.

Gas chambers remain in the following NC counties: Alamance (Burlington), Ashe, Beaufort, Cabarrus, Cleveland, Davidson, Gaston, Granville, Iredell, Martin, Nash, Randolph, Rowan, Union, Vance (not in use, but may be put back into use at any time), Wilkes, Wilson.

Animal advocates need to keep the pressure on until all gas chambers are removed from NC animal shelters. Contact information for gas chamber counties can be found here. A sample letter for inspiration is here.

Kill the NC “Ag Gag” bill (and other legislative issues)

There are a few bills of great interest to animal advocates before the North Carolina legislature right now.

A particularly insidious bill is SB 648, which is innocuously named the “Commerce Protection Act of 2013” In reality, SB 648 is yet another of the “Ag Gag” bills designed to  criminalize employees who expose animal cruelty or food safety problems on farms or in processing plants. SB 648 could also possibly have a chilling effect on whistleblowing in all sectors of business, industry and even government. Nothing in the bill specifies that it is only applicable to agriculture, so it could criminalize employees who seek to expose wrongdoing in places like nursing homes or hospitals. It could also conceivably be used against employees who expose cruelty or neglect in animal shelters.

SB 648 will be heard in the Senate Commerce Committee tomorrow (Tuesday, May 6, 2013). Listed below are members of that committee, who need to hear from their constituents immediately  that SB 648 is bad news for human and animals! (Click a name to go to that senator’s contact page.)

Co-Chairman: Sen. Rick Gunn
Co-Chairman: Sen. Wesley Meredith
Vice Chairman: Sen. Tamara Barringer
Vice Chairman: Sen. Harry Brown
Members: Sen. Tom Apodaca, Sen. Dan Blue, Sen. Peter S. Brunstetter, Sen. Angela R. Bryant, Sen. Ben Clark, Sen. David L. Curtis, Sen. Don Davis, Sen. Jim Davis, Sen. Thom Goolsby, Sen. Malcolm Graham, Sen. Kathy Harrington, Sen. Neal Hunt, Sen. Clark Jenkins, Sen. Floyd B. McKissick, Jr., Sen. Gene McLaurin, Sen. Martin L. Nesbitt, Jr., Sen. E. S. (Buck) Newton,Sen. Gladys A. Robinson, Sen. Bob Rucho, Sen. Norman W. Sanderson, Sen. Dan Soucek,Sen. Josh Stein, Sen. Jeff Tarte, Sen. Jerry W. Tillman, Sen. Tommy Tucker, Sen. Mike Woodard

(If you do not know who represents you, find out on the NCGA web site.)

You may decide to phone your senator’s office, and if you do, please be polite and respectful. If you choose to email, below is a letter I sent to my senator, who is on the committee. Feel free to borrow it and add your own personal spin:

Dear Senator _______,

SB 648, also known as the “Commerce Protection Act of 2013,” (an unfortunate name which does not reflect the insidious danger of the legislation) will be heard tomorrow in the Senate Commerce Committee. I am writing to urge you to vote against this bill and do everything in your power to see that it does not progress further.

The intent of SB 648, which is modeled after so-called “Ag Gag” bills that have been pushed through in other states by agribusiness behemoths, is to make it impossible for whistleblowers to expose food safety issues or animal cruelty at industrial agriculture facilities. This alone is unconscionable, but the wording of SB 648 means it could also be applied to any whistleblowing in any industry whatsoever. Nursing home staffers who wish to expose elder abuse would be criminalized by this bill, as would day care staffers trying to blow the whistle on abuse or neglect of children. Employees who wish to expose corruption, harassment, unsafe conditions or threats to public health in any industry would be criminalized by this bill.

The passage of SB 648 would represent a step backward for a state which should be striving to become more civilized and humane in its treatment of both humans and animals. Please reject this regressive legislation.

Sincerely,

_____________

There is also a very important animal protection bill currently before the NC General Assembly: HB 930, which would apply reasonable standards, including exercise, fresh food and water, appropriate medical care, safe housing and a clean environment, to dogs in large commercial breeding operations with ten or more intact females. Previous attempts at regulating “puppy mills” in North Carolina had been beaten back by opponents including the American Kennel Club and agribusiness muscle groups, so HB 930 is a compromise bill that does not require licensing or mandatory inspections, but still gives law enforcement the tools to combat cruelty and deter more puppy mills from setting up in the state. It will be heard in committee on Wednesday. North Carolina animal advocates should contact their representatives and express support for this bill.

There is also some good news for dogs and the people who love them in NC: HB 956, which would have required owners of pit bulls, mastiffs and Rottweilers and other large breeds to undergo criminal background checks, among other things, has reportedly been allowed to die in committee.

Person County pound stacks the deck against pets from “rabies alert areas”

The Person County pound kills all pets that come from “rabies alert areas,”  after their hold periods are up, unless the pets are reclaimed by owners. The Person County pound will not release pets from “rabies alert areas” to rescue groups. The dogs pictured above were picked up last week (two on Thursday April 11 and one on Friday April 12) in a rabies alert area. They are scheduled to be killed  Wednesday April 17, yet their photos were first posted online less than 24 hours before they were schedule to to be killed.

Contact the Person County Commissioners and let them know they need to eliminate the unnecessary death sentence on all pets from rabies alert areas. Contact information is here:http://www.personcounty.net/index.aspx?page=187. You may also email County Manager Heidi York at hyork@personcounty.net, and pound manager Ron Shaw at rshaw@personcounty.net.

UPDATE: Thanks to Tam, who posed a response from Person County Manager Heidi York in the comments. Ms. York wrote: “Actually we are in the process of changing our rabies policy which would change this very issue. This will be taken before the Board of Commissioners to adopt our new proposed policy on May 6th.”

Iredell County investigating animal control director

Iredell County officials are investigating allegations that Animal Control Director Chris Royal killed animals she shouldn’t have and sold animals for personal gain.

According to an article at wsoctv.com, someone sent an anonymous letter to county commissioners last week that was so detailed officials believed it may have come from someone inside the department.

One commissioner said the letter accused someone in animal control (presumably Royal) of seizing livestock and selling the animals. It’s not clear what is meant by the allegation that she killed animals she shouldn’t have (especially considering that almost every public “animal shelter” in the state is killing healthy and treatable pets they shouldn’t be killing …)

Iredell is one of the North Carolina counties still using a gas chamber.

Inspector finds cats kept in traps for three days at Pender County pound

On a surprise visit to the Pender County pound on Monday, March 11, the NCDA&CS inspector discovered two cats who had been held in traps without litter pans for three days. “Feces was noted on the floor where they sat,” according to the report. The inspector “advised manager not to allow traps to be set unless there is an adequate shelter enclosure available for the cats.”

The impulse to bring in more cats than there is room for could be because dead cats are a revenue source for the Pender County pound. Between June 26, 2012, to Jan. 31, 2013, the Pender County Animal “Shelter” sold 660 dead cats to LBS Biological Inc. for $4 each, according to receipts obtained through a public records request. That’s $2,640 in revenue over a seven-month period, which means that over the course of a year, dead cat sales could potentially bring in nearly $4,500 in revenue. The cat-selling practice raised at least one county commissioner’s eyebrows when it was revealed last month.

LBS Biological sells the cats to Carolina Biological Supply, which turns them into dissection kits so that school children can learn all about the miracle of life in biology class.

Is this your lost kitty?

A request for records of all animal-killing drugs purchased for the Pender pound between August 2012 and Jan. 31, 2013 revealed that $636.60 was spend on Fatal Plus and Ketathesia (ketamine) during that time period. During the same period, pound staff used the drugs to kill 769 cats and dogs, one chicken, one dove and 27 opossums, raccoons and foxes.* The revenue from the sale of dead cats appears to more than cover the Pender County pound’s business of killing animals.

Given that the capture and sale of cats is a revenue source for the Pender pound, it’s not hard to see why they would disregard animal welfare laws to trap more cats than they have room to house.

Pender is not the only so-called “shelter” in NC that  profits from killing and selling animals. LBS Biological obtains cats from shelters in 34 NC counties and cities (including Brunswick, Onslow, New Hanover, Duplin Beaufort, Lenoir and Surry). LBS is just one of many dealers operating in NC and elsewhere in the US to obtain animals for dissection or experimentation.

Other problems found in the March 11 Pender County pound inspection included:

• 18 sick cats with matted eyes and nasal mucus who had not been provided any medical care. Shelter staff killed the cats during the inspection.
• Dog biscuits lying on top of a storage cabinet and an open box of dog treats were noted in multipurpose room. 
• Spilled dry food inside an outdoor storage building
• Holes in the metal walls of indoor dog kennels. Dogs noted urinating and sticking their feet through the holes.
• Chewed dog houses in the outdoor kennels.
• Seven cats in a kennel with two litter pans (acceptable ratio is one  pan per three cats).
• Cat urine and and feces and spilled dry food inside an outdoor  food/bedding storage building.
• Trash around the storage building and the kennels.
• The cat isolation area is in a poor location in that workers must pass through the healthy cat room therefore may easily transmit disease to the healthy cats. (It was recommended that fixing that deficiency be a long-term capital improvement project.)

There is  to be a follow-up inspection to see if the deficiencies have been corrected on March 25, 2013.

Pender County Photo Gallery (all photos taken while shelter open to public):

I wonder why more people don’t go to shelters to adopt?

Harvesting the cash crop.

“Damn this shelter sucks.”

Dead cats waiting to be stuffed in the freezer for pickup by LBS Biological

Watch where you step

Dog in poop-filled kennel at Pender County Animal Shelter.

The smoking lounge?

Very skinny dog.

Dead cats wait to be stuffed in the freezer for pickup by LBS Biological.

Dog food with a side of poop.

A dog enjoys the cleanest place in his kennel.

Keeping the cigarettes dry.

___

* The killing log notes that many opossums and raccoons were killed for being “feral.”  Isn’t that pretty much a NORMAL way to be for wild animals? Why are they not being released back into their habitat? Depending on how and why they are trapped, the impoundment and killing of these animals may not actually be legal under NC law. According to The NC Division of Wildlife management, if an ACO sets a trap for a cat and by chance captures an opossum, the animal must be released from the trap on sight and should not be relocated or euthanized. If a depredation permit has been issued for the removal of an animal causing damage then it could be euthanized by the animal control officer or at the animal shelter if that is where animal control captures are killed. Also, if an animal is rabid or displays disease-like symptoms for rabies ACO’s are responsible for capturing those animals euthanizing them and submitting them for testing. The NCWRC statues and rules addressing this issue are G.S. Chapter 113 Article 21 and 22 and Title 15A NCAC 10B .0106. Back

Abolish the Granville County gas chamber!

Animal advocates in Granville County are hoping county officials will consider a recent grant offer by HSUS NC director Kim Alboum to get rid of the animal shelter’s gas chamber. Members of the North Carolina Responsible Animal Owners’ Alliance, a group that supports the use of the gas chamber to kill shelter pets, are arguing for Granville County to refuse the grant and keep its gas chamber in operation.

It’s important that county leaders understand that the barbaric gas chamber is a throwback to our less-civilized past and has no place in a modern, humane animal shelter. Animal advocates need to contact the Granville County manager and commissioners (see contact info below) and urge them to end the use of and remove the gas chamber from the county animal shelter.  A sample letter can be used as a template for your own letters to these officials. More points to use in a letter can be found in the American Humane Association gas chamber fact sheet. 

Granville County officials’ contact information:

County Manager: Brian Alligood, brian.alligood@granvillecounty.org, P.O. Box 906 Oxford,  NC  27565, 919-693-5240

Commissioners:

• Edgar Smoak: edgar.smoak@granvillecounty.org, 407 East F Street, Butner, NC 27509
• David T. Smith: david.smith@granvillecounty.org, 207 Holly Drive,  Oxford, NC 27565
• Zelodis Jay:  zelodis.jay@granvillecounty.org, 8009 Highway 96 North, Oxford, NC 27565
• R. David Currin, Jr.: dave.currin@granvillecounty.org, 2578 Joe Pruitt Road, Oxford, NC 27565
• Tony W. Cozart: tony.cozart@granvillecounty.org, 4056 Peace’s Chapel Road, Oxford, NC 27565
• Ed Mims:  ed.mims@granvillecounty.org, 2204 Regent Court,Creedmoor, NC 27522
• Timothy Karan:  timothy.karan@granvillecounty.org, 2763 Garland Court, Creedmoor, NC 27522