Report to the Mayor: Part II

This is the second part of a report presented to the Mayor and City Council on the progress of Animal Services over the course of the past fiscal year focusing as appropriate on the past six months. This portion focus on the new state of the art Animal Care Centers we are about to open:

Animal Services initiated its most significant fiscal year ever, with the planned opening of six new state of the art “green” Animal Care Centers over the next six- to seven-month period. These Centers will serve as “the” pet Adoption Centers of choice for all Angelinos as well as residents in surrounding communities. They will each feature a Spay and Neuter Clinic, Community Training Room, Get Acquainted Area, Training Field, Animal Behavioral Assessment Area, Grooming Room, Free Flight Aviary, Increased number of kennels (decreasing number of dogs per kennel from 5 - 9 to 1 - 2).

These new Animal Care Centers demonstrate the City’s commitment to animal welfare in Los Angeles. They provide every section of Los Angeles with a pleasant, green, humane community-based Animal Care Center where staff and volunteers will be able to educate residents of all ages on the intrinsic value and benefits of the human/animal bond through our many interactive Teach Love and Compassion programs.

Animal Service is in the process of hiring 126 new employees to handle the conservatively estimated 400% increase in workload represented by these facilities. This is an unprecedented, yet appropriate, rate of Departmental growth in response to our community’s growing service delivery expectations.

Of the eight projects funded by the Animal Facilities Bond Program, the South Los Angeles Annex is complete and the new South Los Angeles Center is on hold pending a City Council review of the proposed location. The remaining six projects are in construction. The construction completion and shelter opening dates are as follows:

North Central – October 6 and 7, 2006

West Los Angeles – October 2006

East Valley – October 2006

West Valley – November 2006

Northeast Valley – December 2006

Harbor – January 2007

At the same time the City of Los Angeles and the Department of Animal Services is opening these new Animal Care Centers we have also renewed our commitment to our community’s expectation to end euthanasia as a means to control pet overpopulation. This new mission and vision are articulated in our new mission, vision and value statements which can be found on our website at http://www.laanimalservices.com/vision.htm

Animal Services is also demonstrating this commitment through the implementation of several new programs. Part III of this report will describe just a few of the programs Animal Services is implementing to help reduce pet euthanasia in LA.

But it is important to keep in mind Animal Services cannot do this alone and we welcome the assistance of the entire community to help save a life, adopt a pet, sponsor a program, make a donation, volunteer, join our bottle baby program. Together we are making LA the safest City in the US for our pets!

The mission, vision and values of Los Angeles Animals Services was recently published in an article in the LA Times. If you have not had a chance to read this article, just click on the link below:

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-boks15jul15,0,5046611.story?coll=la-news-comment-opinions