By JOSE HERRERA
City Councilmember Bob Blumenfield and others on the council are pushing for non-profits to help oversee Los Angeles’ six animal shelters, a move that could improve the care and adoption prospects for thousands of animals, officials said today.
Blumenfield introduced a motion Tuesday that would direct the Los Angeles Department of Animal Services to begin the process of transitioning several shelters into public-private partnerships with local nonprofits. He co-introduced the proposal with Councilwoman Monica Rodriguez, and it was seconded by their colleagues Eunisses Hernandez and Ysabel Jurado.
“We owe it to every animal in our shelters to give them the best opportunity to find a forever home and live a quality life,” Blumenfield said in a statement.
The Department of Animal Services (LAAS) operates one of the nation’s largest municipal shelter systems, handling approximately 60,000 animals annually and responding to 20,000 emergency calls each year.
The city’s six shelters are each staffed with a limited number of animal care technicians, at least one veterinarian, and an assisting registered veterinary technician, according to Blumenfield’s office. The councilman says exploring partnerships with non-profits to help oversee some of the shelters could alleviate long-standing staffing and care issues.
Blumenfield points to the Northeast Valley Animal Care Center as a success story of a public-private partnership.
That center, located in Mission Hills, was financed under the Proposition F (Fire and Animal Facilities) Bond Program in 2000. It opened in 2008, years later due to budget constraints and limited resources. Los Angeles could not open the facility to the public and it functioned as a limited special operations shelter through 2011.
On Aug. 16, 2011, the city approved a contract with Best Friends Animal Society to operate the shelter. The nonprofit oversaw adoption, offered spay-neuter services, and conducted community outreach and education programs. The arrangement resulted in a reduction of city costs and provided a range of services to northeast San Fernando Valley neighborhoods.
Paws for Life K9 Rescue has since taken over the contract. Rodriguez, who represents the Seventh Council District where the Mission Hills shelter is located, says the partnership with Paws for Life is the “model.”
“Their comprehensive approach to shelter operations, rehabilitation, training and adoptions shows the impact of deeply integrated nonprofit collaboration,” Rodriguez said in a statement. “This is exactly the kind of bold, cost-effective, multi-benefit modernization strategy that should be replicated and scaled across our city shelters as we desperately need to expand spay/neuter efforts, improve conditions, and increase adoptions.”
Alex Tonner, founder and president of the nonprofit, said its work is built on the belief that every animal deserves individualized attention and care.
“We hope this recognition opens the door to scaling that approach and giving more animals in Los Angeles the second chance they deserve,” Tonner said in a statement.
Some other cities in Southern California operate animal shelters under similar public/private partnerships, including Pasadena and San Diego.
LAAS has been operating with resources to fully staff only four of its six shelters, and the city has been asking volunteers to do way more than they should, including cleaning kennels, Blumenfield said.
Overcrowding and deteriorating shelter conditions, among other challenges, are raising liability issues. In past years, volunteers have sued the city over violent animal attacks, resulting in million-dollar settlements.
Dogs in the shelter are often left in their kennels for weeks or months at a time without being walked, and some dogs are doubled or tripled up in small kennels. These conditions have led to increased stress among animals, often leading to negative outcomes and reducing their adoptions, advocates say.
If approved by the full City Council, the motion would instruct city staff to report on the feasibility of partnering with an animal service nonprofit, and a process to reassign existing staff to city-operated shelters to improve conditions at those sites.
Blumenfield emphasized that he does not intend to lay off staff or eliminate positions with his proposal. He said he wants to bolster services performed by LAAS, such as intake of surrendered and stray animals, animal cruelty investigations, quarantines and licensing.
Blumenfield’s motion now heads to the council’s Arts, Parks, Libraries and Community Enrichment Committee for consideration, which is chaired by Jurado.