Mayor and City Council Candidate Survey
Houston, Texas Municipal Election 2015
Candidates’ views on the state of
Houston’s sheltering system
Houston Voters For Companion Animals
Introduction
Houston Voters For Companion Animals is an initiative to increase the Save Rate of companion
animals at Houston’s taxpayer funded animal control facility/shelter i.e. BARC. The purpose of
this survey is to understand the stances and intentions of the candidates running for mayoral
and city council positions regarding animal welfare issues generally and related to Houston
becoming a No Kill community.
Definition of a No Kill community:
A No Kill community is a community in which all healthy and treatable shelter pets are saved,
including at Open Admission facilities like BARC. The only animals euthanized are those who
are irremediably sick or injured and suffering or who pose a genuine danger to the public. The
benchmark to be recognized as a No Kill community is the ability to save all healthy and
treatable pets (generally 90% to 100% of all animals) over a period of at least 1 year. There are
currently hundreds of shelters/communities who are saving 90% or more of all shelter pets.
For instance:
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Roughly 1,000,000 people live in communities saving between 98% and 99% of dogs
and cats in their shelters.
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About 9,000,000 people live in communities saving between 90% and 99% of dogs and
cats in their shelters.
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Over 40,000,000 people live in communities saving at least 80% of dogs and cats in
their shelters. (See Saving90.org)
Those No Kill communities have very little in common other than a commitment to save the lives
of shelter pets, while saving money in the process. These communities have achieved their life
saving successes by rigorously implementing the No Kill Equation, which is a suite of fiscallyresponsible, humane, 21st century animal sheltering programs that have been proven to work.
The programs of the No Kill Equation or No Kill model of sheltering are:
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Rescue Partnerships
Volunteers
Foster Care
Trap, Neuter, Release
Pet Retention
Comprehensive Adoption Program
Public Relations/Community Involvement
Medical & Behavior Prevention & Rehabilitation
High-Volume, Low-Cost Spay & Neuter
Proactive Redemption
Hard-working, Compassionate Shelter Director
Every candidate is being asked to complete this survey. Candidates’ responses will be
compiled as part of a voting guide that will be distributed to Houston voters in preparation for the
November 2015 election.
As part of an awareness campaign by Houston Voters For Companion Animals, candidates’
responses will also be rated, and then released to the media and posted on some or all of our
websites and social media sites. Responses, as well as non-responses, will be reported.
Thank you for your participation in this opportunity for the voters to get to know you better.
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The survey is composed of 13 questions. Candidates are encouraged to respond in writing with
enough detail to adequately represent the candidates’ view of the current state of BARC, and
his or her views on how BARC should operate in coming years.
Survey Questions
1.
Since 2009, BARC leadership has known about the life-saving programs of the No Kill
Equation which is being used, across the country, to save all healthy and treatable
shelter pets. Despite this knowledge, BARC killed more than 10,000 pets in 2014 alone.
Are you satisfied with the amount of progress that has been made to date?
If elected or re-elected to Houston city council, are you committed to
supporting/enforcing the recommendations in international No Kill expert, Nathan
Winograd’s, 2009 assessment of BARC? (Winograd’s assessment can be found here:
http://bit.ly/1M0vmk2)
Response:
I am. I visited BARC some time ago and was aghast at what I saw. I have returned
a little while ago, and was still disturbed. I read the entire 196 page Winograd
Assessment, and I find his observations quite accurate for that time and even now,
and I think his solutions are reasonable and doable.
I am not satisfied with the amount of progress. I probably won’t ever be though as I
will always think we can and should do more. BARC had a 61% save rate in 2014.
I think we can and must do better. AS a large organization, it may never get to
90%, but it is a worthy goal. Every life is precious, and they should all be treated
with dignity.
2.
The Houston area is home to five shelters/pounds that together, kill approximately
80,000 pets every year. According to the most currently available statistics, these
shelters/pounds have the following Save Rates:
1) Houston’s animal control (BARC) - 61%;
2) Citizens for Animal Protection - 48%
3) The Houston SPCA - 35%;
4) Harris County animal control - 15%; and
5) Houston Humane Society - 11%;
If the issue were to come before you, will you commit to making “No Kill” the official
policy of Houston and support any laws or policy changes necessary to achieve this
goal?
Response:
Yes, I would commit to establishing Houston as a “No Kill” Shelter, but not a
“Never Kill” Shelter.
There are four categories of shelters:
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No Kill shelters save healthy and treatable. They euthanize only Non-Rehabilitatable
pets who are irremediably suffering or dangerous to people or other pets.
Never Kill shelters do not euthanize. In these shelters, animals are often left in cages
for years without proper socialization and care. These shelters often have a large
proportion of behaviorally dangerous and non-rehabilitatable dogs.
Traditional or “Open Door” private shelters take in all animals, regardless of the
shelter’s capacity and resources to treat. Unless a No Kill community, these shelters
manage their shelter population by euthanizing animals that are healthy or have
treatable conditions.
Animal Control shelters are government impoundment agencies or private shelters
who contract with the government. These shelters’ primary responsibility is animal
control, keeping the streets clear of homeless animals and being the community’s
clearing house for homeless or unwanted pets. These shelters have to be “Open Door”
to perform their mission.
3.
BARC is currently open to the public for adoptions on weekdays during hours
when most adults are working (Open: Tues, Wed and Fri 12:00 to 5:30). And BARC is
open to the public only 5 ½ hours each Saturday and Sunday. BARC fails to run a
comprehensive adoption program, including frequent and ongoing off-site adoptions in
highly visible, high traffic locations, extensive marketing of at-risk animals, publicfriendly adoption hours and mobile adoptions.
If elected or re-elected to Houston city council, would you support a review and
restructuring of the BARC’s adoption program to include the elements mentioned
above? (This would mean different, family friendly hours of operation as opposed to
more hours of operation).
Response:
Yes. I never understood BARC’s hours—or their location for that matter. I would
like to see a more Central Location developed with more visibility and better
conditions for the animals, and those seeking to adopt. This would be the central
hub and where animals are treated and cared for, setting up a program with Texas
A&M utilizing their senior level Veterinarian graduate students under the care and
guidance of their professors as a sort of intern type program. This Central location
would be open from 8am-8pm, Monday through Saturday, with 12pm-6pm on
Sundays.
I also envision the City using abandoned properties and revitalizing them in 4
separate sections (quadrants) of the city based upon N, S, E, W. Each of these
facilities would have space for adoptable animals, but would also be open on the
weekend for people fostering pets at their own homes who can bring them on a
Saturday and if not adopted, pick them up on a Sunday evening. Sort of a Farmers
Market for people who have picked up and rescued strays. These facilities would
need to rely heavily on volunteers staffing them, so I would do all I could to
encourage and promote volunteers. These four outlying facilities, would primarily
be adoption centers, not intake. Their hours would be 4pm-8pm daily and 11am-8
pm, Saturday and Sunday. All hours would be consistent and posted properly.
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4.
People frequently surrender animals to shelters when they perceive they cannot feed,
train or medically care for them.
If elected or re-elected to Houston city council, would you support programs which have
been proven to keep pets in their homes and out of shelters, such as surrender
counseling, a pet food bank, pet behavior assistance, and distribution of heartworm
preventative?
Response:
Yes, of course. Often these people are the elderly, and they are the ones most in
need of companionship. I am one who believes that for every animal, there should
be a home and for every home, there should be an animal. Of course, that isn’t
always the case, but we should assist where we can because animals can give so
much back and they are a good return for their investment with regard to extending
our lives, and enhancing our quality of life.
5.
For years, BARC has consistently returned only 7% of animals to their rightful owners.
Conversely, some No Kill communities are able to return upwards of 60% of animals to
their owners who want them back. If BARC implemented the same Return to Owner
program as other successful communities, it could free up 8,100 kennels per year and
save the city $972,000 per year.
If elected or re-elected to Houston city council, would you support an internal review, and
if necessary, a restructuring of the City’s Return to Owner program?
Response:
Yes. Who wouldn’t? If you can do something like this and save the City almost
$1M a year, then it needs to be implemented. I am not a fan of the way the process
works now. I also do not think we have in Houston, a sophisticated enough website
or intake process whereby all animals are cataloged and categorized and presented
properly online. Further, I would like to coordinate with all of the other area
animal shelters like CAPS, SPCA, Harris County Animal Control, etc., and see if we
couldn’t combine efforts and make one large website for people to visit when they
lose a pet. As it is now, you have to contact each one of these groups separately.
6.
Many dog breeds are being banned in many of the rental housing markets in Houston.
This makes finding appropriate housing very difficult for owners of these dogs, despite
high levels of owner responsibility and great dog temperaments and training. This slows
adoptions of these breeds and forces many owners to surrender their pets to shelters or
abandon them.
If elected or re-elected to Houston city council, what steps would you take to find
solutions to this problem, in working with the apartment associations and property
managers in Houston?
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Response:
I am disturbed by this trend. The Staffordshire Terrier and the American Pit Bull
Terrier are two such breeds. I have always found these dogs to be smart and sweet.
I am a firm believer it’s not the dog or the breed, but the owner. I think each dog
should be judged on his own merits and I would work to educate the public so that
when they think of a Pit Bull, they see Petey from “Little Rascals” and not Cujo. I
would also make sure our laws do not punish apartment owners who allow dogs on
their properties. Each owner is responsible for his or her own dog alone.
7.
If elected or re-elected to Houston city council, would you support the implementation of
performance standards that tie BARC leadership’s performance, particularly with regard
to the number of live releases, to salary increments or continued employment at BARC?
If not, please explain why not.
Response:
Yes, accountability is key. Without performance measures, how else do we know if
we are succeeding? Further, without such incentives, why would we expect top
performance? I am a firm believer that you should get what you pay for, but pay
for what you get. Top performers need top pay. Bottom performers need to leave.
8.
Considering that BARC killed over 10,000 pets in 2014, how would you rate the
performance of BARC leadership?
Do you believe that it is time for different leadership at BARC? If not, what do you see
as the most powerful opportunity for improvement open to BARC?
Response:
I am hesitant to be too critical at this juncture as the leadership has not received
much support from the City. People can only do what they can do under the
circumstances and within the confines in which they are placed. I would like to see
a commitment from the City Council and the Mayor 1st. The Council and Mayor
sets the tone and the priorities and I am not happy with their performance.
I am not happy with what I see and I would expect the leadership to be more vocal
on the city level as well as out in the public. If the changes in BARC as suggested
are not implemented or implemented improperly after the resources and
commitments are made, then a change would be in order. The most powerful
opportunities for improvement open to BARC come from outside the city. There is
no reason we couldn’t have a volunteer force of 500 or more. I think that BARC
should work towards implementing processes which encourage and sustain
volunteers as that is our best opportunity.
9.
If elected, or re-elected, what do you envision as the role of the Houston Animal Shelter
Advisory Committee in providing oversight for BARC?
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What kind of person will you appoint to the Committee as the terms of current members
expire?
Would you consider appointing No Kill advocates as members to provide an alternative
viewpoint to others already on the committee?
Response:
I see the role as providing advice and oversight, but also being a check and balance.
The type of person I would seek out would be an advocate—one who isn’t afraid to
speak their mind and will not be ignored. Of course I would consider appointing a
“No Kill” Advocate.
10.
BARC is required to release its Save Rate information (i.e. intake and outcome records)
to the public as required under the Public Information Act (PIA). However, 3 kill shelters
in Houston are not required, under the PIA, to release this information to the public [i.e.
Houston SPCA, Houston Humane Society and Citizens for Animal Protection (CAP)].
These shelters have refused to be open with the donating public by releasing their intake
and outcome records. Houstonians donate many millions of dollars to these facilities,
under the assumption that they are No Kill shelters. Yet, these facilities are killing tens
of thousands of shelter pets every year and are able to hide this information from the
donating public.
If elected or re-elected to Houston city council, would you support a city mandate that all
animal shelters in Houston publish statistics, on their websites, regarding the numbers
and types of animals that each shelter takes in and euthanizes? (Note: some states,
such as Colorado, already mandate that all shelters and rescue groups must provide
their statistics to the state so that it is available to the public).
If so, why do you feel this important? If not, why not?
Response:
I would support an ordinance requiring such reporting as I did not realize the low
“save” rates of these organizations until recently. I am familiar with CAPs and I do
know they are a Kill Shelter—but the low save rates are even more disturbing
knowing that they only take in animals from only two zip codes, as was explained to
me recently by one of their managers when I visited there. They also do not do any
spaying or neutering like SNAP does.
I think it is very important that people know and understand what each
organization does or does not do when they are dropping off a stray they found. It
might make them think again, and foster the animal.
11.
In 2010, Austin’s city council created ordinances based the Companion Animal
Protection Act (CAPA) which, among other things, mandated that Austin’s animal control
facility save at least 90% of all animals; a Save Rate that Austin has met or exceeded
every year since the ordinances were passed. Rockwall, Texas passed a version of
CAPA in 2011 and subsequently saved 97%. The states of California and Delaware
have passed similar versions of CAPA and saw an increase in Save Rates.
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Considering the lifesaving successes after passing CAPA, if elected or re-elected to
Houston city council, would you support the implementation of CAPA, or some parts
thereof, in Houston? (A model version of CAPA can be found at
http://www.nokilladvocacycenter.org/?page_id=51)
Response:
I would support such a position. However, I would caution that Rockwall and
Austin are not Houston and do not possess some of the limitations we have in our
City due to our size and financial issues.
12.
Would you be willing to meet with representatives of Houston Voters For Companion
Animals and/or No Kill Houston to discuss your views of the improvements that must be
made at BARC in order for Houston to make substantive increases in the number of
animals that are saved from death at BARC?
Response:
I certainly would. I will meet whenever it is mutually convenient.
13.
Would you be willing to participate in a public Candidate Forum/Town Hall, involving all
willing candidates, on the current state of BARC and Houston sheltering issues?
Response:
Sure. So long as it is not scheduled around anything I previously have scheduled
and I can make it, I will. This is an issue near and dear to my heart. I have rescued
over 50 dogs, along with several cats, opossums, raccoons, and other various
animals in my life and I think each and every one I rescued was important.
Thank you for responding to this survey. If you have any questions regarding this survey,
please contact HoustonVotersForCompanionAnimals@yahoo.com.
You may be email your completed survey form to:
HoustonVotersForCompanionAnimals@yahoo.com.
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