Spay Day Banquet

We are pleased to present one of the key figures in Austin’s successful No Kill movement: LISA M. McCLAIN, J.D., Professor of Animal Law at the University of Texas Law School. She’ll discuss the implementation of the Austin No-Kill plan at our annual Spay Day Banquet. So please attend the buffet on Wednesday, Feb. 22, presented by the Hailey Foundation and San Antonio Vegetarian Society to commemorate Spay Day USA.

The buffet begins at 7:00pm at the banquet room of the original India Palace on 8474 Fredericksburg Rd. @ Wurzbach Rd. (northwest city, north of Loop 410). It will be a full vegan buffet for $15.00 (which includes soda, tea, dessert, tax & tip). Please RSVP at HaileyFoundation@att.net.

Overpopulation: Reality

For the third straight year, the intake of dogs and cats at San Antonio’s Animal Care Services increased (29,115–2011; 25,192–2010; 22,155–2009). Likewise, euthanasias of dogs/cats grew (19,645–2011; 18,376–2010; 15,559–2009). Adoptions rose (4,337–2011; 2,925–2010; 2,751–2009), but not enough to stop euthanasias from climbing. There was a $500,000 grant for spay-neuter in 2011, and a grant of $300,000 is expected in 2012 for neutering of feral cats; however, these are singular grants that are not expected to repeat.

The combined effort of adoptions and singular spay-neuter grants may help to temporarily curb euthanasia growth; but with a growing dog/cat overpopulation and increasing intakes at the city shelter, those efforts alone will not suffice to reverse the euthanasia rise over the long run. Spay-neuter–which decreases the likelihood of unwanted puppies/kittens who become homeless and either die on streets or get euthanized–must be incentivized on a broader community basis to lower the overpopulation which is the core of the problem.

Non-profits and citizen groups lack the resources and leverage to substantially solve the crisis in a city with such a massive dog/cat overpopulation. But local governments who receive the taxpayer dollars and have jurisdiction of health and safety matters, can make a stronger impact.

Please contact the city council.

mayorjuliancastro@sanantonio.gov, citymanager@sanantonio.gov,
gary.hendel@sanantonio.gov, district1@sanantonio.gov,
district2@sanantonio.gov, district3@sanantonio.gov,
district4@sanantonio.gov, district5@sanantonio.gov,
district6@sanantonio.gov, district7@sanantonio.gov,
district8@sanantonio.gov, district9@sanantonio.gov,
district10@sanantonio.gov

Please request that the council pass a law–coupled with regular publicity of that law–which is a non-mandatory, but progressive spay-neuter ordinance requiring all owners without intact permits to spay-neuter unless the dog/cat is under 4 months old or has a medical exception.

Max 2-Year Cruelty Sentence

Board Member and Assistant District Attorney Robyn Katz and her co-counsel won a rare victory on Jan. 20. In the local animal cruelty case of State of Texas v. Gerald Rodriguez, the defendant was ordered two years of confinement in state jail–one of the first occasions of a violator receiving the maximum sentence for animal cruelty in Texas. Rodriguez was convicted of beating his ex-wife’s dog, Chester, during a rage. Chester survived, but now suffers permanent spinal cord damage and seizures. Although we wish the Texas law provided stronger punishment, Robyn and her team did an excellent job! See a sample of news coverage here.

Horse Slaughter Dilemma

In November, 2011, the U.S. Congress passed a budget bill authorizing funding for USDA inspections of horse meat. This will allow the opening of horse slaughter plants in certain states where the practice is not banned. In the U.S. over 100,000 American domestic and wild horses are slaughtered each year, suffering cruel deaths, and many are transported to Mexico where they suffer even more horrific deaths in slaughter plants.

Please tell your Congressional Representative and Senators to pass the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act, which will ban the slaughter of horses in the U.S. and the transport of horses over the border to foreign slaughter plants.

Congressional representatives: www.house.gov

Senators:

Cornyn, John – (R – TX)
517 HART SENATE OFFICE BUILDING WASHINGTON DC 20510
(202) 224-2934

Hutchison, Kay Bailey – (R – TX)
284 RUSSELL SENATE OFFICE BUILDING WASHINGTON DC 20510
(202) 224-5922