FixAustin.org

We're so proud of the amazing progress that has been accomplished in Austin. In 2005, we began this organization with a vision for a No Kill Austin--- an open-admission municipal animal shelter with a 90% or more save rate--- at a time when the city was killing 55% of impounded animals and over 14,000 a year.

Although we haven't achieved it for 12 months straight, we are well on our way!

Thank you so much to the Austin City Council, the Austin Animal Advisory Commission, the management, employees, and volunteers at Town Lake Animal Center, and the management, employees, and volunteers at Austin Pets Alive as well as the other shelter placement partners.

We always hoped that one day, our organization would become unneeded, and we hope that time is just around the corner. THANK YOU AUSTIN!

Thanks everyone who purchased tickets to the 9/28/10 Austin No Kill Workshop! Tickets are officially SOLD OUT (in fact, they are over sold!). For more information on the Workshop, please click here: http://nokillaustin.org/2010/07/26/austin-no-kill-workshop/

If you wanted to attend the Austin No Kill Workshop but couldn't, you can catch many of the same speakers at the No Kill Nation Conference in South Florida on October 9, 2010. Tickets and more information here: http://www.thenokillnation.org/

By now many of you have heard that Woodrow (the once homeless dog) is running for Texas Governor. And now Woodrow has garnered a major political endorsement -- Kinky Friedman will announce his endorsement of Woodrow for Texas Governor on Tuesday, July 6^th at 10:00 a.m. on the south steps of the Texas Capital. Join us to support Woodrow and to help our lost and homeless pets!

Having once been homeless, Woodrow promises to focus more attention on the plight of our homeless pets, but more importantly, to bring them hope that we can and will end the killing of our homeless pets in Texas.

Here’s what you can do:

Go to www.votewoodrow.org and make a $20 donation to Austin Pets Alive and receive a Woodrow for Governor T-Shirt. Wear your T-shirt to the Capital on Tuesday, July 6^th to show your support for our homeless pets! 100% of your $20 donation goes to Austin Pets Alive!

See you there!

Austin Pets Alive! & Woodrow

Posted by the FixAustin.org Team

You may have heard the good news that the City Council voted 7-0 to adopt the Implementation Plan recommendations including the four items approved by the Public Health and Human Services committee.   These four additional items were needed to help move Austin to becoming a NO KILL community.

  PLEASE TAKE A MOMENT TO SEND AN EMAIL TO THE CITY COUNCIL AND THANK THEM FOR THEIR SUPPORT OF THE IMPLEMENTATION PLAN AND FOR MOVING AUSTIN TO BECOME A NO KILL COMMUNITY.   Remind them that because of their efforts, Austin will have the opportunity to be the national model for saving the lives of companion animals. Below is a link for emailing the City Council.

                                                http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/council/groupemail.htm

Austin is on track to becoming a national leader in animal services.   Everyone in the animal community should be proud of this achievement. But, we must stay energized and focused on the goals and objectives of the animal community.

Thank you for your continued efforts on behalf of our city's companion animals.

The FixAustin Team

This is perhaps the biggest news in the No Kill world since Reno, NV, went No Kill in 2007.

This Thursday, March 11 at 10am, the Austin City Council will decide whether Austin, Texas, will join the ranks of America's No Kill cities. The Council is considering a plan of proven methods to produce No Kill success: (1) low-cost and free spay-neuter programs; (2) a comprehensive adoption program including off-site adoptions; (3) keeping open the downtown shelter once the city's new shelter opens outside of the city center; and (4) a large-scale foster program.

The No Kill plan has now been posted on the City Council's website in Agenda Item #21: http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/council_meetings/item_attachments.cfm?meetingid=206&itemid=12515&item=21

If you want to help make Austin a No Kill City, we ask that you please send an e-mail to the Austin City Council members asking them to pass the plan. Their e-mails are: lee.leffingwell@ci.austin.tx.us, mike.martinez@ci.austin.tx.us, laura.morrison@ci.austin.tx.us, chris.riley@ci.austin.tx.us, randi.shade@ci.austin.tx.us, bill.spelman@ci.austin.tx.us, and sheryl.cole@ci.austin.tx.us. We would also love for you to please attend the meeting on Thursday.

THANK YOU for your help!

The FixAustin.org Team

Hello Everyone,

First, thank you to everyone who attended the Public Health and Human Services meeting yesterday and all of the other Animal Advisory Commission meetings since November. We have had great public participation which really makes a difference. Yesterday about 75 animal welfare supporters attended the meeting at City Hall and many spoke on various issues during the meeting. Thank you.

Here is what happened:

The city staff once again presented an Implementation Plan that did not contain three critical components of the AAC recommendations:

1 Keeping all of the TLAC facilities available for use by animal services after the move to the new shelter so a safety net is in place until NO KILL status is reached;

2 Outsourcing the comprehensive adoption program to an entity like APA; and

3 Placing a moratorium on killing any animal when cage space if available.

Thankfully, Mayor Pro Tem Martinez made a motion to require the city staff to add these three items back into the city staff's Implementation Plan. Council Member Morrison seconded the motion. All three members of the Public Health and Human Services committee (Martinez, Morrison, and Shade) voted in favor of the motion.

Thus, the city staff has been directed to add these three critical items into its Implementation Plan and bring the entire Implementation Plan to a special meeting of the Public Health and Human Services committee on Thursday, March 4.

This meeting will take place on Thursday, March 4, at 3pm at One Texas Center
505 Barton Springs Road, 3rd Floor Conference Room.

Sasha Evans and Brad Beam plan to attend and monitor the meeting. It should be a very quick meeting. The public is welcome to attend. But, we would rather see your attendance at a future meeting of the city council when the Implementation Plan is presented to the entire city council. We don't know when that meeting will be scheduled.

Please take a minute to send an email to the Mayor Pro Tem Mike Martinez, and council members Laura Morrison and Randi Shade and thank them for there support for animal welfare issues and their votes at yesterday's Public Health and Human Services meeting.

Thanks for your continued support!

The FixAustin.org Team

The regularly scheduled meeting (not a special meeting) of the Animal Advisory Commission is scheduled for Wednesday, March 3rd, at the Austin Energy Building. It begins at 6:00 p.m.

Below is the announcement from the city which includes a link to the agenda for tonight.

Remember there is free parking in the parking garage behind the Austin Energy Building.

03-Mar-10

Animal Advisory Commission

Starts at: 6:00 pm

Location
Place: Town Lake Center, Assembly Room (Austin Energy Building)
Address: 721 Barton Springs Road Austin, TX 78704

Dear friends of Austin's animals,

It is "crunch time" for the Implementation Plan to Reduce Intake and Increase Live Outcomes at Townlake Animal Center.

Last Wednesday the Animal Advisory Commission rejected the city staff's Implementation Plan as it did not adequately address how the city planned to increase live outcomes so Austin can reach No Kill status in 18 months as required by the City Council.

Another attempt was made on Friday night when an emergency meeting of the Animal Advisory Commission was scheduled with city staff to address the deficiencies in the Implementation Plan.   Once again the Animal Advisory Commission insisted that all aspects of the Animal Advisory Commission recommendations be included in the city staff's Implementation Plan.

To be honest, we don't know what the city staff will present on Monday, March 1 to the City Council's Public Health and Human Services Committee. The Public Health and Human Services Committee consists of Mayor Pro Tem Martinez, and City Council Members Morrison and Shade.    All three are supportive of Austin's NO KILL efforts.

Therefore, we need everyone to attend the Public Health and Human Services Committee meeting at City Hall on Monday.   The meeting begins at 10:00 a.m. in City Council Chambers. Parking is available in the garage under City Hall.   Bring your parking garage ticket with you and ask council assistants or the city clerks office to validate your parking. We need as many people there as possible--so please invite your friends and family to join you.

You can speak for up to 3 minutes during either Citizen Communication or for our specific agenda item. But, you must sign up to speak before the meeting begins.   What can you say:

*Ask the committee to accept all aspects of the Animal Advisory Commission's recommendations.
*Ask the committee to adopt a plan that will make Austin a NO KILL community within 18 months.
*Ask the committee to allow all Townlake facilities to be used to save animals following the move to the new shelter.   We need Townlake to be a "safety net" after the shelter moves to the new location because the city staff expects an increase in animal intake.    Tell the committee we need to use ALL Townlake facilities until the city has reached, maintained, and sustained NO KILL status for at least one year after the move to the new shelter.

Thank you for your continued attention to this important matter.   LET'S PACK THE HOUSE ON MONDAY!!!!!

Please feel free to invite your family, friends and neighbors to attend this important meeting.. Let's keep the "NO KILL" momentum moving forward!

At FixAustin.org, we have been on the forefront of advocating for these very reforms for the last 5 years. We feel that this is an historic opportunity for our community's homeless pets, and we are 100% in support of the City Council's resolution.

Thanks, The FixAustin.org Team

Hello Animal Advocates,

For reasons we do not understand, the Austin Humane Society has embarked on a campaign to save the new animal shelter. Here's the problem: IT DOESN'T NEED TO BE SAVED. It is not on the chopping block. It is not being delayed. What they are communicating is pure fantasy.

Here are the facts: the shelter management asked the City Council to officially sign off on the construction contract for the new shelter in February 2010. But because the shelter management had neglected its duty to prepare a design for the future use of the current shelter as part of that process, the vote was postponed to the very next meeting (March 2010) to give the shelter management time to do their job and put together a complete plan as they have been repeatedly instructed to do by the City Council. That is all that happened.

Here is a second key fact: delaying the vote on the construction contract by one month will not delay the construction of the shelter. Construction will not begin any later as a result of the delay caused by the shelter staff in failing to meet their obligations.

Here is a third key fact: the shelter management is at fault for this delay. That's the same shelter management that the Austin Humane Society has publicly embraced time and time again. Why on earth would they bombard Council with incorrect e-mails given that their own ally caused the delay?

Don't believe us? Then listen to Austin's Mayor Pro Tem Mike Martinez, a proven and dedicated advocate for Austin's animals, who released this statement:

"Dear Sirs and Madams,

Thank you for your emails. We truly appreciate your concern for our new animal shelter and the welfare of our animals in Austin.

Unfortunately, and irresponsibly, you have been given incomplete, inaccurate or out of context information.

This council took no action, what-so-ever, to delay the construction of the new shelter. Any info to the contrary is simply false. Staff postponed an agenda item, to be brought back in March, regarding the construction of the new shelter. That item will come back and it will occur in March 2010. Construction will begin on time and the project will go as plan.

The reason for postponing the item is due to the fact that council gave explicit direction that our new shelter "will not" open without a full adoption facility in operation at the current TLAC site. The integrated plan to improve live outcomes will come before the Health and Human Service Council Sub Committee in early March and then to council at the very next available meeting. Once this occurs and all commitments have been adhered to, the item to proceed with the new shelter construction will occur on time.

This council remains committed to our animal welfare issues and we will continue to do all that we can to improve live outcomes and proceed with our, citizen granted, state of the art animal shelter. But we will do it with a comprehensive approach to achieve all of our goals in this regard.

Please feel free to forward this to the entire animal welfare community so all can be fully informed.

Any other info that is different from what has been provided only exist to serve a specific political agenda and should be corrected immediately.

Thanks,

Mike"

So what should you do? First, ignore the Austin Humane Society's alert; they are just wrong on this issue as a matter of fact. Second, stop sending the Austin City Council e-mails complaining about the shelter being delayed when that is not remotely true. If anything, commend the Mayor Pro Tem and the rest of the Austin City Council for enforcing their mandate that an Adoption Center remain open at the current shelter location when the new shelter opens in East Austin.

In a just-released, scathing editorial, the Austin American-Statesman's award-winning writer and editor Alberta Phillips hit the nail on the head: Austin's animal shelter is a "euthanasia machine" whose management is not genuinely interested in increasing the number of animals that leave the shelter alive through adoptions and transfers to rescue groups.

When Phillips asked shelter manager Dorinda Pulliam why the shelter isn't spending more of its remarkable $5.5 million annual budget on increasing adoptions, Pulliam responded (we think truthfully): "I'm just not sure how to answer that."

We think that it is time to believe Pulliam when she says she just doesn't know how to increase adoptions. It is time to believe her when she says she just can't do it. When someone tells you the same thing over and over again, at some point you have to believe them.

So how do we dismantle Town Lake Animal Center's "euthanasia machine"? It isn't more money--- the shelter is near tops in the nation in spending. It isn't more spay-neuter--- 85% of Austinites already spay or neuter their pets, and Austin is near tops in the nation in the number of low-cost and free spay-neuter services available. And it isn't "blame the public" some more--- while the public is no doubt at fault for animals arriving at the shelter, blaming them does nothing for the animals already at the shelter who face death today and every day. Instead, the answer starts with believing the shelter director and acting accordingly. She just cannot figure it out. It's time to hand the job to someone who can.

As Austin's leading animal-welfare advocacy organization, we believe that it is time for Pulliam to be fired. We get no pleasure from saying this. It is just that we've tried to help her for five years and she does not want to be helped. As she says in the Statesman article--- she believes the public's job is to serve her. We need someone who believes it is her job to serve the animals. It is time for a change.

Please take a moment today (it will take just seconds) to e-mail the Austin City Council to demand the hiring of a progressive shelter director who believes in increasing adoptions and improving live outcomes at the shelter. You can e-mail the entire Council at once by hitting this short link: http://bit.ly/19xZG. Please do this today.

Best regards,

The FixAustin.org Team

P.S.: The full text of the Statesman editorial can be found here: http://bit.ly/yVyjs