The paragraphs in italics below are excerpted from a letter that an AWLA employee recently sent to the Office of the State Veterinarian at the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. This employee was concerned and alarmed by the events and practices she witnessed at AWLA.
The first event, which occurred about a year [...]
Archive for the ‘Principles’ Category
One Step Forward?
Posted in AWLA Policies, DC Area Rescue Orgs, Principles on February 26, 2010 | 1 Comment »
Arlington-based animal-welfare advocate Debbie Marson pointed out to us that AWLA recently took a step in the right direction by simplifying the application that 501(c)(3) rescue organizations must complete in order to have a relationship with AWLA. Once this relationship exists, AWLA can theoretically transfer animals to the group (though this rarely happens.)
The original [...]
Yardsticks: AWLA vs. Richmond SPCA
Posted in Principles, Yardsticks on February 9, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
The City of Richmond in central Virginia has the same population as Arlington County, distributed over a geographic area more than twice as large. Per capita income for the City of Richmond is about 75% that of Arlington.
Richmond Animal Care and Control and Richmond SPCA perform animal control and animal sheltering for the City [...]
What’s Possible
Posted in Principles on February 4, 2010 | 1 Comment »
A reader alerted us to this story about Nico, a six-year-old dogo argentino who was discovered in a South Los Angeles shelter last July by members of an animal-rescue group who were visiting to transfer other dogs.
When the picture on the left was taken, Nico was homeless, friendless, abused, unnamed, and scared — like thousands [...]
Prejudice Prevails
Posted in Principles on February 2, 2010 | 9 Comments »
HB 429 was voted down 5-3 last night by the agricultural subcommittee of the Virginia House of Delegates. The bill had proposed adding a single sentence to the section of Virginia Code governing animal shelters.
However, no pound may euthanize, or prohibit the adoption of, any dog based solely on breed.
AWLA Executive Director Kay Speerstra [...]
Help Support VA HB 429!
Posted in AWLA Policies, Principles on February 1, 2010 | 1 Comment »
A reader asked us to post this important message explaining how you can support VA House Bill 429. Don’t let AWLA undermine this legislation, which will give thousands of homeless animals a chance to survive and find homes!
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A new Virginia law has been proposed (HB 429) which will prohibit city or county pounds from [...]
AWLA Explains Stance on VA HB 429
Posted in AWLA Policies, DC Area Rescue Orgs, Principles on January 31, 2010 | 4 Comments »
Last week, the agricultural subcommittee of the Virginia House of Delegates considered House Bill 429, which would add the add the following sentence to section 3.2-6546 of the Virginia Code:
However, no pound may euthanize, or prohibit the adoption of, any dog based solely on breed.
AWLA Executive Director Kay Speerstra traveled to Richmond to testify in [...]
Insider View of AWLA Dog Evaluations
Posted in AWLA Policies, Principles on January 29, 2010 | 5 Comments »
Here’s a post sent to us by an AWLA insider who read the front-page article in AWLA’s Pawpourri newsletter about dog evaluations and felt compelled to present a less whitewashed view of those evaluations.
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When a dog is brought into the AWLA shelter, either as an owner surrender or as a stray, a lot happens before [...]
AWLA Defends Breed-Based Killing
Posted in County Contract, Principles on January 26, 2010 | 11 Comments »
Majority Leader Morgan Griffith recently submitted House Bill 429 for consideration by the Virginia House of Delegates. HB 429 proposes adding the following words to section 3.2-6546 of the Virginia Code:
However, no pound may euthanize, or prohibit the adoption of, any dog based solely on breed.
This language would prevent animal shelters from killing dogs [...]
Missing the Forest for the Trees
Posted in AWLA Policies, DC Area Rescue Orgs, Principles on January 22, 2010 | 2 Comments »
The front-page article in the winter edition of AWLA’s Pawpourri newsletter is about behavior evaluations for dogs. It’s much longer than a typical Pawpourri article — seven full columns — and includes an excerpt from a 2003 article in Animal Sheltering, a magazine published by Wayne Pacelle’s HSUS.
(This is the same HSUS that in [...]
