Last week I joined volunteers from seven local animal-rescue groups who attended an evening meeting hosted by the Fairfax County Animal Shelter. The meeting was arranged by FCAS managers who wanted to know how they could work more closely with the rescue groups to facilitate cat adoptions. What, our hosts asked us, could they do [...]
Archive for the ‘Principles’ Category
Another Missing Ingredient
Posted in AWLA Policies, DC Area Rescue Orgs, Principles, Yardsticks on April 27, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
Deja Vu
Posted in Principles on April 22, 2010 | 1 Comment »
The Virginia General Assembly passed HB 281 yesterday without the language that was added as an amendment by Gov. McDonnell… However, no pound may euthanize, or prohibit the adoption of, any dog based solely on breed. …but excised by the Speaker on the grounds that it was not germane to the bill itself, which stiffened [...]
New Life for Law Banning Breed-Based Killing
Posted in Principles on April 15, 2010 | 14 Comments »
In January, we posted an entry describing AWLA Executive Director Kay Speerstra’s efforts to help defeat Virginia House Bill 429, which would have added 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. Speerstra and others opposed to [...]
A Missing Ingredient
Posted in AWLA Policies, DC Area Rescue Orgs, Principles on April 8, 2010 | 1 Comment »
Last year over 2,000 dogs and cats found homes through the Arlington-based Lost Dog and Cat Rescue Foundation. That compares with 1,080 dogs and cats adopted from AWLA in its fiscal 2009 and 1,081 from the Animal Welfare League of Alexandria in calendar 2009. (The resemblance between the two AWLAs is eerie, no?) Lost Dog [...]
A Model for AWLA
Posted in AWLA Policies, Principles, Yardsticks on March 30, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
Before losing his fight with cancer a few months ago, my uncle Steve spent many years adopting dogs from and fostering dogs for the Nevada Humane Society in Reno, NV. Steve’s obituary mentioned that he often took the shelter dogs that no one else wanted or could handle. Like hundreds of other NHS volunteers, Steve [...]
Open Letter, Continued
Posted in AWLA Policies, Principles, Yardsticks on March 25, 2010 | 2 Comments »
Dear AWLA Board of Directors, You now have the rare opportunity to hire a person who can make Arlington County an example for the rest of the country in its treatment of homeless companion animals. As you search for AWLA’s new Executive Director, please contact the nationally-recognized organizations listed below for suggestions and guidance. Few [...]
An Open Letter to the AWLA Board of Directors
Posted in AWLA Policies, DC Area Rescue Orgs, Principles on March 23, 2010 | 5 Comments »
Dear AWLA Board, Arlington County’s animal-welfare advocates applaud you for seeking new leadership at AWLA. Under the right Executive Director, AWLA can make Arlington’s animal shelter one of the most effective and compassionate in the country. Accomplishing that will require, among other tasks: – using the standard Animal Statistics Table designed by Maddie’s Fund to [...]
What’s Possible, Part Two
Posted in AWLA Policies, DC Area Rescue Orgs, Principles on March 22, 2010 | 2 Comments »
Today, the Animal Welfare League of Arlington confirms the resignation of Kay Speerstra, Executive Director, effective March 31, 2010. “We thank Kay for her service to the League and wish her the best,” said Joanne Del Toro, President of the Board of Directors. This announcement was posted on the AWLA website and e-mailed to AWLA [...]
Pay for Underperformance
Posted in AWLA Policies, DC Area Rescue Orgs, Principles, Yardsticks on March 15, 2010 | 3 Comments »
If you haven’t been following our Yardsticks series, here’s the recap that compares animal-outcomes data for AWLA with the most recent available data for selected peer shelters. Because AWLA saves a much lower percentage (and kills a much higher percentage) of its homeless animals than the other shelters listed, you might hope AWLA’s Board of [...]
