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Re: The Entire Board of Liberty Humane Society Just Resigned...
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Quite a regular
 
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Xerxes - I got all but one of them from Guidestar - you just have to register (it's free).
No, I do not have the In/Out numbers. I have nop doubt that they vary from year to year as they always do at all shelters. Reasons for variance include: - Busts of Puppy Mills or Fighting Rings in a given year can lead to a large uptick in intake. - Breakouts of major illnesses in the general animal population or in the shelter itself can lead to an uptick in euthanasia - Year to year variations in the numbers of vicious or much older dogs can lead to an uptick in euthanasia. That said, I do know that just prior to the 8 month period in which the new ED came in the shelter had achieved it's lowest quarterly euthanasia rate and it's cleanest bill from DHSS. Many of the people responsible for that are the ones working now to rehabilitate the shelter in the wake of the Board Resignation and firing the ED. Also, keep in mind that looking at these things in terms of percentages is a tricky business. When looking at percentages for euthanasia it is VERY important to look at the raw numbers. For example, a 40% euthanasia rate that is 35% due to a major illness break out, 3% vicious animals, and 2% space is quite different than a 40% euthanasia rate that is 30% space, 5% vicious animal, 5% illness. I will see if I can get hard figures, but I have found this to be tricky in the past for a variety of reasons as you go-from shelter-to shelter, running the range from deliberate attempts to hide things to a simple lack of detailed information. Enforcement of record keeping rules in general, not just for Animal Shelters, is a major issue in NJ. Fair warning - there are individuals on this thread who have made past claims of 45 - 50% euthanasia rates based on records they claim to have gotten under OPRA (the NJ equivalent of the Freedom Of Information Act). There is NO state record of any such OPRA request ever having been made by any of these parties, and even when I worked with these individuals on Shelter Issues in the past they refused to allow me to go through them. That said, I will try to trace down some verifiable docs, but that may take a bit longer than the financial statements did.
Posted on: 2010/8/18 19:09
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Re: The Entire Board of Liberty Humane Society Just Resigned...
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Home away from home
 
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Thank you HAA member,
I look forward to perusing the budgets...first glance is proving VERY interesting. As far as guidstar.org goes, I tried all options available to the choice Liberty Humane Society, Jersey City, NJ and all the preferred choces led to nearly no information. Perhaps some FOR-PAY option would have yielded more. But what you put on your site is more than enough for a decent analysis. Do you know how many animals enter the system in any average year, and how many are adopted out or euthanized?
Posted on: 2010/8/18 17:41
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Re: The Entire Board of Liberty Humane Society Just Resigned...
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Quite a regular
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The nj.com poll JCNewJersey provides a link to is meaningless without defining what "No Kill" means. It is a specific concept in the Animal Shelter world, with a set of rules and methodologies attached. To ask if a shelter should become Kill or No Kill without explaining that is absurd. The only answer is "Yes if they can," meaning yes if they have all of the finances, personnel, and rescue/foster relationships they need to make it a successful program. Without that you replace euthanasia with slow torture. Any shelter COULD potentially be a No Kill shelter, and the goal should ALWAYS be to minimize death, but posing this question this way is like asking "Do you believe String Theory is correct?" Without discussing the theory in depth how can one provide an informed answer?
This is just one of many reasons why "pull" polling like this is not considered a credible research tool. And before anyone accuses me of taking sides I would [point out that I did not take the poll, and thus did not get to see how it is leaning at all.
Posted on: 2010/8/18 17:33
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Re: The Entire Board of Liberty Humane Society Just Resigned...
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Home away from home
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hmm, i was 100k short on my guess. almost 45% was spent on salaries. it should have been significantly more.
thank you for making this available to everyone HAAMember
Posted on: 2010/8/18 15:45
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Re: The Entire Board of Liberty Humane Society Just Resigned...
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Just can't stay away
 
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Posted on: 2010/8/18 15:43
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Re: The Entire Board of Liberty Humane Society Just Resigned...
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Quite a regular
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Just added 2009.
Posted on: 2010/8/18 15:23
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Re: The Entire Board of Liberty Humane Society Just Resigned...
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Quite a regular
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Xerxes -
I have created a web page on my personal (not HAA) blog for the LHS Financial Statements. You can find the returns and financial audit statements for 2005, 2006 and 2007 there now. I have spoken with the Board this morning and they are going to get me the 2008 and 2009 to post as well. They are just not sure if they are in electronic form yet, but as soon as they can get them scanned in I will post them here as well: http://thetruthmachine.net/?page_id=181
Posted on: 2010/8/18 15:16
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Re: The Entire Board of Liberty Humane Society Just Resigned...
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Home away from home
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on what are you basing what the staff should be paid? have you done any research on the subject or is this just opinion?
just because its a non profit (which is different from a not-for-profit, btw) doesn not mean that the staff should not be compensated fairly. I'm just trying to make a point here, i actually do not fully agree with the way certain members of the staff were paid. however, it takes man hours to run a shelter effectively. without an ED, i'd guess the payroll to be in the neighborhood of 300k/yr give or take, and they are drastically understaffed for the amount of animals that come through the doors.
Posted on: 2010/8/18 14:54
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Re: The Entire Board of Liberty Humane Society Just Resigned...
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Quite a regular
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Restructured, absolutely. Shut down? Then what?
Post how you are getting the info from guidestar. You are missing something. The financials are part of the 990 filing and are public record. "No Kill" does not mean never kill. It does allow for compassionate killing of animals who are in pain with untreatable conditions as well as vicious animals that can not be safely placed either with humans or in sanctuaries. As for the ability to do it here, that depends entirely on the people and the time. No Kill is an enormous effort, but it is an effort of time and personal dedication more than of money (though money is needed). Municipal shelters have successfully gone No Kill with the right plan and the tools to carry that plan out. The question is can LHS put together such a plan and pull it off - if they can, they should, but if they don't have the people and resources to do it at this time than they build to it as best they can while continuing to be the best shelter they can be under the circumstances, as they were for so long until recently.
Posted on: 2010/8/18 14:53
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Re: The Entire Board of Liberty Humane Society Just Resigned...
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Home away from home
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Quote:
What you CAN do is go to guidestar.org and look at LHS's 990 submissions. What I got from guidestar.org was basically the ZIP code of Liberty Humane Society, the fact that they are a D20 charity and a lot of "no reviews" More info: "None." Can anyone else glean any more info than I did from guidestar? Anyways, My feeling is that the concept of a "no-kill" shelter in a densely packed City simply cannot work. The animals are in the shelter because people didn't want them, the numbers of these animals will grow and grow if euthanaia is not practiced on the unadoptable pets. If people toss their pets for whatever reason, it is unreasonable that OTHER people will take on the burden to house and feed them for 5 or 10 years as their numbers grow and grow. AND if more than 50% of the money is paid in salaries, then the place should be shut down. If 75% goes to salaries, the WORKERS should be euthanized.
Posted on: 2010/8/18 14:20
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Re: Liberty Humane Society offering DOUBLE DUTY DISCOUNT ADOPTIONS this weekend
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Quite a regular
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No. I was unaware of that and will look into it. I'll work to get a hold of 2008 and 2009 and I will post them online. I am sure the new board will have no problem with that. Guidestar does fall behind at times. If you are looking for waste in last years budget I am sure you will find it.
Posted on: 2010/8/18 3:23
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Re: Liberty Humane Society offering DOUBLE DUTY DISCOUNT ADOPTIONS this weekend
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Newbie
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Quote:
http://www2.guidestar.org/ Thanks Dave, but guidestar only has on hand the reports for 2005, 2006, and 2007 that doesn't explain what is currently going on financially at the shelter. Is that why you keep on referring us again to go to guidestar?
Posted on: 2010/8/18 2:03
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Re: Liberty Humane Society offering DOUBLE DUTY DISCOUNT ADOPTIONS this weekend
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Quite a regular
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Again, just go to guidestar.org and look at their 990s. It is all there.
Posted on: 2010/8/18 0:39
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Re: Liberty Humane Society offering DOUBLE DUTY DISCOUNT ADOPTIONS this weekend
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Newbie
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Quote:
CatsnDogs is speaking with forked tongue. These percentages are just smoke and mirrors. After a few calls to the city clerks? office and the city council office, this is what I found out. Jersey City paid roughly 310,000 to Liberty Shelter for ?contractor services? and another 195,000 for "EMERGENCY ONE TIME PAYMENTS" to help cover expenses so they can stay in business. This was on top of a 400,000-capital improvement payment Jersey City gave them at the end of 2008. Oh and before I forget, the property the shelter is on belongs to Jersey City and the shelter pays 1.00 a year on a 45 year lease. Now this is the time for the taxpayers to say ?SHOW ME THE MONEY? Time for full disclosure on how this money is used. That includes names, payroll, expenses and petty cash. Quote:
Posted on: 2010/8/17 21:09
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Re: Liberty Humane Society offering DOUBLE DUTY DISCOUNT ADOPTIONS this weekend
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Quite a regular
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After the budget crisis hit this year the city nearly halved it's payment to the shelter. Also, when calculating per animal costs you have to also allow for veterinarian bills, medicine, cleaning supplies, a ton of legal paperwork, food, bedding, regular servicing to physical plant (that much animal hair does a lot of damage very quickly), etc. etc. Running a shelter is an expensive proposition, and a budget is simply what has been approved for spending without having to go back to the board. It is also based on projected income, so you cannot just take the percentage of actual income and apply it to the total budget to figure the amounts.
What you CAN do is go to guidestar.org and look at LHS's 990 submissions. These are their yearly tax submissions showing what they took in and what it was spent on, and is published as public record by law.
Posted on: 2010/8/17 18:38
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Re: The Entire Board of Liberty Humane Society Just Resigned...
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Quite a regular
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This is all I needed to know. Thanks.
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Posted on: 2010/8/17 17:34
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Re: The Entire Board of Liberty Humane Society Just Resigned...
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Quite a regular
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StevSach says:
Quote: Hello HAA, who am I speaking to, David, Blanche or Aurora? All I've done is ask a series of questions and copy the appropriate people so that they have the opportunity to clarify. How is that awful behavior? If anything can be clarified, people can clarify. Pretty straightforward. I had some discussions with Joanna about developing programs to support a no-kill shelter. She was on board. No big secret, no big scandal. I don't know everything about what Joanna had done/was going to do but she is not here now so I am directing my questions to the people who are now in charge and killing animals. I find it amusing that people are attacked for expecting transparency. Your organization specifically has put forth, repeatedly with your "fact/rumor" note, that it is not and was never a plan to mass cull the animals at the shelter. And yet here we are, a plan, I hear and have asked for clarification on, to kill at least 32 dogs and probably at least as many cats on Friday. Is it any wonder people don't believe the information you and your colleagues put forth? Most of all, you are all missing the point. This is an organization, a corporation, yes. But first and foremost it is an animals shelter. We had the beginning of a no-kill movement in Jersey City. Sure, it was very imperfect. There was a major donor behind it. Did you and the old guard step in to support it? No, you all stepped in to kill no-kill and paint those who tried as hoarders to provide political cover for the mass killing that is now beginning anew. Nikki Dawson has replied to my note to say that it is her job to "euthanize" the aggressive animals. Does she imply by omission that she does not kill adoptable animals for space? This is an animal "shelter". It is called Liberty "Humane". If someone can stop the killing and goes over her budget, It's not appropriate to fire her, to quit in protest or to kill the animals as a solution. You raise the money. And by the way, this board has not been in power for a few weeks, they have been in power for years. They are the old board brought back. They are the ones who wrote and signed the contract with the city, they are the ones who, I believe, have neglected their responsibilities to the animals and to the city (where would we be now if those 75 dog runs had been built years ago as they should have been?). They are the ones who have, for years, killed about half of the animals under their 'care'. It is not only completely appropriate but it is necessary to hold them accountable. You are talking to David. The problem is not with your questions. The problem is that you propose rumors as questions and then answer them yourself as if they are true, thus implying they are. There is no plan to kill 32 animals this Friday. That is yet another ugly rumor spread by people who somehow seem to think that lying saves an animal's life somehow. The current board is not "the old Board brought back". NONE of the current board members ever served on the Board together. They each served on different Boards at different times. The massive expansion of the contract with the city upping the number to 74 was signed by John O'Keefe, not anyone on the current Board. You ask then answer "Did you and the old guard step in to support it? No, you all stepped in to kill no-kill and paint those who tried as hoarders to provide political cover for the mass killing that is now beginning anew. " You are completely wrong. HAA and the old guard did step in to support it VERY EARLY. Joanna had a meeting with the heads of several local Animal Advocacy, Rescue and Foster groups to discuss her plans to "move towards" a No Kill shelter and to ask how we could help. Over the course of a few hours we discussed how such a plan needs to be carried out based on the writings of Nathan Winograd and what had to be done to make it a success. All of the organizations stressed the need for PREPARATION. We all said AT THE TIME that new kennels needed to be purchased and fund raising and outreach increased to handle the inevitable increase in animals and that to just start taking more animals without first knowing how you are going to house them, to just assume that homes would be there without finding out first would be a mistake. We all then volunteered to contact those rescue groups and prepare them. HAA offered the services of a professional Development Director with nearly 20 years of NFP fund raising experience to help raise money for it. WE WERE ALL ON BOARD. Unfortunately, that was also the last any of us heard from Joanna until a week before the Board quit. What we did not know at the time was that she had instituted a No Kill policy already, two months earlier, which she had lied to us about. What we did not know is that now that she could claim that she had "reached out" to the community we would never hear from her again and never have our calls returned. What we did not know was that out Development Director, who since being utilized by the new board has identified 30 possible funding sources for the shelter, would never be contacted even though the major donor who was paying Joanna's salary ALSO wanted the support. What we did not know was that they instituted this plan despite the in house development director having raised only $8,000 for the year, $6,000 of it being from her sister who withdrew the money when she quit. What we did not know was that as this was happening the new management was burning through tens of thousands of dollars paying for services and supplies that were supposed to be and always had been gathered through donations or done by staff. $40,000 for a bookkeeper - that was The Operatiopn Manager's job, and there was no excuse to farm it out at such an obscene rate. As for the $9,000 from Hoboken - it was offered up AFTER the board resigned and IS being used to purchase new kennels. In fact the shelter, thanks largely to Niki's efforts, has partnered with a state-of-the-art kennel supplier to upgrade as many kennels as possible at a greatly reduced price. The method for evaluations described by LHS_Volunteer and CatWoman is an out-and-out lie. Both the ASPCA and St Huberts have graciously stepped in to conduct evaluations and train staff and volunteers. The method and scale being used is the one constituted in the new California No Kill law. A mess that was created by people trying to do No Kill the wrong way is being cleaned up by those trying to do it the right way. As Nathan Winograd would be the first to say, No Kill does not mean that no animals die - it means no animals die unless it is to relieve suffering or because they cannot be made safe to be around humans or other dogs. The fact of the matter is that LHS has been moving slowly towards NK for awhile, they have simply been adults who acknowledge that money and space limit what you can do, and thus have relied heavily on outreach to make up the difference. That is why the euthanasia rate at the shelter had been steadily declining quarter by quarter as the health reports got better and better, making it easier to raise money. Then new people came in and decided that doing it quickly was more important than doing it right, leaving animals in torturous conditions and greatly increasing the likelihood of the shelter being seized and turned into a 7 day municipal pound. The ONLY reason that did not happen is because those three ex-board members stepped in that night. If not for that, the reckless, inhumane, and totally arrogant attempt at No Kill with No Plan would have cost nearly every animal in that shelter their life within a week. This mess happened under the watch of people that you praise, and if the shelter now fails because of three failed inspections (the first two of which Joanna 'neglected' to inform the new Board of) it will be the result of not this Board and the ones that came before it, but of the Board, the Development Director, and the Executive Director that all left a month ago. They created an unholy mess, and because you and your friends could beat your chests proudly and claim to be No Kill animals suffered, were tortured, and may die. As I have said before, one just needs to read the inspection reports. This nightmare happened on YOUR watch, and no amount of debate on policy or procedure, or attempt to attack those who have come back from the past to try to save the place can change that.
Posted on: 2010/8/17 16:39
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Re: The Entire Board of Liberty Humane Society Just Resigned...
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Quite a regular
Joined:
2006/5/6 11:20 Last Login : 2015/2/11 21:46 From Jersey City Heights
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Yes. There is nothing HUMANE or SHELTERing about those conditions. Since dogs, particularly active breeds, develop kennel crazies quickly in far better shelter conditions, I wonder how many of the dogs who have been euthanized came in as good dogs but turned because of these conditions?
Cats can also be hit with this, although the conditions at the cattery are better than those at the kennel, because cats use litter boxes.
Posted on: 2010/8/17 16:11
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Re: The Entire Board of Liberty Humane Society Just Resigned...
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Home away from home
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steve is correct in saying that fingers can be pointed at a lot of people both in the recent and distant past. thats about it though.
the term "no-kill" in its ideal incarnation/definition/practice i believe is one of the most noble goals in animal welfare. however, for months, dogs have been stacked in wire crates on top of each other. when one animal urinates or defecates it can easily drip onto the neighbor below. thats just one small example but to say thats a "good start" to anything aside from inhumane treatment, disease and indignity is laughable. if given the choice for MY OWN pets i would rather them be euthanized than live in those conditions. go to the shelter steve, see what that "good start" has created. and the sad fact is that this ill prepared push for no kill created a scenario that now jeopardizes the entire operation. what will happen if the state takes over?
Posted on: 2010/8/17 15:56
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Re: The Entire Board of Liberty Humane Society Just Resigned...
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Quite a regular
Joined:
2006/5/6 11:20 Last Login : 2015/2/11 21:46 From Jersey City Heights
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I am distressed by much of what has been posted on this thread. I guess it really is true that we kill the things we love.
Are the same people who are focusing on the 11 dogs who were euthanized equally aware of the number of dogs sent to rescue - in large part by people who have been crucified on this same thread? A number of cats, including a three-legged, FIV+ cat has also gone to rescue. In addition, if you look at the Liberty Humane Society site, there are a lot more dogs in foster care than there were only a few weeks ago. Obviously, there are volunteers out there who instead of talking the talk, walk the walk and are fostering dogs. The lives saved surpasses the lives lost handily. (Considering the number of animals warehoused and today's economy, it is amazing that so many groups were willing to help.) However, when the facts do not support an agenda, why bother posting them? I hope both lists are presented tonight, so those who prefer to focus on the lives lost instead of all the animals who have been saved, can not claim they haven't received full disclosure. Having been to the shelter, I could also post my two cents about the conditions of the kennel area, which put me in mind of a Union City poultry market (and let's face it, chickens deserve better!) I can also tell you of volunteers who left BECAUSE of those conditions. However, things are changing. Donations, such as larger enclosures, have come in, despite the absence of a development person. Other help is on the way. Very dedicated volunteers are helping the understaffed kennel workers clean the kennels. Considering adopters have walked out because of the stench (and again, it is impossible for the few staff workers there to do it alone), I take my hat off to these special people. In my opinion, many of these posts are more about politics or power than about the animals. Considering that past mistakes may lead to state takeover of Liberty Humane Society by the end of this week, I hope people come to tonight's Interim Board meeting with an open mind, instead of agendas. Otherwise, after the state takes over, the number of deaths will far exceed anything posted on this thread. Cats and dogs (and the occasional guinea pig, rabbit, chicken or goat) will come in alive and exit after their seven days are up in a body bag. Is THAT what we want?
Posted on: 2010/8/17 15:42
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Re: Lies Lies Lies @ Liberty Humane Society in Jersey City
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Home away from home
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Quote:
Vinny aka Iceberg is the guy in my profile pic.... I love him to DEATH and he is the biggest mushiest dog ever, he sleeps in the bed with the kids and they ride him like a horse... he has NEVER EVER EVER showed one iota of aggression even when attacked by my other much smaller dog... he is a big baby and still to this day find it shocking that anyone marked him for death because of his aggression... so that just goes to show you these tests are really whacked out.
Posted on: 2010/8/17 15:34
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Re: Liberty Humane Society offering DOUBLE DUTY DISCOUNT ADOPTIONS this weekend
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Home away from home
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So let's go with a couple items on catsndogs breakdown (thanks by the way.)
Budget: "about a million dollars" Jersey City contract 44% (that's $440,000) Complaint that the city is paying only $1.50 per capita (which I assume means animals not people  )$440,000/year from city/$1.50 per animal = 293,000 animals per year. Now WHY do I have trouble believing that? How many animals DO pass through each year and perhaps paying people a half million dollars (or more) to pass them through is a huge waste of money. The reason that I stick with costs is that there are a LOT of "not for profit" organizations that actually ARE for profit...the profit to the organizers and employees. It has not been unheard of where salaries and perks consume almost the entire budget and those making contributions for a good cause are being flim-flammed with fraud. How much do you think Sally Struthers got? How about the poor African kids?
Posted on: 2010/8/17 15:20
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Re: The Entire Board of Liberty Humane Society Just Resigned...
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Newbie
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Hello HAA, who am I speaking to, David, Blanche or Aurora?
All I've done is ask a series of questions and copy the appropriate people so that they have the opportunity to clarify. How is that awful behavior? If anything can be clarified, people can clarify. Pretty straightforward. I had some discussions with Joanna about developing programs to support a no-kill shelter. She was on board. No big secret, no big scandal. I don't know everything about what Joanna had done/was going to do but she is not here now so I am directing my questions to the people who are now in charge and killing animals. I find it amusing that people are attacked for expecting transparency. Your organization specifically has put forth, repeatedly with your "fact/rumor" note, that it is not and was never a plan to mass cull the animals at the shelter. And yet here we are, a plan, I hear and have asked for clarification on, to kill at least 32 dogs and probably at least as many cats on Friday. Is it any wonder people don't believe the information you and your colleagues put forth? Most of all, you are all missing the point. This is an organization, a corporation, yes. But first and foremost it is an animals shelter. We had the beginning of a no-kill movement in Jersey City. Sure, it was very imperfect. There was a major donor behind it. Did you and the old guard step in to support it? No, you all stepped in to kill no-kill and paint those who tried as hoarders to provide political cover for the mass killing that is now beginning anew. Nikki Dawson has replied to my note to say that it is her job to "euthanize" the aggressive animals. Does she imply by omission that she does not kill adoptable animals for space? This is an animal "shelter". It is called Liberty "Humane". If someone can stop the killing and goes over her budget, It's not appropriate to fire her, to quit in protest or to kill the animals as a solution. You raise the money. And by the way, this board has not been in power for a few weeks, they have been in power for years. They are the old board brought back. They are the ones who wrote and signed the contract with the city, they are the ones who, I believe, have neglected their responsibilities to the animals and to the city (where would we be now if those 75 dog runs had been built years ago as they should have been?). They are the ones who have, for years, killed about half of the animals under their 'care'. It is not only completely appropriate but it is necessary to hold them accountable.
Posted on: 2010/8/17 15:19
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Re: Lies Lies Lies @ Liberty Humane Society in Jersey City
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Quite a regular
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Re Steve Sachetelli's letter: Asking questions you clearly do not know the answer to and then implying that you do in order to spread rumors is truly awful behavior. Please bring your list of questions and ask them at the Board meeting so you can learn how completely and totally inaccurate your information is. As for what condition the shelter was in, again folks you don't have to believe any of us - just read the last four inspection reports and watch a shelter go from it's best rating ever to disaster over the eight months these people Mr. Sachetelli defends were in charge.
As for this "secret plan" you and Joanna had, why does no one know about it? Why were so many rescue groups kept at arms length? And why would anyone convert a shelter to a No Kill Shelter eight months BEFORE they had a plan to deal with the consequences? Why did Joanna even bother to call a meeting of local Animal Advocacy and rescue groups to discuss the kind of support she would need to "move towards" (Joanna's words) No Kill when she had already made it a policy, and why did she then turn down that very support when offered it? Why did she and Janet sponsor a discussion with Nathan Winograd, the most respected leader in the No Kill movement, and then completely blow off the nine steps of preparation he says any shelter must do in order to become No Kill? Those are the real questions. You can attack a board that has been in place for a few weeks because of rumors, or you can acknowledge the Health Department verifiable damage done by the policies that those you supported put in place.
Posted on: 2010/8/17 4:03
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Re: Lies Lies Lies @ Liberty Humane Society in Jersey City
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Home away from home
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Although I do not agree with all of his philosophy, a few of my thoughts were first outlined by Nathan Winograd, Director of the No Kill Advocacy Center.
It would be hard to design a more frustrating environment for a dog than a kennel. Most shelters are filled with strange smells, dogs are placed alone in a barren kennel, there are lots of strangers, and the dog?s daily routine is completely changed. Since they can?t talk and tell you, ?Leave me alone, I am scared and don?t understand what is happening to me,? they communicate in the only way that biology allows ? by backing up, barking, growling, and when all else fails, snapping. One can only imagine what messages a dog senses from the smells in a shelter. Humans will detect the foul odor of urine while a k-9 classifies the odors as stress, sickness, fear, aggression, intact males, and females in heat. Dogs evaluated outside of the shelter facility may perform sufficiently well enough for staff and volunteers help train and cope with losing a familiar environment and perhaps develop habits that may get them into new homes. I suppose if the evaluation methodology is made public, all concerned may have their fears hopefully assuaged and not justified. Three years ago at the HCSPCA, a ?professional behaviorist and licensed veterinarian? would stick a foreign object into the kennel and if the dog acted aggressively, it was euthanized. Later, an outside professional assessed the dogs and essentially agreed that all of the HCSPCA?s dogs should be put down. The following is a list of dogs that would have been killed had these ?professionals? had their way. Many JCListers will recognize some of these dogs: Vinnie...................aka Iceberg ..............Alive and well in Jersey City Dodger...................................................Alive and well in Bayonne Gabe..................................................... Alive and well in Bayonne Cassie..................aka Sasha.................Alive and well in Jersey City Percy....................aka Rider...................Alive and well in Jersey City Dixie Chick..............................................Alive and well in Jersey City Tank .......................................................Alive and well in Rutherford Nigel ....................aka Max..................... Alive and well in Jersey City Antonio............... aka Bullet.................. Alive and well in Hoboken Frasier....................................................Alive and well in NYC Grant......................................................Alive and well in Brooklyn George.................................................. Alive and well as an office dog in New York City Sadie..................aka Sadie....................Alive and well in Staten Island Ben.................. aka Blackie.................. Alive and well in New Orleans Selma.....................................................Alive and well in Hoboken Bruno.....................................................Alive and well in Oradell Stella................. aka Misty.....................Lived 1 year with a loving mother ? died of natural causes Scruffy....................................................Sanctuary Mozo......................................................Sanctuary In some temperament testing strategies, shelters have found a trouble-free alternative to implementing a robust adoption plan, awareness and public relations program, and a strategy to reduce the overpopulation of unwanted pets. There are good people at LHS and I have personally seen and participated in temperament testing at the facility. The start of this thread began with severe claims that I hope are not true. LHS is having a tough six weeks. Please, adopt, foster, volunteer, or donate to ?our? community shelter. Let?s face it, if every dog passed its evaluation tomorrow, the place would still be overcrowded. Instead of fighting on JCList, how about if each poster paid for one spay/neuter of a shelter animal? It is under 100 dollars and is a tangible effort. Likewise, the next time a friend, neighbor, or acquaintance is looking a specific breed, have them contact a breed-specific rescue instead of supporting a puppy mill by purchasing their pet in a store. Better yet, visit LHS and find a wonderful companion.
Posted on: 2010/8/17 2:45
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Re: Lies Lies Lies @ Liberty Humane Society in Jersey City
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Newbie
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The inspection report shows changes are in order. Funny try as I may I see nothing in said report(s) advocating euthanasia.
I see many volunteers walking dogs daily and cleaning etc. The bottom line is if something is not working it is up to management and the board to come up with alternative methods and solutions which somehow does not include the killing of animals which are stressed out through no fault of their own and then fail a random test. I bet if you had the folks whom handle these dogs (and cats) regularly do the questionable evaluation the result would be different in many cases. But taking the chicken shit way out seems to be a vocation for folks failing in their stated mission.....
Posted on: 2010/8/17 1:38
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Re: Lies Lies Lies @ Liberty Humane Society in Jersey City
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Newbie
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This is deja-vu all over again. Wasn't it 2-3 days before the last board meeting when all the sh*t stirrers came out of the woodwork and started spreading ugly rumors?
Where were all of you in January, February, March, etc. and etc. when all of this was coming to a head. I know that NONE of you were at the board meetings where you could have seen first hand what was happening at LHS. Do you really consider this humane - "Indoor stainless steel dog enclosures and crates did not provide sufficient space or meet the minimum square footage requirement as partially evidenced by the sores on dogs noses caused from rubbing it against the cage bars and the bleeding tail on another dog that was split open from banging into the walls of the cage"? Really? That is humane? Because that is from the April inspection report. And you can have all the runs in the world but it doesn't make a bit of difference if you don't have the staff to take care of them. The HSUS recommends 15 minutes per day per animal for basic care. That's feeding and watering and cleaning it's cage. Nothing else, no walking, no socialization, no medications. Nothing. That's it. You do the math. One staff member can get to 4 animals an hour, 32 in an 8 hour shift. There are close to 400 animals at LHS. Do the math, it doesn't lie. And it's just a reality that not all animals are savable. You just can't save them all so you treat them as humanely as you can while they are here. And that doesn't mean keeping them in cages that they can't even stand up in.
Posted on: 2010/8/17 0:42
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Re: Lies Lies Lies @ Liberty Humane Society in Jersey City
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Quite a regular
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All you have to do to know the truth is read the state inspection reports. I suggest everyone do that. Webmaster, I seriously suggest killing this thread. if you want to have a personal dialogue as to why feel free to email or PM me.
Posted on: 2010/8/17 0:03
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Re: Lies Lies Lies @ Liberty Humane Society in Jersey City
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Newbie
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Bravo Steve Sacchitelli.
Well there's two sides to every story. You believe what you want but those who witness it everyday know the truth about what goes on behind closed doors at LHS. It's very easy to tell people what they want to hear and it's pretty amazing how far a person can go with who they know (very political). Hmmm - I wonder how many volunteers they will lose now with all that's going on?? But wait - that's what they want so they can't be exposed. Do you really think volunteers would walk away if nothing was wrong???
Posted on: 2010/8/16 23:52
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Re: Lies Lies Lies @ Liberty Humane Society in Jersey City
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Newbie
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State orders Liberty Humane Society to fix inhumane condition
Published: Monday, August 16, 2010, 5:30 PM Melissa Hayes/The Jersey Journal  Milkbone, a 2½ year old pitbull, is one of many dogs up for adoption at Liberty Humane Society in Jersey City. The state has given the Board of Directors until Friday to improve conditions at the shelter.Volunteers at a Jersey City animal shelter are unhappy the new management has euthanized 12 animals in the past week, but that's the least of the board's problems. Volunteers at a Jersey City animal shelter are unhappy the new management has euthanized 12 animals in the past week, but that's the least of the board's problems. The state Department of Health and Human Services sent the interim Board of Directors a letter last week saying the shelter has failed three inspections and the inhumane conditions must be fixed by Friday. A state inspector along with two representatives from the Jersey City Division of Health visited Liberty Humane Society Aug. 4 and cited the shelter for keeping dogs in cages that are too small and not having a disease control program or supervising veterinarian for the program. The shelter has had a tumultuous month. Its entire Board of Directors quit in late July after differences with the former Executive Director Joanna Hopkinson who wanted to make Liberty Humane a "no kill" shelter. Three past board presidents formed an interim board and fired Hopkinson shortly after taking over. Diana Jeffrey, a member of the interim Board of Directors, said the board was aware of the inhumane conditions and began addressing them three weeks ago. The board however was unaware until the state sent a letter last week that the shelter had failed inspections in April and November. If the shelter fails to comply by Friday, Jeffrey said the state could shut the shelter down, impose fines or remove all of the animals. In addition to working to address the state issues, the interim board is meeting tomorrow at 7 p.m. in the city Law Department?s conference room in City Hall in hopes of appointing three new board members to begin transitioning to a permanent board. Two volunteers, who declined to give their names, called The Jersey Journal today complaining that the shelter was euthanizing adoptable dogs. Jeffrey said eight dogs were put down last week and five more today because they were too dangerous to put up for adoption. ?The only dogs we?re not releasing to rescue groups are dogs that are dangerous and we?re not going to apologize for that,? she said. Jeffrey said when the new board came in, 80 of the 100 dogs at the shelter had not been evaluated, meaning they could not be adopted or sent to rescue groups. ?The dogs that were just sitting there huddled in these horrible cages that could go into homes were being overlooked and bypassed because there were so many animals there,? she said. The two volunteers were critical of the evaluations, saying adoptable dogs were being set up to fail. But Jeffrey said the evaluators are among the top in their field. While the shelter has the capacity to house 74 dogs in emergency situations, it only has the staff to accommodate 50 on a regular basis, she said. Today 10 dogs were cleared for adoption, she said adding six rescue groups are coming in this week to save other dogs. ?I feel very optimistic that we?re not going to have to euthanize any adoptable animals,? she said. Anyone interested in fostering or adopting a pet can contact the shelter at (201) 547-4147. CLICK ON THE LINK BELOW TO READ THE AUGUST 13th LETTER FROM THE STATE OF NEW JERSEY TO THE SHELTER...HOLY SHIT!!! http://www.nj.com/hudson/index.ssf/20 ... rs_liberty_humane_so.html http://media.nj.com/hudsoncountynow_i ... 20dated%20August%2013.doc
Posted on: 2010/8/16 23:27
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