JERSEY CITY LIST - Re: LHS Budget to Be Slashed and Turned Into a Kill Shelter -- Can Anything Be Done? [Main Forum]

Re: Funding Cut by $83,560 To Our Local Animal Shelter LHS

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CatsnDogs wrote:
If you wish to speak about No Kill please be sure to do your research first because there are over 212 Municipal shelters in the US that achieve No Kill (90% save rate of all treatable and rehabilitateable aniamls) each year. You can start by reading Out the Front Door blog. LHS kills about 40% - 50% of the animals it takes in. And the dogs are suffering terribly there because they live in 2 x 4 cages that are out of code by the State of NJ regulations.

http://outthefrontdoor.com/introduction-to-the-blog/

Quote:

devilsadvocate wrote:
Quote:

dtjcview wrote:
Is LHS a kill shelter? Because if it is - they lose every single penny from me.

I wish they were not, but almost no shelters that have mandatory intake are no kill. Generally, "no kill" means rescues that have the luxury to refuse intake until spots open up in foster. Refusing to donate to them is going to result in more kill, not less kill.

Your numbers sound impressive, until you take into account that there are over 36,000 municipalities and townships in the US. So, let's do the math: 212 out of 36,000 is less than 1 percent (0.58 percent, to be exact). Don't want to include townships and only do the math based on municipalities? OK. Let's do that. There are 19,492 according to the Census data. That's a 1% rate (212 / 19492). Like I said, people LOVE to have lofty dreams and expectations. But, reality gets on the way. Becoming NO KILL requires a lot of planning, effort and connections. You can't just say "we are going to be no kill" and ignore what it requires.

Posted on: 2014/10/7 17:43

Re: Funding Cut by $83,560 To Our Local Animal Shelter LHS

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If you wish to speak about No Kill please be sure to do your research first because there are over 212 Municipal shelters in the US that achieve No Kill (90% save rate of all treatable and rehabilitateable aniamls) each year. You can start by reading Out the Front Door blog. LHS kills about 40% - 50% of the animals it takes in. And the dogs are suffering terribly there because they live in 2 x 4 cages that are out of code by the State of NJ regulations.

http://outthefrontdoor.com/introduction-to-the-blog/

Quote:

devilsadvocate wrote:
Quote:

dtjcview wrote:
Is LHS a kill shelter? Because if it is - they lose every single penny from me.

I wish they were not, but almost no shelters that have mandatory intake are no kill. Generally, "no kill" means rescues that have the luxury to refuse intake until spots open up in foster. Refusing to donate to them is going to result in more kill, not less kill.

Posted on: 2014/10/7 15:28

Re: Funding Cut by $83,560 To Our Local Animal Shelter LHS

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Quote:

dtjcview wrote:
Is LHS a kill shelter? Because if it is - they lose every single penny from me.

I wish they were not, but almost no shelters that have mandatory intake are no kill. Generally, "no kill" means rescues that have the luxury to refuse intake until spots open up in foster. Refusing to donate to them is going to result in more kill, not less kill.

Posted on: 2014/10/7 13:32

Re: Funding Cut by $83,560 To Our Local Animal Shelter LHS

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dtjcview wrote:
Is LHS a kill shelter? Because if it is - they lose every single penny from me.

A "kill shelter"? Really, this is how you want to frame it?? Are you one of those people that frames the abortion debate as "pro-life" and "pro-death"???

Some shelters choose to be "no kill", but that doesn't make the other shelters "pro kill"!!

For historical perspective on this issue, you should search the forums here. The former head of LHS tried to implement a "no kill" policy without a mandate to do so. The results were disastrous. In order to become a "no kill" shelter, you must have a HUGE network of fostering volunteers, plus on site volunteers, plus strong relations with local rescue organizations. Overnight, she tried to make LHS into a "no kill" shelter and the obvious, logical results were an overabundance of cats (at one point, they had over 300!) excessive volunteer turnover and spread of disease. I know of two volunteers that contracted ring worms after being there for brief periods of time.

People love to have lofty dreams of how things should be, but fail to account for the complexities of reality.

Oh, sorry, forgot to address your question: Is LHS a kill shelter? No, they are a humane shelter doing the best it can to provide a much needed service to our community and that of surrounding towns.

Posted on: 2014/10/7 12:50

dtjcview

Re: Funding Cut by $83,560 To Our Local Animal Shelter LHS

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Is LHS a kill shelter? Because if it is - they lose every single penny from me.

Posted on: 2014/10/7 2:39

kimmygo

Re: LHS Budget to Be Slashed and Turned Into a Kill Shelter -- Can Anything Be Done?

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I reached out to my councilperson Diane Coleman and heard nothing back.

Posted on: 2014/3/18 17:55

Re: LHS Budget to Be Slashed and Turned Into a Kill Shelter -- Can Anything Be Done?

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To answer your question, yes LHS is a kill shelter. The mission of LHS is not No Kill. It's to save some and kill the rest. LHS President Andrew Siegel is misleading the public when he said "our mission is to get every animal adopted." I personally wish the LHS mission truly was to get every animal adopted but it is not.

About 50% of the animals that enter it are killed each year. Annual intake is usually 2,500 - 3,000. Live annual release rate is about 1,200 +/-. Do the math.

The shelter is supposed to have capacity for minimum of 75 dogs. It does not. It has space for 40 dogs.

LHS cannot and should not make a animal control and sheltering agreement with the city of Bayonne. LHS DOES NOT HAVE THE SPACE TO DO THAT. It will compromise the already dire situation for space and put that many more animals lives at stake. THIS IS CRITICAL.

The Council is misguided in cutting the shelter budget. It is a forboding sign I fear. Council President Lavarro is irresponsible when he says "the shelter administers unneeded services to animals brought in by animal control." That is an uneducated person talking. Just because the State of NJ Health Dept does not mandate vaccinations for each animal on intake does not mean it is unneeded. Illness spreads extremely fast in a shelter environment.

The financial numbers quoted in the article are confusing. $9,000 a month is $108,000 annually. That is more than the $82,000 or $6,833 a month defunding originally claimed.

Another false statement that "the closure of the other shelter 6 years ago put a lot on the shoulders of LHS". This is completely false. The other shelter was handling sheltering for other Hudson County cities NOT Jersey City. LHS does not take in any animals due to the closure of the Hudson County SPCA. If LHS is perpetuating this lie, they need to stop now.

Lastly, my question is to the Board of Directors of LHS. How much money has the "board" itself raised and is currently raising for the operations of the shelter. That is the whole purpose of a board. To raise money. Does anyone know or have an answer to this?

Please call and email all the council people and ask them to restore the $82,000 funding to the LHS budget. And tell them not to allow LHS to make a contract with Bayonne.

Council members info here:

http://www.cityofjerseycity.com/citycouncil.aspx?id=1216

Quote:

skyl4rk wrote:
LHS has been operating as a kill shelter for a while now, hasn't it?

Posted on: 2014/3/17 18:24

kimmygo

Re: LHS Budget to Be Slashed and Turned Into a Kill Shelter -- Can Anything Be Done?

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I guess the best option is to contact your city council member to voice your opinion on this matter.

Posted on: 2014/3/17 16:58

Re: LHS Budget to Be Slashed and Turned Into a Kill Shelter -- Can Anything Be Done?

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Thank you for the info.

Posted on: 2014/3/17 16:51

Re: LHS Budget to Be Slashed and Turned Into a Kill Shelter -- Can Anything Be Done?

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Only the ones that are too sick or violent to be adopted.

Posted on: 2014/3/17 16:51

heights

Re: LHS Budget to Be Slashed and Turned Into a Kill Shelter -- Can Anything Be Done?

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Quote:

kim wrote:
My fear is that Fulop is using JC as a springboard for governor and us residents will be left with the mess in 3 years.

Fear not he is...spring boarding ! You should have figured that out by now. The writing is on the wall.

Posted on: 2014/3/17 16:35

Get on your bikes and ride !

skyl4rk

Re: LHS Budget to Be Slashed and Turned Into a Kill Shelter -- Can Anything Be Done?

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LHS has been operating as a kill shelter for a while now, hasn't it?

Posted on: 2014/3/17 16:32

Yvonne

Re: LHS Budget to Be Slashed and Turned Into a Kill Shelter -- Can Anything Be Done?

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It is now the council budget, they want to raise the funding for the shelter, they can. They can cut or increase the budget. Fulop runs the city but they control the money. It is about time they speak up.

Posted on: 2014/3/17 16:30

Re: LHS Budget to Be Slashed and Turned Into a Kill Shelter -- Can Anything Be Done?

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It very clearly does state that. The new contract will ?keep for redemption and destroying of all animals found within the municipal limits when there is no public pound.?
"Pound" and "animal control" is a nice way of saying "kill." Where do you think the cuts will come? What do you think taking a step backwards implies? How will they take care of the flood of animals when their budget has been slashed by 25%?
Please do not try to minimize or cloud the issue.

Posted on: 2014/3/17 16:18

VA2015

Re: LHS Budget to Be Slashed and Turned Into a Kill Shelter -- Can Anything Be Done?

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Where did you get the info that the budget cut means it will become a kill shelter? I thought it was a renegotiation of one budget item, not the entire budget.

ETA: the article says NOTHING about it becoming a kill shelter. The title of the original post will just get people riled up with an off-topic discussion, I recommend changing it to something less incendiary.

Posted on: 2014/3/17 16:09

Re: LHS Budget to Be Slashed and Turned Into a Kill Shelter -- Can Anything Be Done?

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There is this article:
http://hudsonreporter.com/view/full_s ... nce=jersey_city_top_story

I don't know who to voice my disapproval to or what the most effective means would be.

Posted on: 2014/3/17 16:08

kimmygo

Re: LHS Budget to Be Slashed and Turned Into a Kill Shelter -- Can Anything Be Done?

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Is there more information about this and who to content to voice disapproval?

Posted on: 2014/3/17 16:06

LHS Budget to Be Slashed and Turned Into a Kill Shelter -- Can Anything Be Done?

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Longtime resident and was a very active Fulop supporter as I adored him as my councilman. However, I am very disturbed by the LHS news. First the EMS, then Loews and now this. We're getting shiny and new additions to JC that make excellent headlines while the infrastructure clearly cannot handle the uptick. Turning LHS into a kill shelter is going way too far. I adopted two animals from there and this issue hits very close to home. The shelter needs help but to take this step backwards? Even Bloomberg was aiming for NYC to be no kill. And vver a few thousand dollars when we're spending tens of millions on superficial improvements? Is there anything that can be done?

My fear is that Fulop is using JC as a springboard for governor and us residents will be left with the mess in 3 years.

Posted on: 2014/3/17 16:02

Pebble

Re: Funding Cut by $83,560 To Our Local Animal Shelter LHS

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Quote:

bodhipooh wrote:
Actually, devilsadvocate has a valid point: if LHS reduced hours/services available to the city, then the city would be abdicating their fiduciary responsibility (to the city taxpayers) by not adjusting what they pay to LHS for impoundment services.

As the cost of equipment, gasoline, taxes, electricity, heat, food, etc. goes up, if the money the city has supplied has not increased over time, then there absolutely will be a cut in hours.

Quote:

jcgirl wrote:
No.... We dont want cats ending up in Lincoln Park again

?and yet the city does the absolute bare minimum to assist the one group interested in addressing the problem.

Posted on: 2014/3/13 20:38

Dos A Cero

Re: Funding Cut by $83,560 To Our Local Animal Shelter LHS

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To CatsnDogs: thank you very much for getting so involved in this and dedicating what must be an incredible amount of time to such a pet project (pun intended!)

For those who may not have clicked on the links you provided, here are the dates for upcoming TNR workshops:

March 23
April 27
May 18

Posted on: 2014/3/13 17:10

Re: Funding Cut by $83,560 To Our Local Animal Shelter LHS

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Trap Neuter Return is endorsed by the Humane Society of US, ASPCA, Best Friends, Alley Cat Allies and has become the national "non-lethal" way to manage feral/free roamng/community cat.

Municpalities across the country have instituted TNR Feral Cat ordinances and have partnered with local non profits. PetSmart Charities gives away hundreds of thousands dollars each year in grants to spay neuter feral cats. The ASPCA and Best Friends also give grants for this.

To learn more about the benefits of TNR check out the Alley Cat Allies and Neighborhood Cats websites.

www.alleycat.org

www.neighborhoodcats.org

Posted on: 2014/3/13 14:27

JCMan8

Re: Funding Cut by $83,560 To Our Local Animal Shelter LHS

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bodhipooh wrote:
Alternatively, TNRed cats may sport a "notch", and yet others may have an in-ear tattoo.

I never heard about this program before but it sounds like a great idea. Do you know if it has been implemented nationally and if it's been successful?

Posted on: 2014/3/13 2:57

Re: Funding Cut by $83,560 To Our Local Animal Shelter LHS

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Alternatively, TNRed cats may sport a "notch", and yet others may have an in-ear tattoo.

Resized Image

Posted on: 2014/3/13 2:53

r_pinkowitz

Re: Funding Cut by $83,560 To Our Local Animal Shelter LHS

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Quote:

devilsadvocate wrote:
Quote:

CatsnDogs wrote:
LHS has no programs to address the feral cat population in either Jersey City or Hoboken where they contract for animal control. They have left that up to the community as has the City although the Animal Control is making a very slight effort.

I started the Neighborhood Feral Cat Initiative in 2009 to address the JC feral problem and to create a public dialogue about community and feral cats. We train residents how to Trap Neuter Return. We loan traps for free. And we provide grant funding to pay for the spaying and neutering.

Since 2009 we have spayed and neutered 2,000+ community/feral cats mostly in Jersey City. Hundreds of residents have taken the training workshop. All of this has been done without any municipal/government funding and without any paid employees.

Imagine what you can do with some funding and paid employees.

www.neighborhoodferalcat.org
www.companionanimaltrust.com

I have a question on this. How do I know if a local cat has been TNRed? Is there some kind of tag or mark on it? Obviously, you can tell with male cats but not females.

TNR cats are ear tipped. Resized Image

Posted on: 2014/3/13 0:53

Re: Funding Cut by $83,560 To Our Local Animal Shelter LHS

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Quote:

CatsnDogs wrote:
LHS has no programs to address the feral cat population in either Jersey City or Hoboken where they contract for animal control. They have left that up to the community as has the City although the Animal Control is making a very slight effort.

I started the Neighborhood Feral Cat Initiative in 2009 to address the JC feral problem and to create a public dialogue about community and feral cats. We train residents how to Trap Neuter Return. We loan traps for free. And we provide grant funding to pay for the spaying and neutering.

Since 2009 we have spayed and neutered 2,000+ community/feral cats mostly in Jersey City. Hundreds of residents have taken the training workshop. All of this has been done without any municipal/government funding and without any paid employees.

Imagine what you can do with some funding and paid employees.

www.neighborhoodferalcat.org
www.companionanimaltrust.com

I have a question on this. How do I know if a local cat has been TNRed? Is there some kind of tag or mark on it? Obviously, you can tell with male cats but not females.

Posted on: 2014/3/13 0:48

OneSkirt

Re: Funding Cut by $83,560 To Our Local Animal Shelter LHS

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Quote:

CatsnDogs wrote:
LHS has no programs to address the feral cat population in either Jersey City or Hoboken where they contract for animal control. They have left that up to the community as has the City although the Animal Control is making a very slight effort.

I started the Neighborhood Feral Cat Initiative in 2009 to address the JC feral problem and to create a public dialogue about community and feral cats. We train residents how to Trap Neuter Return. We loan traps for free. And we provide grant funding to pay for the spaying and neutering.

Since 2009 we have spayed and neutered 2,000+ community/feral cats mostly in Jersey City. Hundreds of residents have taken the training workshop. All of this has been done without any municipal/government funding and without any paid employees.

Imagine what you can do with some funding and paid employees.

www.neighborhoodferalcat.org
www.companionanimaltrust.com

Fantastic organization that I've worked with many times. This program works when neighbors step up and do it as it's a grassroots based effort.

Also FYI: Never take a feral cat to LHS as they are not socialized and will be put down. Unless you are very sure the cat is friendly.

Posted on: 2014/3/12 22:55

Re: Funding Cut by $83,560 To Our Local Animal Shelter LHS

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LHS has no programs to address the feral cat population in either Jersey City or Hoboken where they contract for animal control. They have left that up to the community as has the City although the Animal Control is making a very slight effort.

I started the Neighborhood Feral Cat Initiative in 2009 to address the JC feral problem and to create a public dialogue about community and feral cats. We train residents how to Trap Neuter Return. We loan traps for free. And we provide grant funding to pay for the spaying and neutering.

Since 2009 we have spayed and neutered 2,000+ community/feral cats mostly in Jersey City. Hundreds of residents have taken the training workshop. All of this has been done without any municipal/government funding and without any paid employees.

Imagine what you can do with some funding and paid employees.

www.neighborhoodferalcat.org
www.companionanimaltrust.com

Posted on: 2014/3/12 18:18

Re: Funding Cut by $83,560 To Our Local Animal Shelter LHS

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devilsadvocate: From my recollection, there should be several threads here in JCList dealing with local TNR programs. I believe there is a local volunteer group that will "lend" you traps, after training you on their proper placement and usage, and will then help with the spaying/neutering of the animals so they can then be returned to their original colonies. Do a search. I am not sure to what extent, if any, LHS is involved in that.

Posted on: 2014/3/12 17:03

Re: Funding Cut by $83,560 To Our Local Animal Shelter LHS

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Quote:

dtjcview wrote:
Quote:

devilsadvocate wrote:
Quote:

JCNewJersey wrote:
I find it odd that the HHS department states that the shelter reduced its hours. As it is the only facility to take in strays for the City of Jersey City, I thought the place is available 24/7 to the Animal Control officers. If Animal Control picks up a stray dog at 1:00am they are supposed to take it to the shelter. They used to have a key to let themselves in. Has this changed? And why? And if so, where is Animal Control taking that stray dog at 1:00am in the morning now.

Please do not confuse any type of reduction of hours to the public for adoptions or volunteers to impact the funding. The City, IMO, could care less about that. All the City must fund and take care of is capturing strays and impounding them. So why are they really cutting funding?

Good point.

LHS should change the contract to limit the number of strays they'll accept from JC Animal Control by -27% of last year's total. After that charge a flat fee per stray.

I would like that.

Posted on: 2014/3/12 16:59