Feb 02, 2024
February 1st was a giant day within the Metropolis of Austin — a possible butterfly impact within the historical past of No Kill. Whereas our metropolis management is working to seek out options, there’s a lot work to be carried out within the subsequent six months and past with a view to assist us proceed our ahead motion as leaders in animal advocacy.
This week, the Austin Metropolis Council handed a decision to permit the town to euthanize canine who’ve chunk histories with out first giving discover to teams like APA!, who supply rehabilitation alternatives. There’s a six-month delay to this variation, which might apply to a canine whose chunk causes extreme damage, requiring stitches that trigger punctures as deep as half the canine tooth of a canine. This may also apply to each provoked and unprovoked bites.
As we have now persistently mentioned, APA! will not be against humanely euthanizing canine who are usually not secure to be locally. The protection of the neighborhood and our pets is a foundational facet of No Kill; “having a conduct program is not only about saving canine; it’s about making certain the protection of our neighborhood,” explains APA!’s Chelsea Riseman, Director of the Canine Habits Program. Our opposition to yesterday’s decision lies in that the town data include many errors and are unreliable, which may probably imply dying for a canine who has truly not bitten in any respect.
We’re hopeful that having six months earlier than this variation goes into impact will permit for time for the town to gather and provide correct knowledge pertaining to the canine with chunk histories. If, in six months, our metropolis adopts this decision with out correct suggestions, knowledge, and coaching, this shall be nothing wanting a giant step backward in seeing animals as people.
The Austin of yesteryear discovered great satisfaction in main the nation in No Kill throughout a time when shelters struggled to save lots of the lives of even half of the pets who entered their care. At present in Austin, the battle for animals’ lives isn’t any much less pressing. Our metropolis should proceed to take the lead in fashionable, data-backed, lifesaving options.
We all know and intimately perceive the challenges that Austin is going through. Our metropolis will not be distinctive on this regard; this previous yr has been enormously difficult for shelters and communities throughout the nation. We all know it will possibly generally be laborious to save lots of lives, and simple to backslide.
Particular person animals’ lives are on the road, and every of them is worthy of all our efforts. They’ve intrinsic worth. They should be seen as people, for us to provide them our all, and that’s what we’re doing.
To protect and shield what we have achieved, and what we have now nonetheless to do, we’re advocating to verify the essential lifesaving good points all of us worth so extremely is not going to be undone, and that we are able to preserve shifting ahead. We shall be preventing for No Kill, for security, and for transparency each step of the way in which. For No Kill will not be a vacation spot. It’s a journey.
If we wish to reside in a metropolis that not solely values progress and being one of the best, however demonstrates it, we have now to collectively voice that, and combat to not solely keep No Kill in Austin however to enhance on it. As Chelsea Riseman pled, “Let’s work collectively to implement humane, efficient options that uphold our shared values of compassion and accountability to our neighborhood.”
APA! will proceed to supply options and be a companion to the town and neighborhood. We ask you to make use of your voices to make it clear that we don’t want to decide on between secure and humane circumstances for pets who enter the shelter system and a secure neighborhood.
When you have not already carried out so, please full this survey and share it with members of your neighborhood.
Everybody desires our neighborhood to do higher. Thanks to our animal-loving neighborhood for all you do!
Dr. Ellen Jefferson
President and CEO, Austin Pets Alive!
