Hello, all. The Baltimore County Animal Services
Advisory Commission met for its April meeting on April 18, 2017. Here's a
summary of all that we discussed.
AGENDA
April 18,
2017
1. Call Meeting to Order
2. Roll Call (Determination of a Quorum) In
attendance were Jon Christiana, Julianne Zimmer, Joy Freedman, Maryanne Martin
Bailey, Jean Townsend, Roy Plummer, Janice Vincent (by phone) and Deborah Stone
Hess
3. Approval of Minutes
Here are the minutes of the March meeting as
approved:
ADVISORY COMMISSION
MARCH 21, 2017
The nineteenth regular meeting of the Baltimore
County Animal Services Advisory Commission was held on Tuesday, March 21, 2017
in the Main Conference Room of the Drumcastle Government Center. This meeting
was called to order at 6:36 p.m. by the Chair Deborah Stone-Hess. Members in
attendance were Deborah Stone-Hess, Jon Christiana (by phone), Joy Freedman,
Roy Plummer, Lavinia Ringgold, Jean Townsend, VMD, Janice Vincent and Julianne
Zimmer.
Minutes
Minutes
from the February 21, 2017 meeting were motioned and approved as submitted.
Motioned
by: Joy Freedman
Second
by: Roy Plummer
Decision:
Approved
Old business
Puppy Mill Bill
The U.S. Department of Agriculture purged many
documents from its website including inspection reports for dog breeding
facilities around the country. The removal of those documents effectively
hobbled a Maryland law passed last year requiring stores that sell puppies to
ensure that they do not receive them from the worst puppy mills. The law says
stores cannot get their animals from any facility that is not licensed by the
USDA, or from one that has been cited by the USDA for egregious violations.
Without the documents online, pet stores have no way to check on the breeders
from which they buy puppies. Delegate Kramer introduced a bill in Annapolis
that would require pet stores to get those inspection reports directly from the
breeder. House Bill 781 will likely pass.
Deborah Hess will be blogging about this.
New business
Circus Legislation
Maryanne Bailey attended the Commission meeting to
make a presentation about circuses and their treatment of animals. While
Ringling Brothers has closed, there are many smaller circuses still in
existence that are cruel to their animals. Ms. Bailey would like Baltimore
County to ban the use of wild or exotic animals for circuses that perform in
Baltimore County. Deb thinks it would take a lot to get this passed. She
doesn’t think this is a high priority for the county. It’s also not in the
scope of the commission to be able to take a stand on this issue as it does not
involve the animal shelter. Deb suggested that Maryanne try to get more council
persons onboard.
Liaison
Committee Meeting Summary
West Side Spay/Neuter Clinic
The west side clinic is not getting nearly the
amount of traffic as the clinic on the east side of the county. The county
expects this will improve with the weather, as it did for the east side clinic.
Information about the spay/neuter clinic is being shared via social media,
flyers to PTA’s in schools and flyers to apartment complexes that allow pets,
in the area of the Southwest Area Park where the west side clinic is located.
TNR – Trap/Neuter/Return
Four hundred cats have been TNR’d since the county
began its own TNR program being led by Becky Sass-Crews. BCAS is starting to
lend cat traps to caretakers of stray cats. Julianne would like a packet with
signed policies in reference to trap use included with the lending of each
trap. Caretakers will be doing the trapping. Animal Services will pick up the
cats, neuter or spay and return them to where they were picked up.
County Ordinance Changes
The Commission has talked before about the county’s
work to revise its ordinances regarding dangerous and menacing dogs. Currently
if a dog is found to be menacing, a fine is levied but there is no mechanism to
enforce it or force people to come before the Animal Control Board. The county
has completed a rough draft of the new ordinances that would allow the county
to impound a dog that is found to be menacing or dangerous until the owner
takes corrective action.
The rewritten ordinances go to the law office.
Ultimately the changes will have to be approved by the county council.
As part of the revision, the county would suspend
the $500 fine if citizens make the changes the county requires to fix the
problem they have been cited for.
Rabies Bill
Baltimore County supports a bill that is before the
MD General Assembly that would require veterinarians to report all rabies
vaccinations they administer. That way there would be a database containing
this information. And if a bite should occur, it could quickly be ascertained
whether the animal had been vaccinated for rabies.
There has been some opposition to the bill from the
MD Veterinary Medical Association. The reason given is a fear that if you
require veterinarians to report all rabies vaccinations that fewer people will
want to vaccinate their pet.
The Montgomery County Director of Animal Services
has evidence to show otherwise as he was involved with a similar program in a
Virginia jurisdiction and found that there was actually an increase in the
number of vaccinated pets. In any case, if the bill continues to struggle, it is
possible that there might be support for a pilot program. Montgomery County,
Prince Georges County and Baltimore County have all agreed to participate.
Valentino Award
Two Animal Control Officers rescued a dog out of a
sewage drain about a month ago.
Julianne’s organization, ReLove Animals, presents a Valentino Award and
would be giving this award to them.
Department of Corrections Inmates
Deborah is waiting for approval and permission to do
a blog and video on this program. Julianne would like to give the shelter a
plaque to hang in the lobby of the shelter recognizing the work of the inmates.
Ann Gearhart
Report on Volunteer Program
Ann was not present.
Second Annual
Commission Report
What needs to be in the commission report? Joy
volunteered to write the report, but is asking for a committee. Julianne
believes this should come from the Liaison Committee. Lavinia will work with
Joy. Everyone is tasked to bring what they think should be in the report
to the next meeting.
The report will be discussed at the April meeting.
Meeting
Frequency
After the second commission report is complete, the Commission
may want to consider meeting every other month or every six weeks instead of
meeting monthly.
Announcement
of Next Meeting Date and Location
April 18, 2017 – Drumcastle Government Center, 6401
York Road, third floor, main conference room.
Motion to adjourn
Motion by: Joy Freedman
Second by: Julianne Zimmer
Adjourned at 7:55 p.m.
4. Introduction of New Commission Member Appointed
by Councilman Quirk-Maryanne Martin Bailey-Maryanne has ben a District Leader
Volunteer for Maryland Congressional District 7 with the Humane Society of the
United States since 2014 and is anxious to learn more about sheltering issues.
All Commission members are thrilled to have her with us!
5. Old Business
a) General Assembly Legislation-Here's an update
from the ASPCA on the outcome of animal welfare legislation in the General
Assembly which recently completed its 90 day session:
All but one of the ASPCA’s six priority bills made
it past the finish line, which is a remarkable success.
Bill that required veterinarians to report
suspected animal cruelty.
created a new regulatory program to oversee animal
shelters and ensure they are meeting high standards of care.
upgraded the cruelty code to make it clear that
different acts of cruelty to animals should all be charged separately, helping
ensure that abusers receive adequate sentences.
strengthened Maryland's puppy mill law.
established a new fund to reimburse animal shelters
for the costs of caring for animals seized in cruelty cases.
The most important thing you can do right now is
thank your legislators who supported these bills
You can also contact Governor Larry Hogan at
410-974-3901 and politely urge him to sign all of these animal welfare bills
into law.
Mandatory Reporting of Animal Cruelty by
Veterinarians
H.B. 1463 (Frush)
Status: Passed the House 118-15 and passed the
Senate unanimously.
What the bill does: Requires veterinarians to
report suspected animal cruelty to law enforcement, similar to the requirement
that doctors report suspected child abuse.
Adoption of Dogs & Cats Used in Research
(Beagle Freedom Bill)
S.B. 420 (Hough)/ H.B. 528 (Kramer)
Status: Dead - did not receive votes in committee.
What the bill does: Requires research facilities
that use dogs and cats to offer those animals for adoption once no longer
needed for research.
**Action needed**: Using our action alert or a
personalized email, write your legislators to let them know you are
disappointed that this bill didn't pass, especially since the exact same bill
passed the House of Delegates last year. Also email Johns Hopkins
(president@jhu.edu) and University of Maryland (president@umd.edu) to express
your disappointment in their opposition to the bill.
Animal Abuse Emergency Compensation Fund
S.B. 631 (Madaleno)/ H.B. 941 (A. Miller)
Status: Passed the Senate unanimously. Passed the
House 132-7. Headed to Governor Hogan's desk!
What the bill does: Establishes a fund to reimburse
animal shelters for expensive costs of caring for animals seized in large-scale
cruelty cases, like a puppy mill or animal fighting operation.
Puppy Mill Licensing
S.B. 573 (Feldman)/ H.B. 334 (Kramer)
Status: Passed the House of Delegates 123-15 and
passed the Senate unanimously. On Governor Hogan's desk!
What the bill does: Lowers the number of breeding
dogs a person must have to qualify as a breeder from 15 to 6 so that more
commercial dog breeders will be monitored.
nimal Shelter Oversight
H.B. 626 (Gilchrist and Miele)
Status: Passed the House of Delegates 130-5 and
passed the Senate unanimously. On Governor Hogan's desk!
What the bill does: Requires county animal shelters
and animal shelters who receive spay/neuter grants to follow minimum standards
of care and requires the Department of Agriculture to create regulations to
enforce that requirement.
Pets and First Responders - H.B. 216 (Lam)/S.B. 269
(Lee)
- Provides civil liability immunity to
veterinarians and first responders for rendering emergency veterinary care to
pets.
- On Governor Hogan's desk!
Rabies Vaccination - S.B. 366 (Madaleno)
- Requires veterinarians to send vaccination
records to local animal control agencies upon request.
- Died when it did not receive a vote in the
House Health and Government Operations Committee.
Technical Fix to Cruelty Law - H.B. 455
(Atterbeary)/ S.B. 790 (Smith)
- Clarifies that various acts of cruelty to
animals should be charged as separate crimes.
- Passed the Senate unanimously and passed
the House 130-6. Passed Senate unanimously. On Governor Hogan's desk!
Dissection Choice - S.B. 90 (Young)
- Gives students the right to choose an
alternative to classwork involving the use of live or dead animals.
- Defeated 13-30 on the Senate Floor. See how
your Senator voted here.
Removal of Cap on Damages for Pet Injury - S.B. 143
(Zirkin)
- Raises the current cap to $10,000 from
$7,500 in damages covering the cost of veterinary care that an owner can
recover if their pet is injured.
- On Governor Hogan's desk!
Animal Abuser Registry - S.B. 84 (Mathias)
- Creates a registry of people convicted of
animal abuse and requires animal shelters and breeders to check the registry
before transferring an animal.
- Received an unfavorable report in the
Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee
Dogs in Hot Cars - S.B. 443 (Salling)
- Provides immunity to individuals who
forcibly enter a vehicle to remove an animal under certain circumstances.
- Received an Unfavorable Report in the Senate
Judicial Proceedings Committee on 2/20.
Elevated Penalties for Large-Scale Animal Cruelty -
S.B. 80 (Mathias)/ H.B. 625 (Carozza)
- Creates a felony penalty for cruelty
committed to ten or more animals instead of charging a misdemeanor penalty for
each animal. Expressly authorizes judges to order restitution in animal cruelty
cases.
- Received an Unfavorable Report in the House
Judiciary Committee
- Received an Unfavorable Report in the
Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee
Restriction of Subtherapeutic Antibiotics to
Livestock - S.B. 422 (Pinsky)/ H.B. 602 (Robinson)
- Prevents the use of certain subtherapeutic
antibiotics on certain farms in order to curb antibiotic resistance in humans.
Antibiotics are routinely administered to farm animals in low doses to prevent
disease from occurring as a result of the overcrowded and unsanitary
conditions. This bill would push farms to fix those underlying welfare issues
and only use antibiotics when medically necessary.
- On Governor Hogan's desk!
Veteran Service Dog Program - S.B. 441 (Simonaire)
- Establishes a program to match more
veterans with service dogs.
- On Governor Hogan's desk!
Wildlife Trafficking - S.B. 560 (Young)/ H.B. 686
(Luedtke)
- Prohibits people from possessing or selling
products from certain animals who are covered under the Endangered Species Act,
such as elephant ivory.
- Failed to pass crossover so likely dead for
the session.
Ban on Cownose Ray Fishing Tournaments - S.B. 268
(Young)/ H.B. 211 (Robinson)
- Creates a two year moratorium on Cownose
ray killing competitions and requires the Department of Natural Resources to
create a fisheries management plan for the species.
- On Governor Hogan's desk!
Retail Pet Store Requirements - H.B. 781 (Kramer)
- Closes a loophole in last year's retail pet
store sourcing bill and requires pet stores to post breeder inspection reports
for customers.
- On Governor Hogan's desk!
6. New Business
a) Rescue Well
Grant-Guest: Christine Sandberg-Rescue Well has recently formed its own 501 c 3
and is no longer under the umbrella of Relove Animals. In November of 2016,
Rescue Well began working under the auspices of a 25 thousand dollar grant from
Baltimore County to help people struggling to care for pets in Baltimore County. So far, about half of the money has been spent.
According to Christine, 61% of money that's been used has paid for veterinary procedures. Rescue Well has a partnership with area vets who offer them discounts.
BCAS refers people to Rescue Well's
hotline to help them avoid the need to surrender their pet. Rescue Well is able
to provide owners with crates, food, and other support to help them avoid the
need to surrender.
In total, we have prevented the rehome/surrender of 167 pets by providing support through training, advice, and other resources (including veterinary care).
They have diverted 116 imminent surrenders to closed admission shelters, rescues, or private adopters.
Rescue Well has also been helping BCAS in its effort to grow
its client base for the new Spay/Neuter facility on the county's West side and
BCAS's vaccine clinics. In addition to distributing flyers, Rescue Well will
also work the line of people attending vaccine clinics to inform them of the
spay/neuter program and will be able to make appointments for people on the
spot. Rescue Well also helps find potential homes for animals whose owners
cannot continue to care for them, not only by spreading the word on social
media and posting animals on Facebook, and helping to interview potential
adopters, but also through connections with rescues through the Coalition of Rescues.
Rescue Well provides a monthly report for the
county on all services it has provided through the grant. So far, about half of
the grant money has been used.
b) ) First
Quarter BCAS Statistics-Amazing! For the first time, BCAS has achieved over a
90% quarterly live release rate for BOTH dogs and cats.
Here's a
comparison of 1st quarter 2017 numbers with 1st quarter 2016 numbers:
1ST QTR 2017 1ST
QTR. 2016
DOGS LIVE INTAKE
491
410
DOGS ADOPTED
138 (28.1%)
126 (30.7%)
DOGS REDEEMED
144 (29.3%)
129 (31.4%)
DOGS EUTHANIZED
(other than owner request)
33 (6.72%) 30 (7.3%)
CATS LIVE INTAKE
709
534
CATS ADOPTED
137 (19.3%)
132 (24.7%)
CATS REDEEMED
18 (2.5%)
9 (1.6%)
CATS EUTHANIZED
(other than owner request)
56 (7.8%)
93 (17.4%)
c) Liaison Committee Meeting Summary-Here's a
summary of what was covered at the April Liaison Committee meeting at BCAS:
APRIL 2017
LIAISON COMMITTEE MEETING
SUMMARY
1) MEGA ADOPTION EVENT
Question was raised at our last committee meeting
about whether the Fairgrounds Mega Adoption event costs the county any money.
The answer is no. BARCS gets a grant that pays for the event.
2) RABIES BILL
We’ve discussed the bill that the county was hoping
would pass the General Assembly that would have required veterinarians to
report all rabies vaccinations. The bill did not pass. It’s expected to be
re-introduced at next year’s session.
3) KITTEN SEASON
It has begun. People are encouraged NOT to bring
litters to the shelter unless they are certain the kittens are not being cared
for by their mom.
4) TNR UPDATE
It continues to be a challenge because the county
cannot go onto private property without permission. Sometimes the property is
being rengted out and even the renter cannot give approval…it must come from
the owner. Tracking down necessary information can be difficult, getting
approval can be difficult, etc. But the program is continuing to make progress.
500 cats have been TNR’d so far since the program began in October.
5) WHERE IS NEUTERING DONE?
At the last meeting, someone asked where the
surgeries are being performed, at the shelter or at one of the county’s
spay/neuter clinics. They are currently being done at the shelter.
6) HOW QUICKLY ARE CATS RELEASED AFTER SURGERY?
Cats are released the next day.
7) CONCERN ABOUT CATS IN TRAPS
The county provides detailed humane trapping
instructions to ensure that cats are not left in traps for any length of time
and not left in traps in harsh weather. The shelter has sent these documents to
Deborah and if you would like to see them just email her. She will forward them
to you.
8) WEST SIDE SPAY/NEUTER CLINIC
While it has proven difficult to get the number of
surgeries up in the clinic, things are going in the right direction. The goal
is to perform 30 surgeries a day. At one point, the clinic was only performing
5 surgeries each day. The number is now up to 16 a day.
9) JACKSON GALAXY PROGRAM
We talked a couple of meetings ago about the fact
that BCAS was chosen as a study site to gain data on using positive
reinforcement with shelter cats. The program is wrapping up and went well. All
data has been sent to the Jackson Galaxy folks.
10) BISSELL GRANTS
Bissell has a Pet Foundation that has donated 4
million dollars to rescues and shelters around the country for various
programs. BCAS is going to look into whether it might qualify for a Bissell
grant. Deborah will be writing about the Bissell Pet Foundation in a few weeks
on her blog.
11) ANOTHER BLOG STORY
Deborah will be doing a post for her blog on the
ways the shelter has changed over the last two years.
12) VALENTINO AWARD
As discussed at our last Commission meeting, ReLove
will be awarding the organization’s Valentino Award to the two Animal Control
officers who saved the dog from the storm drain. This will probably take place
at a picnic event being planned by BCAS to thank volunteers and rescue
organizations on June 4. Deborah has sent all of your email addresses to Dr.
Jones at BCAS so you can receive invitations as well. Please be sure to RSVP to
let the shelter know whether you will be able to attend.
13) ADOPTION WAGON
Dr. Jones has a wish list that includes an adoption
wagon like the one used by BARCS. Cost could be upwards of 150 thousand
dollars. This would have to involve donated funds. It’s not imminent…but is an
indication of continued efforts to grow the shelter’s outreach.
14) NEXT LIAISON COMMITTEE MEETING
The Liaison Committee will not be meeting in the
month of May due to scheduling difficulties.
d) Volunteer
Update-Ann Gearhart-Ann was not present at the meeting so was not available to
make a presentation
e) Volunteer
Appreciation Event-VOLUNTEER APPRECIATION
The month of April is National Volunteer
Appreciation Month.
National Volunteer Appreciation Week Celebration!
(Theme: A Helping Hand)
Where: BCAS
When: April 23rd- 29th
All volunteers invited
Goodies and snacks that will be provided to the volunteers
throughout the week
Plus an extra special volunteer celebration on
April 29th from 10am- 4pm with pizza and sweets
As well as volunteer appreciation awards
APRIL VOLUNTEER EVENTS
Towson Petsmart Adoption Event
Where: 1238 Putty Hill Ave, Towson, MD 21286
When: April 1st 12pm - 3pm
3 - volunteers needed for 12pm- 1:30pm
3 - volunteers needed for 1:30pm - 3pm
We will be bringing adoptable dogs and maybe cats
Broadmead Senior Center Tour
Where: BCAS
When: April 6th 10:30am
1 or 2 volunteers needed to help give a tour of the
shelter
Fallston Tractor Supply Adoption Event
Where: 222 Mountain Rd, Fallston, MD 21047
When: April 8th 10am- 1pm
4 - volunteers needed 10am- 11:30am
4 - volunteers needed 11:30am- 1pm
We will be bringing adoptable dogs and cats
White Marsh Petsmart Adoption Event
Where: 9921 Pulaski Hwy, Baltimore, MD 21220
When: April 9th 11am- 2pm
3 - volunteers needed 11am- 12:30pm
3 - volunteers needed 12:30pm- 2pm
We will be bringing adoptable dogs and maybe cats
MDSPCA March Of The Animals
Where: Camden Yards Sports Complex (333 West Camden
Street Baltimore, MD 21201)
When: April 15th 7:30am- 2pm
3- volunteers needed 7:30am- 10:00am
3- volunteers needed 10:00am- 12:30pm
3- volunteers needed 12:30pm- 2:00pm
We will be bringing adoptable dogs and maybe cats
Enrichment Feeders Workshop
Taught by: Will Webster (BCAS Behavior Coordinator)
Where: BCAS
When: April 20th 3pm
Open to all volunteers
We will be using power drills, cutting tools and
glue to make enrichment feeders out of PVC pipe for our dogs and cats.
Quarry Lakes Pet Valu Adoption Event
Where: 2570 Quarry Lake Dr, Baltimore MD 21209
When: April 22nd 12pm- 4pm
2- volunteers needed 12pm- 2pm
2- volunteers needed 2pm-4pm
We will be bringing 1 adoptable dog
f) Plans for
Commission Annual Report-There was a brief discussion of ideas about what
should be included in the Commission's second annual report to the Baltimore
County Council. Commission members will be emailing suggestions to Julianne,
Joy and Lavini who will be working on preparing the report.
g) Roy
Plummer-just received a Humanitarian of the Year Award
7. Announcement of Date and
Time of Next Meeting-The next Commission meeting will be held on May 16, 2017
at 6:30 on the third floor of the Drumcastle Building located at 6401 York Rd.
All meetings are open to the public.
8. Adjournment
