"You don't tug on Superman's cape
You don't spit into the wind
You don't pull the mask off that old Lone Ranger
And you don't mess around with Jim."
Jim Croce, 1972
Jackson County is messing with the Animal Shelter.
Few elements of county government stir up citizen passions like the Animal Control Department. Most of the county departments are relatively uncontroversial. The issues that filled up the auditorium with motivated citizens involved animals. When I was a county commissioner we would pass a $50 million road department budget without any public comment, but the budget item of $10,000 to hire a person to trap and kill cougars that had developed a taste for lambs brought multiple hours of impassioned, informed testimony from farmers, wildlife experts, and engaged citizens. The county had far more unwanted and stray dogs and cats than could be found homes. Many were euthanized. That policy, too, filled the auditorium. The Animal Control Department's facility drew hundreds of volunteers, some doing the least pleasant parts of animal care, tending very sick animals and cleaning cages.
.Lisa James has been leading educational, cultural, environmental, and animal welfare organizations for 35 years, sometimes as an executive director, sometimes as a fundraising consultant, sometimes as a marketing strategist. She said she read yesterday's post and was reminded of her tenure in 2020-2021 leading the Friends of the Animal Shelter with its volunteer group of over 300 active members. She said she wrote this guest post in one burst of emotion.
Guest Post by Lisa James
As a former Executive Director of the nonprofit Friends of the Animal(s) Shelter -- FOTAS -- I can attest to the huge and impactful role FOTAS played in operating the shelter.
It paid for two volunteer coordinators; it provided daily care and food for the animals; it paid for the foster coordinator; and it paid for considerable veterinary costs. FOTAS spent over $200,000 to buy and equip a veterinary trailer sited at the Animal Shelter. It subsidized spay-neuter vet bills. It called every veterinary and it coordinated volunteers to shuttle animals all over the valley for care they needed, but were not receiving from county management.
Furthermore, FOTAS created other animal welfare services and subsidized their costs. It provided volunteers to operate and subsidize professional clinics -- including monthly vaccination clinics. They bought all the chips to offer at new microchip clinics. FOTAS sponsored "Street Dogs" outreach and care to the companion animals of Jackson County's unhoused human population. It developed and operated the "Working Cats" program which placed feral cats all over the valley at vineyards, farms, and anywhere requested and appropriate. FOTAS bought animal housing, food, and supplies, and taught the new placement owners how to maintain their working cats. We partnered with other small rescue groups. Volunteers walked dogs on a schedule every day, helped with adoption counseling. They cleaned the cat rooms and kennels!
When FOTAS published a plea to the community to donate dog food because their warehouse donations had dwindled, County Administrator Danny Jordan threw a fit and demanded they take the ad down. But did he offer a budget to buy dog food?? NO! When the fires scorched the building and burned the yard and fence down, who rebuilt it??? FOTAS DID! When the pavement was too hot to walk dogs on, who bought carpets and misting lines to cool their path to the tiny yard? FOTAS did!
These are dedicated volunteers who give their time, talent, and treasures, and open their homes repeatedly to care for, train, and socialize animals until adopted. They helped the shelter not only survive, but reach no-kill shelter status. FOTAS coordinated TV spots and delivery of animals, adoption events at PetSmart and other retailers. Danny Jordan and the Board of Commissioners only see dollar signs, so they rudely kick out FOTAS after decades of service and support. Then they pump up the costs so they can justify a new tax bond, something I predicted over three years ago! That shelter was built in the early 1960s when the population of Jackson County was 80,000 people. It's also where Animal Control dumps every deer carcass and everything else that would stink up the workspace.
These “leaders” don’t care about the animals. They only see a new option to persuade the people to give them more taxpayer dollars, when they already have $200 million in savings. Demand a proper shelter and say no to new taxes!
This needs to be a letter to the editor. People need to know.
I found the comments from Lisa James interesting. I would point out one other thought. As a retired Investment Advisor I was noting that US Treasury bills with maturities of 2 to 6 months are currently paying about 5.34 % interest. Given Jackson County funds would likely be invested in these this would also mean they are earning over 10 million a year in interest. So they could spend 10 million to upgrade the facility without dipping into principle.