ANIMAL CONTROL, RESCUE, AND SHELTERING

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, Jan/Feb 1998:

The Arizona Humane Society h a s
become the first U.S. shelter to try out injection
sterilization of male dogs. Already used
since 1994 in Mexico and Costa Rica, the sterilization
chemical, Neutersol, was developed
by the University of Missouri at Columbia
medical school. The active ingredient is zinc
gluconate, combined with arginine. “Within
24 hours of injection, the sperm count begins
to go down, and within 100 days there’s a
100% reduction,” AHS director Ken White
told Linda Helser of the Arizona Republic.
The one-shot procedure costs about $10.
City animal control advisory panels
in Los Angeles, California, and Austin,
Texas, in December 1997 began formal study
of no-kill animal control, following the San
Francisco model.

The San Francisco SPCA f r o m
December through March 1 is offering free
veterinary exams, grooming, I.D. tags, and
toys to pets of the homeless––and is paying
$5.00 per pet for the honor of neutering them.
The PetsMart stores in Roseville
and Northville, Michigan, on December 11
and 12 offered male cat neutering for a nickel.
Gina Garrison, acting supervisor
of the Mansfield Animal Control Shelter i n
Mansfield, Texas, reportedly doubled adoptions
during her first two months in charge,
mid-October through mid-December 1997,
and euthanized only animals who were seriously
ill or vicious.
The Massachusetts SPCA w i l l
reportedly put a $2.8 million bequest from the
late Ethel Smith of Springfield toward the construction
of a new $6.8 million shelter and animal
hospital in Springfield. Smith died in
January 1997 at age 94.
Massachusetts governor Paul
Cellucci on December 23 signed a bill requiring
that dogs riding in open trucks be securely
restrained. Noncompliance brings a $50 fine.
Thirty-five of 50 U.S., Canadian,
and Puerto Rican shelters polled by the
American Humane Association a year after the
release of the live-action edition of the Walt
Disney classic 101 Dalmatians reported receiving
more Dalmatians in 1997 than in 1996.
The Saratoga County Animal
Welfare League, of Northumberland, New
York, raised $75,000 for sheltering 1994-
1997, including a $4,500 annual subsidy from
the city of Saratoga Springs––but the purported
shelter is apparently housing only shelter manager
Diane Ives and her personal pets, Sylvia
W o o d of the Schenectady Daily Gazette
reported on December 7. The 24-year-old
organization apparently became disfunctional
at about the time acting president P h y l l i s
S c h u l m a n retired, after two decades as a
regionally acclaimed cruelty investigator.
The Spokane Humane Society o n
December 8 fired director Susan Canterbury,
just five months after she moved from South
Carolina with her two children to take the
$30,000-a-year job. Six staffers––nearly half
the work force––resigned in protest during the
next 10 days, including senior shelter supervisor
Loretta Johnson, an 18-year employee.
Also resigning were Michelle Forkner, Max
Markland, Melodey Ray, Kali Linbert,
and Netti Wilson. Canterbury was the eighth
SHS director to depart since 1990.
The Animal Anti-Cruelty League
of Johannesburg, South Africa, and countless
schoolchildren were reportedly victimized
before Christmas by a woman named “Bright”
of a firm called “Bright Lights,” w h o
allegedly offered the league 10% of the proceeds
from the sale of Tamigotchi artificial pet
toys in exchange for an endorsement, promoted
the toys in schools before the deal was finalized
by contract, took the money, and then
never delivered the toys. She later said she
sent all the money to the league, which
promised refunds to any children who sent
proof of payment. Said Anti-Cruelty League
spokesperson Denise Felix, “It was a cruel
thing to do to the children and the animals.”
Concern for Helping Animals In
Israel on December 9 announced that after 10
years of lobbying, the Israeli Finance
M i n i s t r y has dropped a demand for customs
duties of nearly twice the actual value of animal
ambulances donated to Israeli shelters.
The first duty-free ambulance from CHAI was
to reach the Tiberius SPCA on January 6.