Animal related calls to San Angelo Police Department (SAPD) rose significantly after the City began reducing citizen access to Animal Shelter services. The shelter began managed intake in 2019. SAPD calls involving animals rose to 1,728 in 2022, up 46% in the last two calendar years.
City Council person Lucy Gonzales and City Manager Daniel Valenzuela have remarked in City Council meetings about the large number of street pets in San Angelo.
The Animal Shelter remains chronically full with large, long stay, difficult to adopt dogs. Shelter leadership and City Council decided years ago to prioritize its shelter pets over tax paying citizens needing assistance. That decision drove down owner surrenders significantly. Owner surrenders are down 90% from 2014, dropping from 1,964 to 184 in FY 2021-22.
The shelter released 1,500 unaltered pets since 2020 while issuing a scant 74 citations for failure to comply with the city's mandatory spay/neuter ordinance over the same period. Council approved a part time position in the City Attorney's office to issue citations for spay/neuter noncompliance over the last two years.
The shelter took in 1,492 puppies and kittens in FY 2021-22 but only issued 4 breeders permits for the same period. Some pets gave birth while in the shelter. The City's veterinary service provider had two months to spay a pregnant Husky but did not. That resulted in seven puppies which contributed to shelter overcrowding in early summer.
The statistics cited above is city data and came from public information requests. Last month Council chose to limit citizen access to public information once it reaches 36 hours in a calendar year.
The total number of hours worked on this SAPD Animal Related Calls request was: 0.50
The total number of hours worked on all requests submitted by you since October 1st is: 25.92
Elected officials have the ability to ask questions and submit an unlimited number of public information requests. The City has a website and Communications Office with many avenues of making information available to the public.
Five members of City Council voted to restrict access to public information in order to avoid having to hire part time staff. Two voted against it. How do those members feel about SAPD's increased workload due to San Angelo's loose pet problem?
Update 1-17-23: It appears the Animal Shelter Advisory Committee
will not meet as scheduled for Thursday, January 19, 2023 given city
staff are yet to post an agenda. The Texas Open Meetings Act requires
the agenda to be posted 72 hours in advance. That deadline has passed
with no agenda posted for the scheduled meeting.
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