Best Friends Animal Society Partners with COSA Animal Shelter

One San Angelo City Councilperson expressed concern about Best Friends Animal Society, Pets Alive and their programming, which includes stringent intake diversion (not accepting loose pets) and foisting found strays on community members via "Human Animal Support Services."  The August 2023 interchange included:

Councilperson Hesse-Smith:  The concern is that some of these organizations are very much under fire across the nation and they are under fire because they promote programs and policies that have basically failed, multi-million-dollar lawsuits in some of these communities. 

Shelter Chief Morgan Chegwidden avoided the question long enough for Council members to move on.  The reality is Pets Alive and Best Friends Animal Society have been significantly involved in San Angelo's Animal Shelter for years.  

A Best Friends Regional Support Specialist visited the shelter early 2023 for a multi-day assessment (see image at the top of this post).  The Support Specialist needed the shelter's data for that visit which was postponed to mid-February due to icy road conditions.

The Animal Shelter has been part of Best Friends' West Texas Coalition since 2021.

 

Best Friends invited Morgan to participate in their Executive Leadership Certification through Southern Utah University and said they would cover tuition costs.

Shelter staff have helped Best Friends with their conference presentations.

 

 

I imagine the Best Friends presentation did not include the shelter threatening citizens wishing to drop off a stray pet with arrest for trespassing.  I doubt it included the many requests for an Animal Control Officer that were never fulfilled.

Last month a BFAS leader checked in with shelter leadership and once again asked for data.

 

City Council asks direct questions of shelter leadership and gets what in return?   City documents show a deep and lasting relationship between Best Friends Animal Society and the City Animal Shelter.

San Angelo's Animal Shelter is a Pets Alive, Best Friends shelter which often means no service and no support for tax paying citizens. 

Update 6-10-24:  BFAS shared funds with Concho Valley PAWS, the shelter's adoption coordinator.  Were any of those funds used on shelter animals?