HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda - 02-07-2012 - 4cORANGE COUNTY
BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT
Meeting Date: February 7, 2012
Action Agen a
Item No. 1 -C
SUBJECT: Resolution Acknowledging February 28, 2012 as Spay Neuter Day USA in
Orange County, and Communit Spay and Neuter Pro ram Presentation
DEPARTMENT: Animal Services
PUBLIC HEARING:
No
ATTACHMENT(S):
Spay Neuter Day Resolution
INFORMATION CONTACT:
Bob Marotto, Director, Animal Services,
968-2287
Sarah Fallin, Program Director, Animal
Services, 942-7387, ext. 224
Kristine Bergstrand, DVM, Chair, Animal
Services Advisory Board, 928-6311
PURPOSE: To request that the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) officially designate
February 28, 2012 as "Spay Neuter Day USA" in Orange County and receive an update on the
County's Community Spay and Neuter Program.
BACKGROUND: Animal Services staff and the Animal Services Advisory Board (ASAB) recommend
the BOCC adopt a resolution designating February 28, 2012 as "Spay Neuter Day USA" in Orange
County. The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) has nationally designated the last
Tuesday of each February as "Spay Day".
Spay Day USA was originally created in 1995 by the Doris Day Animal League (DDAL), and in 2006,
HSUS assumed responsibility for Spay Day USA when DDAL combined its operations with HSUS.
Since the creation of Spay Day USA, participants have spayed or neutered more than a million
animals, preventing millions of potential births. As a result, millions of taxpayer dollars have been
saved that may have otherwise been needed to provide animal control, care and sheltering for the
offspring of these animals.
In Orange County, the issue of pet overpopulation is a priority. In a January 2010 work session, the
BOCC received and discussed Managing Pet Overpopulation: AStrategic Plan for Orange
County, North Carolina (see http://www.co.orange.nc.us/animalservices/spayneuter.asp).
Working together, Animal Services staff and the ASAB prepared this five-year strategic plan on the
basis of best practices in the field of animal welfare and public policy. Fundamental to this plan is
targeting spay and neuter in the County to decrease the rate of reproduction of dogs and cats and
thereby contain the number of animals that must be sheltered and the costs of caring for those
animals.
Since the creation of the County's Community Spay and Neuter Fund, Animal Services staff has
worked with the ASAB to begin to establish a proactive and cost-effective spay and neuter program.
Significant developments in this area in calendar year 2011 included:
Spaying and neutering a total of 520 cats and dogs in total on the basis of the partnership
between Animal Services and AnimalKind (which offers The $20 Fix);
Spaying and neutering 355 dogs and cats belonging to clients of the Department of Social
Service (DSS) on a "no pay" due to DSS involvement in this program.
Helping to reduce the number of animals admitted to Orange County's Animal Services Center
from an annual average of 4,315 for 2005-2009 to 3,613 in 2010 to 3,396 in 2011.
These and other highlights of recent efforts are reviewed in a brief power point presentation prepared
for the BOCC. The presentation also provides additional detail on the partnership between Animal
Services, DSS and AnimalKind (The $20 Fix).
As part of the "Spay Neuter" celebration this year, Animal Services will again work with Pet
Overpopulation Patrol-NC (POP-NC) to spay or neuter up to 30 cats and or dogs from families who
receive service from DSS. The intent of the event is to sterilize these animals before they have the
opportunity to procreate and add to the number of "surplus" pets that enter the County's Animal
Services Center during the summer months when the animal shelter population peaks.
In addition, Animal Services will continue ongoing outreach efforts. Outreach will consist of themed
advertisements to promote the benefits of spaying and neutering pets as well as the opportunity for
qualifying Orange County households to obtain low-cost or no-cost surgeries for their dogs and cats.
These will be paired with a media release to further inform the public of the problem of pet
overpopulation and help offer effective and low-cost solutions to County residents who may not
otherwise have the means to spay and neuter their pets.
FINANCIAL IMPACT: Neither the presentation nor the resolution has any financial impact. Events
and outreach in conjunction with this year's Spay Neuter Day USA will involve budgeted expenditures
from the County's Community Spay and Neuter Fund. POP-NC sterilization services will be obtained
via an annual agreement that includes several spay and neuter events such as Spay Neuter Day
USA.
The FY 2011-12 operating budget for the Community Spay and Neuter Fund is $46,000. These
funds primarily come from the $20 differential cost for licenses for a reproductive cat or dog versus a
spayed or neutered cat or dog, combined with reimbursement from the North Carolina Spay Neuter
Reimbursement Program. As of June 30, 2011, $75,339 was the fund balance for the account for
the Community Spay and Neuter Program. These funds accrued from the licensing differential,
donations and reimbursements from the state program. In coming years, these funds will be
dedicated to supporting and promoting targeted spay and neuter in accordance with the plan in
Managing Pet Overpopulation: AStrategic Plan for Orange County, North Carolina.
RECOMMENDATION(S): The Manager recommends the Board adopt the proposed resolution,
authorize the Chair to sign the resolution, receive the presentation, and provide staff with comments.
RES-ao~a-oi~
ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
2012 SPAY NEUTER DAY USA RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, cats and dogs provide companionship to and share the homes of thousands of
individuals in Orange County; and
WHEREAS, spayed and neutered animals are less likely to have certain health problems or exhibit
certain undesirable behaviors that can create community-wide problems and use community
resources; and
WHEREAS, the problem of pet overpopulation costs the taxpayers of Orange County hundreds of
thousands of dollars annually through animal control and sheltering programs aimed at coping with
unwanted and homeless cats and dogs; and
WHEREAS, humane societies and shelters throughout the country have to euthanize approximately
four million cats and dogs each year, although many of them are healthy and adoptable, due to the
lack of critical resources such as money, space, and good adoptive homes; and
WHEREAS, the Animal Services Advisory Board and the Animal Services Department have made
correcting pet overpopulation a priority, and prepared Managing Pet Overpopulation: A Strategic
Plan for Orange County, and
WHEREAS, the County has established a Community Spay/Neuter Fund to address the issue of pet
overpopulation in the County; and
WHEREAS, spaying and neutering cats and dogs, among other animal companions, has been
shown to drastically reduce overpopulation; and
WHEREAS, Animal Services has partnered with AnimalKind and the Department of Social Services
to offer "low cost" and "no cost" spay and neuter through The $20 Fix in Orange County; and
WHEREAS, veterinarians, animal care and control organizations, national and local animal welfare
organizations, and private individuals work together each year to ensure the spaying or neutering of
thousands of companion animals through "Spay Neuter Day USA"; and
WHEREAS, veterinarians, animal care and control organizations, national and local animal welfare
organizations, and private individuals have joined together again this year to advocate and support
the spaying and neutering of companion animals on "Spay Day USA 2012";
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that we, the Orange County Board of Commissioners,
declare February 28, 2012 as "Spay Neuter Day USA" and call upon the people of the County to
observe the day by having their own cats or dogs spayed or neutered or by sponsoring the spaying or
neutering of another person's cat or dog.
THIS THE 7th OF FEBRUARY, 2012.
Bernadette Pelissier, Chair
Orange County Board of Commissioners