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HomeMy WebLinkAboutASAB Meeting Summary 06.19.24 Meeting Minutes Approved ANIMAL SERVICES ADVISORY BOARD (ASAB) 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Wednesday, June 12, 2024 Community Room at OCAS 1601 Eubanks Rd, Chapel Hill,NC 27516 MEMBERS PRESENT: Lee Pickett(Chair),Allan Polak(Vice Chair), Sunita Driehuys (Secretary), Michael Delafield, Debby Hill, Paula Kotarakos, Judy Miller, Cathy Munnier, Kim Rider, Lucia Welborne (late arrival) Members ABSENT: Dawn Roberts STAFF PRESENT: Dr. Sandra Strong (Director), Holly Pittman (Administration), Ashley Miller(Animal Control Manager) PUBLIC PRESENT: Annie Goldberg, Carol McCanna Call to order: 6:30 PM Review and adoption of the meeting agenda: Vote (Motion/2nd) Mike Delafield aye Sunita Driehuys aye Debby Hill aye Paula Kotarakos 2nd Judy Miller aye Cathy Munnier Motion Lee Pickett aye Allan Polak aye Kimberly Rider aye Dawn Roberts Absent Lucia Welborne Not present for vote Page 1 of 6 Review and approval of May, 2024 ASAB meeting summary: Vote (Motion/2nd) Mike Delafield aye Sunita Driehuys aye Debby Hill Motion Paula Kotarakos aye Judy Miller aye Cathy Munnier aye Lee Pickett aye Allan Polak aye Kimberly Rider 2nd Dawn Roberts Absent Lucia Welborne Not present for vote Public Participation Guidelines: limit of 3 minutes at today's meeting. Can submit more information by email for inclusion as an agenda item for discussion at a future meeting. General Public Comments (not on agenda): Carol McCanna is following up on last month's report and presents her complaint to ASAB that she has been to district court and was told by the judge that there is no statute that allows him to make the pit bull's owner pay for her veterinary bills. She asserts that pit bulls are dangerous as a breed and contribute to more bite wounds than other breeds. She would like ASAB to recommend to the BOCC that ordinances be written requiring owners to be responsible for damage that their pets cause to other animals. She would also like pit bulls to be declared a dangerous breed and have restrictions or bans on their ownership. She is planning to hire a lawyer and continue advocating about this issue. Monthly Meeting Attendance Record : Confirmed through approval of meeting minutes. Page 2 of 6 Animal Services Advisory Board: Current Vacancies 1. Currently have 2 vacancies on ASAB —Town of Hillsborough and Non-Municipality positions are open. 2. Lucia Welborne is finishing her 2nd term June 30, 2024. Animal Welfare & Advocacy position will be open then. 3. Debby Hill and Michael Delafield will be coming up for reappointment to the board at the June 2024 meeting. 4. Annie Goldberg's nomination will be voted on by BOCC at their upcoming meeting. Old Business: None Information Items: 1. Information session from Animal Control Manager Ashley Miller a. Animal Control now fully staffed and trained. b. Mike Hess is now the training lead officer. c. ACOs are now certified to give rabies vaccines and certified to euthanize wildlife when needed, so will no longer need to drive to Durham emergency clinic for this. Animals are sedated IM via syringe pole out in the field and euthanized by Page 3of6 injection at OCAS. OCAS only gets involved if necessary—wildlife are primarily under the jurisdiction of the NC Wildlife Commission. d. Community education is taking place by having animal control officers present at community events, rabies clinics, cat trapping for spay/neuter/release. e. New animal control truck arrived today to replace aging vehicle. f. Now caught up on Orange County kennel inspections. g. In past year, animal control had 4200 calls during work week and 900 after regular working hours. 2. OCAS developments update by Sandra Strong a. Expressed gratitude to ASAB for volunteering. b. Currently OCAS is working on team-building exercises provided through Orange County Human Resources department. c. Staff retention is going well currently. d. Kitten intakes high now due to season. e. Buckhorn Flea Market will be visited again this summer regularly to make sure they're complying with ordinance not to sell puppies or kittens. f. Martha Bordogna, county attorney assigned to ASAB, is reviewing the ASAB term guideline revisions that were submitted a few months ago. New Business: Elections for Officers for ASAB for the coming year 1. Nomination of Allan Polak as new ASAB Chair: Vote (Motion/2nd) Mike Delafield aye Sunita Driehuys aye Debby Hill aye Paula Kotarakos aye Judy Miller aye Cathy Munnier Motion Lee Pickett aye Allan Polak abstain Kimberly Rider aye Dawn Roberts absent Page 4 of 6 Lucia Welborne 2nd 2. Nomination of Debby Hill for ASAB Vice-Chair position Vote (Motion/2nd) Mike Delafield aye Sunita Driehuys aye Debby Hill abstain Paula Kotarakos aye Judy Miller aye Cathy Munnier Motion Lee Pickett aye Allan Polak aye Kimberly Rider 2nd Dawn Roberts absent Lucia Welborne aye Informal Discussion: 1. Lucia Welborne requested update on dogs who end up with animal control after disruption of dog fighting rings. There has been a bill in the NC State legislature that has been brought up repeatedly since 2019, but hasn't passed, to judge the animals individually and allow them to be adopted if they pass behavior screenings. But statute is still that these evidentiary animals don't have a clear path and can be euthanized just due Page 5of6 to association with the fighting ring. HSUS and ASPCA are working on this issue and will lobby in affected states if they deem that a bill has possibility of being passed. 2. Orange County dangerous dog appeals process is working well per Cathy Munnier,based on her work with recent hearings. Adjournment: Meeting adjourned at 7:21 p.m. Vote (Motion/2nd) Mike Delafield aye Sunita Driehuys aye Debby Hill aye Paula Kotarakos Motion Judy Miller aye Cathy Munnier 2nd Lee Pickett aye Allan Polak aye Kimberly Rider aye Dawn Roberts absent Lucia Welborne aye Page 6 of 6