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HomeMy WebLinkAboutASAB Meeting Summary 02.18.26 Meeting Minutes Approved ANIMAL SERVICES ADVISORY BOARD (ASAB) 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Wednesday,February 18,2026 Community Room at OCAS 1601 Eubanks Rd, Chapel Hill,NC 27516 MEMBERS PRESENT: Allan Polak(Chair), Debby Hill (Vice Chair), Cathy Munnier, Annie Goldberg, Dawn Roberts, Mike Dempsey, Dr. Lee Pickett, Judy Miller, Mike Delafield, Mary Lucas, Kim Rider, Dr. Ashley Robertson,Rhonda Patterson MEMBERS ABSENT:None STAFF PRESENT: Elizabeth Overcash(Director) and Andrea Wade (Medical Program Supervisor) PUBLIC PRESENT: Ellen Pearsall, Dr. Ann Brady Call to order: 6:31 PM Review and adoption of the meeting agenda: moving order around of the agenda to do the information item with Andrea Wade first. Member Vote Cathy Munnier Aye Annie Goldberg Second Dawn Roberts Aye Mike Dempsey Aye Dr. Lee Pickett Aye Judy Miller Aye Mike Delafield Aye Allan Polak Motion Debby Hill Aye Mary Lucas Aye Kim Rider Aye Dr. Ashley Robertson Aye Rhonda Patterson Aye 1 Review and approval of 01/26 ASAB meeting summary: Member Vote Cathy Munnier Second Annie Goldberg Aye Dawn Roberts Aye Mike Dempsey Aye Dr. Lee Pickett Aye Judy Miller Aye Mike Delafield Aye Allan Polak Motion Debby Hill Aye Mary Lucas Aye Kim Rider Aye Dr. Ashley Robertson Aye Rhonda Patterson Aye Public participation guidelines: Limit of three 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): None New Business: 1. OCAS Andrea Wade introduction a. Andrea has been with OCAS for 12 years. She has been the medical program supervisor for over a month. She oversees daily operations of public clinic, supervises vet techs, monitors inventory and supplies, manages maintenance for machines, and ensures legal compliance. b. There was a question about expired meds. The shelter takes expired meds for shelter animals but not for the clinic. c. The clinic has been a lot busier since marketing it. Working on logistics to help those in the community get to the clinic has been a big part of the job. d. The clinic is open every day on which the shelter does not have surgery(generally Monday, Wednesday, and Friday). 2. Discussion on dog training classes a. Cathy provided an update for dog training classes. Only one person signed up, so they will not be having them anymore. 2 b. Mike shared that there have been weather challenges this winter as well and maybe that is impacting class sign up. c. Mike asked if there was anything we could do to support Cathy as a board. Cathy shared that there have been offers, but getting the training class off the ground has been the hardest part. d. Judy asked if any marketing was done at vet clinics; Cathy had not yet done that but she believed Brian did. She mentioned that the class was likely competing with a lot of well-known trainers in the area. 3. Update on BOCC ASAB annual report a. Debby, Allan, and Elizabeth all attended the week of February 11. The BOCC asked boards to keep their presentations to ten minutes, with no PowerPoints. Allan and Debby provided just highlights of the report and the goal, which is a net positive contribution to Animal Services and the county at large. Allan shared that a lot of resources are used for the meetings from the county, and we want to give back positively. b. A couple of questions came up about dangerous dog hearings and showed some misunderstandings. Allan clarified that there was some discussion about this, and the BOCC did not know about the outcomes of the hearings, so he confirmed that these are not euthanasia or seizure outcomes. c. Cathy added that she has evaluated some dogs that are on muzzle restrictions and has overturned three that she has worked with personally. Animal Services Advisory Board: There are no current vacancies, but Dr. Ann Brady has been recommended for the board pending her appointment to the Board of Health. She will be filling Dr. Pickett's position, which ends in June. Dr. Brady shared her schedule is flexible and would allow joining. She would like to join the board to become more active in the community and advocate on the government side. Dawn Roberts's term is expiring at the end of June, so we will need to recruit for this. Old Business: 1. Follow up discussion on 2026 goals a. Debby shared that she is looking into the youth delegate opportunity. b. Allan shared ideas about increasing social media presence and asked about how to increase visibility. i. Reddit ask me anything could provide ideas for volunteers and trainers. ii. OCAS will be required to make every post ADA compliant by April, which is making social media posts take much longer. iii. The silent auction is coming up May 3; OCAS will market on social media to increase visibility. c. Allan asked about corporate sponsorships. There are currently no corporate sponsorships, but OCAS is interested in the idea of offering corporate sponsorships of a kennel or wing of the shelter. 3 d. Mike shared more ways to donate on the website, such as corporate matching days, sponsoring a pet, or giving in honor of your pet. Could put items or bricks on campus. The fundraising mechanism on the website is confusing and not clear. e. GoFundMe also makes it easier to get dogs help. 2. Staff appreciation day a. Cathy will be getting donuts on Wednesday, February 25. b. Debby would like to do the ice cream truck in the summer again. 3. Complaint letter update a. Allan forwarded to the Commissioners our response from the last meeting. Informational Items: 1. Information session from Elizabeth Overcash a. The silent auction items are mostly all in; Franklin and Churton businesses are contributing. OCAS will begin marketing in March and selling tickets, capping it at 200 people. Any help with promotion will be great. i. Idea to auction off bricks, trees, etc. to test other donor ideas. ii. Dr. Pickett shared that she served on the board of a humane society that hired an organization to teach the board of directors how to raise funds. It was a huge help for all board members and top staff b. There are currently 31 dogs, 21 cats, and 4 rabbits in the shelter. There are 23 dogs and 8 cats in foster care. January had a 95% live release rate. c. A rabies clinic will be held this Saturday from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.; distemper and parvo vaccines are free. d. Krista resigned in early February. She did everything financial for the organization. OCAS has 20 applications and is starting interviews soon. e. Commissioner presentation was last night. Clinic fees were incorporated into the schedule. BOCC approved Spay and Neuter Day proclamation. There was an educational session about Animal Services with good questions. f. A three-year strategic plan will happen this year, as one has not been done in a while. More focus will be on the community and supporting people. Some goals that will be focused on are increasing vet care resources, elevating professionalism for staff, and increasing openness to the public (judgement free zone). g. The biggest ask of us is helping with social media, especially with videos. h. Mary asked if there were ways that we could create a"Friends of the shelter"group of some sort and get away from social media rules from the county. Informal Discussion 1. Judy asked how many calls typically come into OCAS a day. Elizabeth stated Animal Control had 4200 calls for service in 2025. Most calls are rabies concerns or bites, followed by cruelty/welfare checks. OCAS recently started tracking community support, which is now the fourth highest in call volume. 4 Meeting adjourned at 7:34 PM. Adjournment vote: Member Vote Cathy Munnier Aye Annie Goldberg Aye Dawn Roberts Aye Mike Dempsey Aye Dr. Lee Pickett Aye Judy Miller Aye Mike Delafield Aye Allan Polak Motion Debby Hill Aye Mary Lucas Second Kim Rider Aye Dr. Ashley Robertson Aye Rhonda Patterson Aye 5