By Maria Consuelo Barrero
I just compiled the statistics for Polk County Animal Control -Florida through October. These numbers come directly from the monthly stats of the shelter. It’s very sad and so unnecessary. Especially when their live release rate (LRR – number of animals who leave the shelter alive) could be so much better if they just implemented easy proven processes that surrounding counties have embraced.
We have offered our assistance many times over, so please don’t comment “what do you do to help”. We have offered boots on the ground, a volunteer core and proven processes. Heck we even offered a new revised written Ordinance!! Everything has been declined either via no response (which of course IS a response) or via a curt, condescending, basically rude “passing of the buck” from the Board of County Commissioners to the Sheriff. The response from America’s Sheriff? Why Crickets, of course.
It isn’t rocket science. What they are doing is not working!!! Killing animals daily is NOT WORKING!! We don’t have less homeless animals, we don’t have less nuisance calls about cats, we don’t have a higher LRR, we don’t have a safe resource center for the animals in our County, we don’t have a safe place for people to take stray animals waiting to be reunited with their families. We have the 1980s status quo in Polk County and the animals are suffering for it. The stats have a new format since July, with new categories and some categories missing. I asked if they were revamping Jan thru June to reflect these changes and was told they were not.
Email the Sheriff’s office. Ask him to join us at the Commissioners meeting on December 16 at 9am. Ask him why he won’t meet with us and implement new updated proven strategies to help the animals in Polk County. Euthanasia is not population control.
Email: [email protected] to ask the Sheriff to respond to the citizens.
439 animals are killed every month
4,385 animals have been killed since January
Cats are killed more than twice as often as dogs
Only 2% of cats and 28% of dogs brought in as stray are returned to their families
84 animals were euthanized at owners’ request (is that because they told the owner if they took in the animal it would be killed, and the owner said go ahead, or did the owner come in and ask for euthanasia?)
Why does the “disposal requested – dead animals” in intake not equal the “disposal requested – dead animals” in Outcome?