Current Cuties at ACC

Here are some gorgeous (and sometimes baby!) faces from the URGENT folder that I couldn't help but share with you all:

How could you not wanna scoop up little 4 month old Pal?

4 month old Amber is a beauty!!

Teeny tiny 1 year old Lexie loooves belly rubs

1 and a half year old Hazel who gives kisses through the bars

3 year old Chloe is a little shy but loves to gives kisses

3 year old Wanda loves to play ball and wag her tail

"4" month old Scrappy (my guess is he's about 2-3 months)

 

 

 

7 month olf Betty loves walks and warm laps

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Make a Pittie your Valentine!

This Valentine's Day, make a Pit bull your valentine! Check out these cute pit-bull themed gifts for your loved one(s) or for your pittie(s) from Etsy (click the pics for the links). Missing that special someone? Adopt a pittie from a shelter today!

  

Proceeds of this card are donated to animal rescue: 5$ on Etsy

 

6 Valentines for $10 @ Etsy

 

Pittie Magnet for $5.99 @ Etsy
(Or get the gift set for $20)

 

Only $2 on Etsy

 

15$ for six letterpress Valentines @ Etsy

 

And for your pittie.. Heart-shaped dog treats: 7$ for 8 oz.

Or adopt your own future Valentine:



On the EUTH LIST TODAY(1/23): A little Girl named Santa, super wiggly and friendly and has been waiting patiently since Christmas for a home.

 

Drug use at ACC?

Check out this post by Urgent Part 2- Apparently ACC Director Julie Bank has been notified of drug use by her employees (employees who have in the past made life-ending mistakes by putting the wrong dogs to sleep!) and has yet to do anything about it!
Here's to hoping this outrage makes it on the news. The staff at ACC is already bad enough as it is, but for no one to care whether these mistakes happen (because they're all pittie strays anyway, right?), and for no one to seek out to correct these problems, is a real shame. I wonder how they would respond if a purbred dog was put to sleep days after arriving before its owners could find it, rather than just another stray? Every dog at ACC deserves a chance, and these low-life staff members are holding them back from that chance to survive.

Incompetence Running Rampant At NYCACC - PART 4 - Is Drug Use In Shelters Being Ignored?!?

by Urgent PART 2 on Wednesday, December 7, 2011 at 11:41am

Animal Care & Control of NYC is a place where dedicated volunteers and employees are fired for any attempt at all to blow the whistle on widespread negligence and neglect, or even just those that work too hard to get animals rescued.  In the past year alone, employees like Emily Tanen and unpaid volunteers like Rita Bar-Or and Jeff Latzer have been fired for little or no reason at all, with no thought given to the effect their absence would have on the care of shelter animals.

But what about employees who are part of the problem?  Shelter employees that get high at work, or come to work intoxicated while exhibiting disdain for the animals in their care?  Anyone who spends enough time at the shelter becomes very familiar with these people, but what is more shocking is that these people are in fact embraced by the administration.  Why would that be?  Because Julie Bank prizes a very certain quality in the staff she maintains: cold, heartless contempt for any notion of animal welfare.  As long as these people are not sticking their necks out for better care of the animals, all other issues of professionalism, responsibility and dedication do not matter; they will always have a job at ACC if animals matter as little to them as they do to Park Place management.

Urgent has been contacted by numerous rescue groups, adopters, volunteers and even a few staff about the condoned negligence that perpetuates in the mismanaged ACC shelter system.  We were also recently contacted by a concerned citizen of East Harlem who tried to do something about it.  This person (who for obvious reasons insists on anonymity) had inside knowledge of drug use going on at the Manhattan ACC, and even knew who was supplying it to employees. He spoke up about it to shelter administration, and like every volunteer or staff or rescuer who writes emails to shelter management with concerns about shelter animal treatment, he was ignored.  He even tried again, this time including every elected official whose email he could find.


---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: * *
Date: Mon, Jun 27, 2011 at 10:10 PM
Subject: Your last chance before I go on TV about DRUGS AT THE HARLEM SHELTER
To: jbank@nycacc.org, mbloomberg@cityhall.nyc.gov, info@animalalliancenyc.org, info@nycacc.org, rgentles@nycacc.org, sjaneczko@nycacc.org, TFarley@health.nyc.gov, bbdoniger@yahoo.com, KellnerM@assembly.state.ny.us, Patrick.Nolan@us.penguingroup.com, quinn@council.nyc.ny.us, Adrian.Benepe@parks.nyc.gov, commaffairs@nypd.org


Dear Julie Banks,

Why didnt you respond to my email?  It was a very important email about 4 workers at the Harlem shelter who do drugs, and none of you bothered to respond to me.  Do you only respond to white people with lawyers?  You think since I live in the neighborhood where your shelter is that I don't matter as much?

I gave you a list of four people that work in your medical office that use drugs even though theyre supposed to be saving animals. (I copied it at the bottom of this email)  Doesnt that matter to you?  Since I wrote that to you, I read about your shelter on the facebook, and I saw all the shitty things you been doing instead, like killing the wrong dogs and firing your best worker. Why dont you fire the people that are high at work instead?  Two girls on that list I sent you were even talking shit about how proud they was to smoke weed during work!!!  Dont believe me?

If you dont answer this email and drug test these people, i'm gonna get this up on the internet on that Urgent website.  Trust me, you dont want that.  And remember like i said, if you tell them even a half hour before that your gonna test them, theyll pass, and go on being high treating dogs.

This is your last chance julie banks.  Next time you hear from me i'll be on channel 5


---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: * *
Date: Sat, May 7, 2011 at 12:31 PM
Subject: HARLEM ANIMAL SHELTER WORKERS USING DRUGS
To: mbloomberg@cityhall.nyc.gov, info@animalalliancenyc.org, info@nycacc.org, jbank@nycacc.org


Dear Animal Care and Control,
I know for a fact that these four people work in the harlem medical department, and all use drugs all the time.  Sometimes they even use at work. You need to drug-test them right now, because theyre supposed to be helping the animals, and they cant do that if theyre high!  How do I know this?  I know the guy who sells to them.  I promise you, if you give them a drug test like all employees should get, and you dont let them know first, theyll fail. If you tell them even a half hour before, theyll pass (I've done it for jobs before, all you need is a drink from gnc).  But doing that when your supposed to save animals is just wrong.
Trust me, i'm not joking with you.  Don't put the animals at risk any longer!  And if this gets out and people know the vet tex are high, it will look very bad for nyc.
There names are:

xxxxxxxx


And still -- nothing.  The people he implicates are still at the shelter putting animals in danger, including one role of particular importance: a New Hope rescue liaison.  The unanswered emails from the whistleblower also names a shelter behaviorist, a lead vet tech assistant, and a vet assistant. 

The biggest mystery here is why the shelter does not follow through on its pre-existing drug policy of random drug tests, and mandatory testing after a bite incident.  A shelter staff source tells us that the New Hope rescue liaison was bitten last year, but bragged about never being tested or she surely would have failed.  A second source from the shelter staff sent us the attached photo of drug paraphernalia found in the shelter backyard, with a note explaining that it was common sight at ACC.



So Julie Bank, maybe you'll answer Urgent instead: how could you ignore these emails and continue to put the animals' lives in the care of openly irresponsible and "distracted" people?  Numerous staff named in these emails work in the medical department, and the Manhattan shelter is notorious for its rampant medical "mistakes" that leave dogs, cats and kittens found stiff in their cages for lack of care.  The homeless animals of NYC deserve better than this, and the citizens of NYC deserve oversight into who their tax dollars employ.

The NYC Govt needs to know that you are outraged. Please go to this link for contact information:
http://www.urgentdeathrowdogs.org/how-you-can-help/how-togroup1/act.html

Also, The New York State Dept of Health (not the NYC DoH) and the DEA would both be appropriate avenues to explore for complaints due to the involvement of controlled (Scheduled) substances. Those performing euthanasia MUST be registered with the New York State Dept. of Health to handle/administer scheduled drugs (see Section 80.134 of Title 10 regulations).

"The Department of State is committed to maintaining the integrity and competence of the licensees within its jurisdiction. Should a member of the public believe that a licensee has acted in an untrustworthy or incompetent manner, he or she may file a complaint with the Department's Division of Licensing Services. The complaint will be reviewed and an investigation will be commenced to determine whether the licensee should be disciplined. Both the licensee and the complainant are kept apprised of the proceedings.

A licensee who is found to be in violation of the law is subject to reprimand, fine, suspension or revocation."

A copy of the complaint form can be found here:
http://www.dos.ny.gov/licensing/complaint.html


Coming Soon - Part 5 - You won't want to miss it...

Rescue Spotlight: Ramopo-Bergan Animal Refuge

When you walk into the adoption floor at Ramopo-Bergen Animal Refuge you hear a strange sound...
The sound of complete silence. I was baffled and asked myself, "Where are all of the dogs?" No large pit bulls were leaping to greet me, no scared dogs were curled up in balls on dirty blankets in the corners, no dogs made any sounds at all!

As I continued walking in, I saw that the dogs were not actually missing- but laying peacefully on beds or in crates, enjoying the lazy afternoon warmth streaming through the windows. (Yes, this shelter has actual windows, not to be found in even the best city shelters.) Noticing me approach, they each calmly came to sniff my hand and wag their tails. Later on, barking only seemed to accompany the daily feeding time.

Ramopo-Bergen Animal Refuge is a no-kill shelter in Oakland, New Jersey that saves and re-homes up to 1,000 dogs a year. Like most privately-run shelters, they take in plenty of pure-bred dogs and puppies because these are in the highest demand and fetch larger sums which keep the shelter running- but they still make space to save some pit bulls from euthanasia shelters and even are dedicated to taking in all the pit bull puppies they can. This is a wonderful policy because it opens more homes to pit bulls that might not have otherwise considered them.

By contrast, because NYC-Animal Care and Control is filled with pit-bulls and geriatric dogs- many people do not even visit. (More adoptable dogs are quickly rescued and saved from inevitably catching kennel cough.) Due to the variety, desireability and healthy condition of the dogs at good shelters like RBARI and Animal Haven, pit bulls at these locations are viewed by more potential adopters and may have a better chance at finding a good home.

The facilities at RBARI were clean, quiet and well-staffed with dozens of volunteers-including many high-school students receiving volunteer credit. The animals at this shelter are extremely lucky and well cared for. Just look at the clean spacious corrals filled with blankets, toys, and large clean bowls of water! If only every shelter was this well-run.








I came upon this adorable little pocket-pittie named Petunia. She came from a kill-shelter when she was a tiny baby and has been waiting 2 months so far for her forever home. She is a little older than 8 weeks old and is good with other dogs and children.

I enjoyed playing with her a bit outside. She has plenty of energy and will need proper socialization, exercise and training, but is so completely adorable- how could anyone pass her up!?

 Don't let her long wait worry you though- every pit bull at RBARI is given the time, resources and dedication necessary to find a proper placement.

Beautiful Nessie has been at RBARI for a year, but gets plenty of walks and stimulation. She is trained well and everyone who walks her maintains her training so that she knows to sit whenever exiting a door.

Nessie is a sweetheart with a big heart and a waggely tail. During my visit with her she loved being out-doors and smelling the flowers and approached strangers with friendliness and a wagging tail. She is not great with other dogs but  focuses her attention well on humans and is extremely trainable.






Another Pittie at RBARI was able to find her first home when she was a puppy but was brought back after a conflict with the other dog of the house.

Because RBARI was unable to find her a home, they have placed her with a pit-specific rescue where she has a better chance of getting the training, exercise and potential adopters she needs.

This is what Tootsie looked like as a pup and now.







RBARI also recently found a home for this special pit-bull named Hooper.
Hooper was rescued the day before his impending-euthanization from a kill-shelter.

He was a stray with an extremely mal-formed paw. Despite this- the people-loving pit found a good home very quickly who brought him to an Orthopedic specialist who is now dedicated to getting Hooper surgery to fix his paw.

RBARI is raising funds to help Hooper- if you would like to help, you can call (201) 337-5180 or e-mail adoptlove@rbari.org.

To see all of the happy, healthy, wonderful dogs (including small breeds and puppies) check out petfinder.

RBAR's website also suggests you visit these great pit bull resources:
Bad-Rap, PBRC, and SPBR.

A Not-So-Public ACC Board Meeting Prompts me to feel Grateful...

As I sit here on my couch with Winnie and Bruno on either side of me, as they try to avoid the heat by laying as still as possible, I am so grateful that neither of them ever have to live at the mercy of cruel and negligent people ever again.

Unfortunately, many animals in New York City are surrendered to Animal Care & Control by their owners who are moving to public housing, who are going away on a military deployment, or who can't pay for their medical costs-- only to find that they have a very slim chance of finding a new home and family. The end comes after what was once a family dog is reduced to a depressed and fearful dog- sick from kennel cough and living in its own feces- is killed by a needle in the arm by a brusque stranger.

This is not unusual-any animal advocate following what is happening in New York City- a city I am furious I pay taxes to- knows that this is not an uncommon story. Dogs have only a few days before they are sick and are placed in the sick-ward, up for "disease-euth." We all know that the images of empty water bowls and filthy blankets are all too common--

(Read more about the filthy conditions in my blog post here.)

We all know that reputable shelters that can attract volunteers do not operate this way. (Animal Haven in Soho for example has more volunteers than it can accommodate and therefore, there are walks almost every hour for the dogs and no outbreaks of kennel cough or any other shelter-borne illnesses.)

Today at 3 pm, Animal Care and Control had a Public Board Meeting at 125 Worth Street. A crowd of about 50 people showed up to protest before the meeting, but were never allowed in. What is worse- a reporter from the press arrived 15 minutes early, only to be told the meeting was full and was denied access. While waiting outside, I heard from one lucky observer that the room was in fact- not full- and that the room chosen was too small to accommodate the amount of public interest.

In fact, some advocates in the crowd had come from as far away as Boston to hear Ms. Bank (executive director of the AC&C) herself explain the recent mistakes, errors, and euth statistics, as well as the recent causeless firing of employee Emily Tanen. ( See the video at the bottom for more info)

In addition, it is clear that the organization is understaffed- No time is given to determine a dog's breed-- all dogs with a square-ish head whether 100 lbs or 15 are labeled pit mixes, shutting out potential breed-specific adopters and rescues who may be looking for a boxer-mix or a lab-mix or a bull-terrier.

For example, Steven is clearly an American Bulldog, but the uneducated staffer quickly labeled him a pit-bull mix:

And it couldn't be more obvious that Sully is a Bull terrier, but again, they labeled him a pit bull mix.

If they can't even identify breeds- how are they going to find them homes??
In addition, they show their lack of care by giving the same names over and over-- Star, Diamond, Bruno, Boy, Nice, and Linda among them. They are too busy and careless to fix typos, like this poor boy- who may die named "Rexz"...

...or this one-- "Rubdy" clearly a quickly-typed Rudy...

Recently, there have been a number of animals simply named "Dog" (One is below.)

(Yes, I am serious... they named this scared little guy "Dog")

Unfortunately, change feels far away--even as so many are demanding more taxes and resources go to the No-Kill cause. I am sympathetic to the idea that AC&C is cash-strapped - but a good charity/ a good city office with the right intentions explains that they need all the help they can get- and in the face of criticism, ask for help. This Board has been heralding its successes while shutting out opposing views. Firing Emily Tanen for being out-spoken, hiding the sick-ward so rescues can only view sick animals while accompanied by a AC&C employee, and continuing to say that no healthy animal is being euthanized- is proof that Ms. Bank and the rest of the board are running from the problem. By turning away from criticism, they alienate their donation & volunteer base even more. Rather than explain that they need more money, more space, more time, more help-- they bury their heads even deeper in the sand.

It is a sad day for the animals that lose their lives every day- adoptable animals that could recover in 10 short days from kennel cough (like Bruno did)- dogs like Charlie, a 6 month old 19 lb Pit mix who will miss out on all the kisses, hugs, games of fetch and snacks under the table that life had in store for her-- just because she had a curable cough....

I am so glad I got Bruno out of there just in the nick of time.

See Minutes and Video from AC&C's last board meeting here.

Filthy Conditions at NYC Animal Care & Control

NYC AC&C has been doing everything it can lately to make it harder and harder to save dogs lives. Rather than utizile social networking and encourage people to meet their dogs, they are firing their best employees, casting doubt on facebook groups, and now have enacted a new policy of not allowing rescuers to view the animals that are not on the adoption floor (sick or injured or euth list animals) without being escorted by an AC&C employee.

Unfortunately, after this picture was taken of a pit-mixed named Ebony laying in her own filth- even though thousands were trying to mobilize and call the shelter to save her, the AC&C still put her to sleep for having a curable case of Kennel Cough-- gee I wonder how she caught Kennel cough is such a clean environment??

This is NOT acceptable. No-kill advocate athan Winograd sumed it up when he wrote on his fb page,

"This is Ebony. She is scheduled to be killed in New York City’s pound, right down the street from the richest SPCA (the ASPCA) in the nation which last year took in over $100,000,000, despite the Mayor’s Alliance receiving over $20,000,000 in Maddie’s Fund grants, despite the largest adopter pool in the U.S. (8,000,000), and despite a per capita intake rate 1/7 that of No Kill Reno, NV. And while she waits for her death, she is kept in the filthiest conditions possible. NYC’s claim to be a ‘national model’ is a cruel hoax.”

In addition to this loss, the AC&C also recently killed a dog named Jan only to find out from vigilent rescue groups that Jan was very much alive and a shelter employee (AGAIN) killed the wrong dog.

This is Jan-- notice she is NOT in a freezer. Jan still needs a home, visit her fb link here.

Tell the NYC AC&C to get their act together: Send this and other letters to the Mayor, the Mayor's Alliance, and the City Government.

A Pet is a Huge Responsbility...

Appologies and excuses won't save lives.

Scroll through the dead faces in this Urgent Part 2 album to see the excuses the ACC lists like "NEWBABY"  "LLORDPRIVA" (land lord won't allow) "NYCHABan" (NyC Housing Ban on pit bulls) "PETHEALTH" "TOOMANYP" (too many pets) "OWNEVICT" (Owner Evicted) "MOVE2PRIVA" (Moved) "TOOSTRONG" "PERSPROB" (Personal Problems) "NOTIME" "TOOACTIVE" or simply "ABANDON".

These six dogs were put to sleep recently for similar reasons- unfortuntaely, their owners probably thought they'd find homes somewhere when they dropped them off.

THINK BEFORE YOU SHOP/BREED/ADOPT

Urgent Part 2 on the news:

16 thousand Fans in less than 1 year, hundreds of dogs saved from euthanasia and finally some publicity!

 

View more videos at: http://www.nbcnewyork.com.

Unfortunately, in these video- Julie Blank (ACC) feels facebook pages and rescue groups encourage people to adopt dangerous animals. Not true. Most of the animals saved were sick - and dogs that have severe ratings- are not taken lightly- most are in fact put to sleep, and if by some chance they are rescued- it is because someone trusted the words of volunteers who had first hand knowledge that the dogs evaluation was wrong.
Also, I haven't heard of any of these rescues back firing-- what I have heard is stories about how the temperament tests were wrong and how lucky the rescuers are to have these animals as part of their families.

To read Urgent's response to Julie Blank- who apparently has nothing nice to say about the thousands of dogs saved through face book, click here.

"Its Me Or The Dog"

I really recommend watching this episode of "Its me or the dog" with Victoria Stillwell on Animal Planet. In this episode (clip below) she helps a young man with a completely out of control Presa-Canario. Unbelievably- the man wants to breed his dog. Luckily, Victoria talks him out of being a back-yard breeder adding to the shelter-crisis by taking him to Manhattan Care and Control (where we adopted Bruno on the day he was to be put to sleep.)

A New "Leash" on Life-

A video I made to show all of the good work and happy endings that have come out of the rescue group Urgent Part 2 on facebook.

Adopt a shelter/euth list dog today!! These dogs have been given warm cozy beds, food, toys, hugs and kisses but they will give back so much more to the people who rescued them--everyone can agree these are better endings than what would have been.

Tribute to Lost Dogs

Everyone of these dogs in this video was killed in just 5 short days (between March 5th and March 9th 2011) by Animal Care and Control of New York City. Something has to be done to improve the conditions, reduce the upper respiratory infections and provide more room for dogs so that it is not in the shelter's best interest for these dogs to get sick and put down for coughing and sneezing.

These colds can be cured in ten days with antibiotics- both our dogs had coughs and in a clean environment, they got better rapidly. With enough space- colds are no reason to euthanize.

Bronx Fire Dogs Put to Sleep

So far 3 (and some say 4) of the 14 dogs rescued from the blaze in the Bronx a few weeks ago have been put to sleep by Animal Care and Control of New York City.

Read my first post about the fire here. Read the NYTimes article here.

The ACC says three dogs are still there and alive- (actually two: Boss and Buster) - two of which they say have kennel cough, and one has 'behavioral issues.'(I'm guessing that is the mysterious missing dog that has already been pts.) Only Buster is still listed on the ACC list of adoptable dogs.

Buster:

 Boss:

 

What is the worst part about all this?? The ACC is still using the story to solicit donations.

Here is the picture on their website they are using to raise funds for dogs they are euthanizing (by the way no dog from the fire was a chocolate lab- every dog was a pit bull mix):

Miami-Dade Shelter Crisis

A deadly outbreak of distemper in a Miami-Dade Animal Shelter has led to a mad rush to adopt or rescue dogs before they will be put down. Due to the severity of the disease, the shelter officials face the tough reality of needing to basically "cleanse" the facility by removing or killing all of the dogs.

View more videos at: http://www.nbcmiami.com/?__source=embedCode.

Thankfully this has led to overwhelming response from the rescue community- but the dogs will not have homes- rescuers are taking home many more animals than they can possible handle to bide their time and hopefully save them from being exposed to the virus or being killed for having it.

Officials have waived the adoption fee for dogs, but as of Friday night, 100 dogs were adopted, but 180 still need rescue and "one way or another- all the dogs need to do" before the shelter is set to be "sterilized".

Read more here and here
Donate here

The Miami-Dade shelter website provides a list of adoptable dogs, but it is unclear if these dogs are actually still available and why there are only 16 listed.

This golden retriever, known only as "this dog"  is apparently among the dogs that are available and need rescue:

Update on Cookie & Lady and and theirPups

Remember a couple of weeks ago when I told you all about Lady, the pregnant Pittie that Animal Care and Control slated to be put to sleep? It turns out she would have been put down just nine days before her puppies were born.

Now she has a great foster home, has a new name (Maggie), and has delivered her pups. She was saved by Waggin Train Rescue and gave birth to 9 puppies. (That's a total of 10 lives saved!) If you are interested in adopting when the puppies and Mom are ready, fill out an application here.

Here is a video of Lady being a super "mouths-on" mommy :)


UPDATE:
Guess what!? In that same entry- I told you about Cookie, another pregnant mom to be put to sleep.
Well Cookie was also rescued (By Forgotten Friends of Long Island) and gave birth to her puppies as well. :)

Throwaway Mommy Alert

This week I've come to see the plight of Pit-bull throw-away moms and their puppies.
If the puppies are lucky enough to have a safe, warm, comfortable home to be born in and access to a vet, then they may do just fine and get adopted, but many unwanted pregnant Pitbull mothers can't provide that for their babies, and even fewer people want to adopt or foster a Pregnant pit bull.

These two dogs, Lady and Cookie, were rescued from the Euthanasia list at Animal Care & Control (NYC) today. BOTH dogs were going to be put to sleep, one for having an upper-respiratory infection (easily treatable, but not with Doxy- it harms the fetuses), and one for temple--for growling when pinched during her evaluation-(I would growl too if someone pinched me when I was pregnant!) Can you imagine killing a pregnant dog? Lady is almost ready to give birth to eight puppies!

Today, Lady was rescued by Waggin Train Rescue

and Cookie was saved by Forgotten Friends of Long Island

Both of these dogs are safe for now, but their babies are going to fare much better than they will at finding new homes once they have delivered.

What is worse- after the babies are born and the profit is made for backyard breeders, pit bull moms are often thrown away-tossed out on the streets and often put to sleep at the shelter. If lucky enough to be at a no-kill shelter, these moms rarely get adopted as quickly as their puppies, and often stay far too long. Cha-Cha at Animal Haven is a good example, but due to the diligence of the staff and volunteers to keep her from deteriorating in the shelter, she has a good chance of making it to a home before she gets "kennel burn out."(She has been there 9 months, but went through obedience training and is a staff favorite!)

This dog, Bella, was not so lucky. She was found in a snow storm tied to a dumpster with her puppies who were covered in snow. Since her puppies have been adopted from the Mt. Pleasant Animal Shelter, Bella has begun spinning in circles and growing grumpy with humans. She needs to be fostered (or adopted) in a home environment with humans before it is too late. If you can help Bella, please call (973) 386-0590.