It is high time to open up animal control to volunteers and public adoptions. Gordon County shelter is open 5 days a week and operates on approx 1/3 of the budget of Bartow.. The revenue from adoptions could help offset the cost of someone taking adoption applications and volunteers could save some labor costs as well and could be asked to come and photograph the animals so as someone that has lost one might have a better chance of finding them. Humane Society is an asset but only select animals are brought over there. Every dog and cat coming in there deserves a chance.Not even 1/2 of the reported 500 animals coming in there a month are ever photographed or seen by the public. It is time for Bartow Animal Control to join progressive neighboring counties and get on board with modern times and do away with the old fashioned dog pound-catch and kill model of animal control. Keeping the public out of the shelter is creating a high kill shelter and costing healthy adoptable animals their lives that our tax dollars are funding, which is a shameful mark on this fine County and is not adhering to the new guidelines set in place by the United States Sheriff's Association and FBI under the (new) FBI Uniform Crime Report Classification Animal Cruelty is a Top Tier Crime Against society. These new "mandatory reporting guidelines" that all law enforcement across nation are under (effective January 2016) are geared toward stopping animal cruelty and we just show we are trying to rehome and save animals that need a safe haven in our County, so the County Commissioners can proudly say "we want a safe community and that starts with empathy for animals and our shelter will be making changes to adhere to FBI classification, for a safer community and it is time for our animal lovers in Bartow to let our County Commissioners know this.
Failure to provide adequate shelter. It shall be unlawful for any owner or custodian of any animal to fail to provide adequate shelter from the elements for that animal, as appropriate to the species. Providing adequate shelter requires providing sufficient food and water, disposing of waste, providing sufficient temperature control (whether heat, ventilation, or cooling) to prevent suffering by the animal, and not maintaining conditions conducive to disease and infection.
By way of this petition the citizens of Bartow County request the County Commissioners, immediately, call an emergency meeting of Board to review all local ordinances and shelter operations and guidelines for public adoption events which the public is advised of and allowed to submit comments on, to ensure citizens have input as they will be your partners to save the animals.
Lets stand together for animal rights.
