Great job, Erika! We all know that a 90% save rate is possible because we've been studying the processes and watching results from other shelters. Now it's time to get the word out to the public, and let them see the results that are attainable under the right leadership. It takes a lot of work and a passion for saving animals' lives, but the end result is well worth it.

It is difficult to comment on HSHC’s operations because they have not been willing to share their written policies with the public, for example, policies on euthanasia and behavior testing to name a few. HSHC has also been unwilling to share their statistics until recently when they shared numbers for 2010. Based on those numbers, what IS clear is that the number of animals killed is TOO HIGH! Two out of every three cats were killed last year, almost half of the animals that went to HSHC were killed. I would like to see the numbers for the first half of 2011 to see if the statistics have improved. They are sending quite a few animals to recues so I would hope the save rate is much higher. The 2010 statistics for animals killed relating to behavior and temperament are also much higher than what other shelters experience on average, so I would like to understand the process and individuals responsible for performing behavior testing. I have no doubt that many of the employees that work there, are there for the animals but I think current management and leadership seem to be okay with status quo numbers and do not feel that they are or should be accountable to the public which pays about half of the organization’s operating budget with their tax dollars.

"We have the power to build a new consensus, which rejects killing as a method for achieving results. And we can look forward to a time when the wholesale slaughter of animals in shelters is viewed as a cruel aberration of the past. We have a choice. We can fully, completely, and without reservation embrace No Kill as our future. Or we can continue to legitimize the two-pronged strategy of failure: adopt a few and kill the rest. It is a choice which history has thrown upon us. We are the generation that questioned the killing. We are the generation that has discovered how to stop it. Will we be the generation that does?" -- Nathan Winograd

I commend Erika on her speech to help bring awareness to the troubling issues that plague the HSHC, and I hope more people will take Erika’s lead and speak out for the animals at future council meetings. I agree whole heartedly that the shelter can obtain a 90% or better save rate. However, to do this you have to have a board, management and staff that also believes it is possible. The shelter complains so much about pet overpopulation, but does absolutely nothing to help solve the problem. Why won’t the shelter be proactive and start a TNR Program and a Low/No Cost S/N Program? Even if they try to say it is because of financial limitations, they can apply for grants and no money ever leaves their pockets. HSHC, why are you so happy with a 50% kill rate? Why won’t you give the public the information they are requesting to see? Why do you think transparency and accountability do not apply to you? I for one want to see, not hear, the TRUTH of what happens to all the animals and how our money is spent. Most importantly, I want the HSHC to STOP the needless killing.

The same bunch of people that don't live in Harford County. You can betcha I'll be at the next meeting explaining exactly what you're ultimate goals are here. TNR is dead on arrival. We don't want it here in Harford County.

Erika has done an excellent job on her presentation. I didn't realize this was happening or I would have been there myself, not to speak, but that may very well come soon. I do plan a follow up to my blog on this subject after meeting with David Fang and Mary Leavens on Tuesday next week. I am meeting with them on their invitation and that invitation has been extended to others as well.

Since writing my original blog on the questions I originally raised, even more questions came into the mix. I have gathered information from a number of sources- a memo from HCHS outlining only some of the 2010 figures, the 990 tax filing by the shelter, a copy of the construction plans for the new shelter building obtained by the HOPE group, various past news articles and have spoken to people on all sides of this in preparation for my meeting next week with HCHS. What I don't have is what others here have expressed- more details on why more than 50% of the animals that go into the shelter never come back out alive, what future plans are to decrease the killing, how a new shelter will help in that effort, and what obstacles and problems the shelter faces. There is a lot of passion involved in this issue and there is animosity that has been openly expressed between those who support continuing the shelter's current operation and those who want dramatic changes. Is there a middle ground where everyone can meet? I'll give you my thoughts next week.

It's nice to see someone speak for the voiceless and actually hold meaning in what they do say. Animals are not only pets, but companions - and it would break my heart to think if I didn't go to my nearest shelter here in AZ to pick up my companion, what kind of state he would be in now. 90 percent save rate shouldn't be a goal to be achieved but a standard to uphold.

I have lived in Harford County my whole life and my father was born and raised here, so coming from someone who has long ties to this county I am overly saddened that no one at HSHC can even take the time consider any changes. If HSBC doesn't have anything to hide then show your cards that's all I have to say.

Erika doesn't live in Harford County. I hip to the game now and will be contacting my representatives to tell them the reality of TNR. I'll cheer any other programs that are adopted if they work but this one doesn't and is damaging to the environment. Feral cats should not be fed in dense populations in city parks. They need to be euthanized.

Not only does she not live here but she in one breathe she talks about saving adoptable animals and in another talks about acheiving this 90% number with feral cat programs (we all know what that means). Feral cats are not adoptable.

I may not be a Harford County resident, but I work in Harford County and the Humane Society of Harford County had no problems with accepting my time or money!

In fact, the more time and money I spent there the more evident it was that things are amiss. Anything less than striving for a 90% save rate is unacceptable and we need an Executive Director, Shelter Manager, Board Members, and President who are aligned with this thinking. The needless killing must end somewhere, and it won't until there is a new regime in Harford County.

Karl, you are funny. If the county had an established TNR program, there would be less cats picked up, brought to the shelter, and killed which would increase the save rate.

In the last 20 years alone Harford County killed about 36,000 cats. If killing feral cats would be a good solution, I'm pretty sure that by now they would be all gone. But they are not. Killing feral cats does not address the issue of reproduction. TNR (Trap Neuter Release) is the only proven successful method to lower the number of feral cats AND addresses the issue of reproduction. There is not one single community in the US that ever has successfully lowered the number of community cats by killing them. Why continuing something that does not work? How many more cats need to be killed? 40,000? 50,000? 100,000? A long term study by Stanford University shows very clearly how successful TNR is and that it is the only proven method to lower the number of cats: http://catnet.stanford.edu/articles/report.html

Fellow animal lovers: I think we should not waste any more energy on Karl. He has his opinions and he doesn't want to come into the 21st century. Don't respond to his nonsense...let him spew. He is inconsequential and illogical and should be ignored. Besides, we are not cat-hater whisperers!

I've been a Harford County resident for 8 years. Thank you, Erika!

Thank you Peter! So many folks read the false issues regarding TNR and believe it, thank you for pointing out the facts here. TNR saves lives when done properly!!

Been a resident of harford county over 35yrs. It's LONG overdue to sweep in change at HSHC. Shouldn't matter where or what county you live in,if you support positive change, then BRING IT!!! Congrats to changemakers like you Erika!!!

Karl, Obviously you have made up your mind on the issue of feral cats, and that's ok, and you have every right to speak at public meetings. Unfortunately, there are so many successful examples of TNR working in all sorts of settings to reduce the number of feral cats that a scientific study isn't really necessary. Basic math skills prove it works.

On the other thread I posted a video that shows starting with just two intact cats mating and producing 2 kittens in each litter within five years the number of cats is in the millions. Multiply that by the number of intact breeding pairs in any colony. Get the picture?

There is no way in the long term that animal control or the humane society will have the resources in time and money to round up that many cats, put them down and dispose of them. They'd have to operate 7x24 with large staffs that do nothing but euthanize animals. You'll need more drugs to put them down, bigger freezers to store the bodies, bigger costs to the disposal company, and bigger salary/benefits expenses for all those people. Meanwhile the feral cat population continues to accelerate and get larger and larger every year, and every year your beloved songbirds are in more and more danger. With TNR the animals win, animal lovers win, and your songbirds win. We can't keep doing something because that's the way it's always been done when other methods control the problem better and are much more cost effective.

Even the HSHC is supporting a TNR effort. A small group of people have seen the need to get together with the support of the shelter and local vets to get a TNR program started. A lot of work needs to be done, but it is not impossible. Keeping feral cats out of the shelter in the first place will save lives and free up the shelter's resources to focus on other issues.

While Project Cat Snip, which I believe you are referring, does serve TNR caretakers, it is not solely in place for TNR nor was it exclusively created for TNR cats only. It was created in 2008 to offer low cost spay and neuter to anyone requiring it, be that TNR caregivers, low and fixed income individuals, and due to the economic recession, those suffering through uemployment who do not have the financial resources to get their companion cats spayed or neutered. The HSHC supports our efforts to offer low cost spay and neuter to those who need it, including but not limited to those who maintain a feral colony. More information on our program can be found by following our email link on the HSHC website or the Project Cat Snip page on facebook.

Karl, what if they were wild dogs?

As a long-time resident of Harford County and concerned animal advocate, I thank you Erika for speaking out about need for improvements at HSHC. Keep up the good work; will support you any way I can.

I'm still not sure how the only thing Karl sees in all this is "feral cats must die." Feral cats are only a small percent of the issue. The issue is that HSHC kills healthy, treatable, adoptable companion animals and we're moving to stop these practices, along with controlling the population of ferals.

Did you read the comment above by "Christine?" She said: "Even the HSHC is supporting a TNR effort. A small group of people have seen the need to get together with the support of the shelter and local vets to get a TNR program started. A lot of work needs to be done, but it is not impossible. Keeping feral cats out of the shelter in the first place will save lives and free up the shelter's resources to focus on other issues." So, even the shelter knows that killing the feral cats isn't the answer. It seems crazy to continue spending money on a solution that has been tried and has failed. There are two choices: (1) Continue trapping and killing feral cats while the the cats remaining in the colony continue to reproduce and replace the killed cats; or (2) trap and spay/neuter the cats, return them to the colony to keep the numbers stable, and let the colony die out naturally. I understand you don't want the cats returned to your neighborhood, but the colony has to be kept intact for this to work. It's not a question of keeping the cats alive just to keep the cats alive. It's a question of doing something to get rid of the colonies once and for all. It's not a quick fix, which I know a lot of people want. But if killing the cats was the answer, we wouldn't even be having this conversation right now because there would be no feral cats. Seriously, the killing method has been tried for years and years and years and has failed miserably.

Can we just stop answering Karl and Nick about feral cats. They will never get it. TNR works. Karl and Nick just enjoy seeing their name on all these blogs and they seem like the type that will argue with themselves.
You did a great presentation Erika. Thank you so much for speaking for the animals. Let's hope that with a new shelter the management will work towards a 90% live release rate by the time it is completed. How can you not want a 90% live release rate versus a 50% live release rate. We are a country that values life and that life includes our companion pets.

Ditto, Amanda. But, why wait for the new building to start working on the 90% save rate? Many more adoptable animals could be saved before then if HSHC would start NOW to implement a plan for a lower kill rate.

I agree with you Peter about kill shelters using temperament testing as a means to justify killing them. You have to ask when is the testing being done, where is the testing administered, who is testing, do you take in consideration that the dog is scared, hungry, injured, etc. I loved the link you provided on Temperament Testing a Dirty Little Secret. Have to totally agree with that.

I suggest anyone who has read this thread...and is a Harford county resident contact thier local representative as well as the health department and shelter because it's clear to me these folks are using 90% as code to force the shelters to adopt TNR as there's no other way to hit that number without it. If you care about songbirds, and appreciate and respect native animals your voice depends on it. The city of Los Angeles was hoodwinked by these same folks and after just a few years have rescinded support for TNR as they saw disasterous results. Once TNR is adopted as policy we've lost the ability to control feral cat populations because the county and/or shelter will route the wild cats directly to these largely unmonitored groups who eventually just let them go again regardless of the environment, be it wetland, city park, field or abondoned house. Each cat kills on average 36 birds each per year and that doesn't include the toads, chipmunks, young snakes, etc. that are killed mostly for cat sport. Zero birds fledge in areas with cat populations...they can't survive on the ground for very long and won't be steady flyers for days after leaving the nest. I don't begrudge cat owners who are responsible and I don't hate cats, but in an age with loss of habitat and increasing human populations it's acknowledge that there has been a striking decrease in songbird populations. Releasing feral cats into the environment and by the thousands surely won't help.

If you agree with Karl, please also submit your plan to your local reps as to how you're going to differentiate between feral cats and a pet that is an indoor/outdoor animal, so that the county doesn't kill an owned animal by mistake. Also please include the difference in birds killed by ferals, and birds killed by indoor/outdoor cats, so that the county can have the EXACT numbers. Thank you, and God Bless America.

Baltimore City adopted TNR in 2009. Here are the regulations-
http://www.baltimorehealth.org/info/2009_03_06.TNRRegs.pdf

Md. offers a special automobile tag for TNR
http://www.communitycatsmd.org/tnrplates.html

I've said this before. We need to ignore KIll-em-Karl. Let him talk to himself. He can't tell us a single community in which his kill-em-all method has worked to rid that community of a feral cat colony, yet he doesn't have enough sense to realize that there are none because the method doesn't work. A method practiced for years and years and years has not solved the problem, but that's what Kill-em-Karl wants to have done. He is an illogical person with no conscience. Euthanization of a healthy animal is killing, Karl. Sorry you don't agree. But for the rest of us, let's let Kill-em-Karl wallow in his own delusions - he obviously enjoys them. He is just taking our time and attention away from our mission, which is a lot more than TNR.

I thought it was about whether or not the HSHC should be held accountable. It was about improving the rate of healthy, adoptable animals finding a home. Karl, I am sorry for the loss of your dog. If you had stayed in the room with your husband you would have witnessed that euthansia can be a peaceful process if performed correctly by a trained veterinarian. Please ask the shelter to spend a day in their tech room and report back to us.

Here are the highlighted pets up for adoption this week at the Humane Society. http://ow.ly/764Gw

Peter...you and I both know that a 7 week old kitten will normally and most often be put up for adoption as they have no as yet become feral. I'm talking about feral cats and you want to talk at cute little kittens. I might add - I wonder how a chipmunk feels having it's head ripped off by a cat or a baby bird first batted around for awhile and left to die of it's injuries only because the cat got bored.

Quoted from this article:

"Nearly 80 percent of the birds were killed by predators, and cats were responsible for 47 percent of those deaths, according to the researchers, from the Smithsonian Institution and Towson University in Maryland. Death rates were particularly high in neighborhoods with large cat populations.

Predation was so serious in some areas that the catbirds could not replace their numbers for the next generation, according to the researchers, who affixed tiny radio transmitters to the birds to follow them. It is the first scientific study to calculate what fraction of bird deaths during the vulnerable fledgling stage can be attributed to cats.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/21/science/21birds.html?_r=1

There are many articles out there that say cats are the main predator to birds, but there are just as many that disprove this myth. This particular article is about a Smithsonian Researcher who was doing research on cats and birds, http://www.examiner.com/cats-in-new-york/smithsonian-researcher-accused-of-poisoning-feral-cats. She is accused of poisoning feral cats and being charged with animal cruelty. I would venture to say her research is very biased and she is a very disturbed individual. I know it is a total waste of my breath, but if you want the true facts about cats, once again all you have to do is go visit the Alley Cat Allies website. That being said, there is a lot more to change at the shelter, not just implementing a TNR Program. I personally want to see HSHC be held accountable to the public and make all their records transparent. I want to see what actual external audits have been done, including but not limited to animal records, accuracy and reporting compliance of the euthanasia drugs, safety records, temperament and medical procedures on what dictates an animal being killed and so on. The HSHC is using our tax dollars and donations from individuals that believe their money is being used to only save animals. It is time for the HSHC to start practicing what their name says, HUMANE treatment of ALL the animals. Let us see, not hear the TRUTH HSHC.

You folks refer to Nutter pretty extensively because it's just about the only seemingly decent study you believe supports your cause...but "one of the ways you can really find out the truth, what an author really saw, is to go to the authors and talk to them. If you talk to Dr. Nutter or her primary mentor Dr. Stosskopf, they will tell you that what they observed was a very mixed bag. Only smaller colonies, those with no more than 15-25 to start with, with high spay rates and very few drop offs (essentially closed), and those colonies where care takers were willing to put in years and years of policing the situation, experienced decline. And what were there, 8 colonies ? Funny small sample size doesn’t bother you here…..

You might also ask them how many cats were taken from colonies and moved elsewhere. Julie Levy’s famous “TNR success” in Florida was only able to keep the population near stable by removing and transplanting cats. How does moving a problem elsewhere qualify as successful population control ?

The one small colony of Nutters that declined 89% did so because a pack of dogs came through and killed nearly all of them. I can’t see that as either humane or effective population control, so maybe you can forgive Michael for generalizing by saying TNR didn’t work."

Fact is you folks really don't want to reduce cat populations; you just want to play with cats, to feel important and you don't care what damage is done through your actions.

Follow up- http://belair.patch.com/blog_posts/animal-house-follow-up-on-harford-humane-society
Sorry about the formatting of the outline. It didn't seem to convert correctly.