HomeMy WebLinkAbout11-06-2024_Open Session_General Comment_Betit, Cecile G._RedactedFrom:Cecile G. Betit
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Subject:Let"s Make Improvements at SBC
Date:Wednesday, November 6, 2024 2:10:21 PM
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Good afternoon Responsible Leaders and the Public in San Bernardino and its contracted
Cities:
The number of deaths under the guise of legal is rising at SBC. Good dogs are killed for a
wounded ear, lameness, age, and other small matters. Living with a superiorly mild SBC dog
who was euth listed—provides a moment of pause when I read kill reasons.
In light of the current living situations for SBC animals, the amount of killing, and the
trajectory from Riverside, I think there needs to be more research and reconsideration for the
new shelter being put forward with such pride. It is being built unnecessarily on the bones of
the cats and dogs who sought shelter and care at SBC under the accountability of San
Bernardino’s City Council. I remember well the killing for space that began as so necessary
when the number was over 150. Space seems to have become the shelter goal—the point of
fixation. While the number of animals may have risen, the focus of shelter communications
and conversations have not.
I recognize for staff’s ambitious efforts this may sound very harsh. I wonder over and over,
why anyone would bring an animal to SBC or pay their taxes to support SBC for care or to
have an ACO bring an animal to SBC.
It seems that SBC’s priority areas for responsibility should be the care for animals and service
to its communities. I am hard-pressed in a week, to find public examples of a culture devoted
to those priorities. It seems as though the whole focus is on how to create space and to cull
perfectly good animals from the population under guises that satisfy the letter of the law and
not its intent. There is a great deal of self-promotion in the documents shared with the City
Council and the Animal Control Commission.
I suggest by now Kristine Watson’s leadership at SBC should have in place solid outreach to
San Bernardino and its recently contracted communities to help in reducing the number of
strays needing housing through education, encouraging spay and neuters and helping dogs and
cats to return home.
I look for hints of real care and respect in the public domain for the animals and for their
communities. Not finding those easily I suggest the following:
1. Form a support group in each of the contracting cities with real interest in helping the
animals at SBC by reducing the numbers entering the system and by rehoming lost
animals.
2. Seek community relationships through an active Animal Control Commission group with
members from all the cities—one that is not designed to be a rubber stamp. This group
should question and seek improvements.
3. Publicize heavily how to reclaim a pet and the efforts of the Lange Foundation for animals
to return home.
4. Stop the excuses and conversations and just hire a vet.
5. Put the donated van in use for spaying and neutering locally.
6. Make sure there is enough space as needed for animals requiring housing.
7. Do formulative evaluation on the SBC goals being set—make sure they are the right ones
for time and place rather than arbitrarily made-up ones.
8. Take good photos of the animals as they are entered into SBC documentation. Publish the
photos and info right away on SBC’s Facebook page. This will allow sharing right away
for owners and potential adopters and rescues.
9. Stop being so quick to put negative labels on an animal. Wait 36 hours before using words
like fearful, aggressive, etc. (Those reading this might also act a bit differently a few
minutes after being on a catchpole thrown into a van and arriving in a new place.)
10. Recognize and live the importance of good photos, videos in the kennels (even in ISO) and
in playgroups to saving the lives of local animals.
11. Extend the playgroups to 7 days a week. Work with volunteers so they can be helpful to
staff for the good care of animals rather than as seen now—a hindrance.
12. Recognize and live the responsibility for rehoming dogs and cats. Volunteers do what they
do out of love. Rehoming is staff responsibility. Right now, it is an absolute battle for dogs
to leave SBC alive. Every imaginable hurdle seems to be there:
a. Dogs and cats put on euth lists arbitrarily soon after entrance.
b. Dogs killed early or killed three days after they are taken off the record so nothing
further can be done for them.
c. Information is not accurate at the call center.
d. ISO dogs are no longer photographed in their kennels.
e. Information on the kennel records from the beginning seeks to justify killing a dog
rather than offering info to a rescue or adopter.
13. In spite of the law, rescues who want to save a dog are often told the dog needs to be
killed. Staff should be prioritizing animal life and well-being. We often hear wrenching
anecdotes from adopters and rescues of their being in line or on the phone ahead of the
time for killing. Staff in several instances was reluctant to take the necessary prompt action
or they had killed early for an uncredible reason. Every animal’s death should be taken
very seriously.
14. Make SBC a welcoming place. Riverside’s new building did not make it a community
focused effort. The opportunity to do that for SBC is now. A bad process does not have a
good outcome without intervention. The reputation for the casual killing at SBC is out
there on the street. People are making great efforts to avoid taking found dogs to the
shelter. On the one hand that might be a good thing. On the other it reflects SBCs level of
credibility.
SBC is a tax and grant funded enterprise. It needs input from those supporting it to ensure that
it achieves its mission and goals. Developing ways of solving problems and creating
understanding are more effective as well as cost effective than hiding or fighting them.
The killings are horrific, constant and an ever-present reality. Every effort needs to be made to
reduce them. We know that staff cannot do the work alone. Community groups need to be
called on for their expertise, help and involvement.
With sadness,
Cecile Betit
Cecile G. Betit Ph.D.
Independent Researcher
Networker for SBC Dogs since 2016
From: Cecile G. Betit <>
Sent: Thursday, October 10, 2024 4:41 PM
Good afternoon--Staff at SBC, Responsible Leaders in San Bernardino and its sending Cities:
I write to suggest that in the interests of those cities sending dogs to San Bernardino that they
should have at least one representative on the City of San Bernardino’s Animal Control Commission.
There needs to be an ongoing working group from the cities to provide systemic analysis, to see
situations in play and to work out plans to educate their locales as to spay and neuter and reducing
strays. While these would be first steps, ongoing, efforts need to be mounted so that dogs are not
killed so quickly or treated so poorly. Dogs who should be experiencing compassion and kindness
have become disposable. An unforgivable nightmare is lived daily in front of our eyes.
On Facebook, Cindy Linn lists daily all big dogs entering SBC with their found locale. In the evening,
she reports in an update, those dogs returned to their owners, adopted, rescued and killed. In spite
of the glossy reports, looking at killing as an outcome measures, the increasing large kill lists at SBC
posted on Facebook, suggest that all is not well. See the listing of big dogs killed on 10 7, big dogs
listed for today and all dogs listed for tomorrow. (This is in addition to the Outcome Report which
included dogs killed in the field that are not shared daily on Facebook).
The sending cities could help the current situation if they established working networks and
volunteer groups to help return dogs to owners or to rehome the dogs being entered at SBC or to be
part of playgroups. There have been such groups at SBC for more than a decade. Daily these are
found to be inadequate with the growing needs. Sending cities need to join the effort by serving
dogs from their areas.
SBC’s killing so very often and so many such good dogs changes the whole perspective on the
meaning of sheltering. Some of these dogs have come into life because SBC was negligent over the
past few years about spay and neuter. There have not been enough kennels since before the
regional contracts were enacted—temporary kennels were not put up in time. The current kennel
plan even with the recent delivery does not seem adequate to current experience—more dogs will
die. In spite of the great numbers of dogs, there is no vet. Current staff has been unable to forge
good relationships with veterinary services in its area.
The person putting dogs on the kill list is not a certified and trained person. The reasons for killing
cited in the kennel reports don’t hold up for people who know and love dogs. Little compassion and
care for the animals are being seen publicly or encouraged. Those concerned about the treatment of
animals need to look at how SBC uses ISO as a killing chamber. For those who respect and love dogs,
every killing is a blow felt by those working so hard for SBC animals.
Dogs are being killed for no offense other than they take up space showing how irresponsible
humans have been for care by ignoring spay and neuter. (Areas of the country with strong spay and
neuter don’t have the costly San Bernardino area problems.) Space is being used as a justification
and a killing tool. Staff needs to work with it, expand it and manage it as every other resource and
STOP THE KILLING.
It is up to the humans to care for those dogs in their responsibility. Let us think about what could be
put in place to make life better for the animals. We might well begin to think of the sending cities
with San Bernardino as a unit. A working group comprised of those from all the cities could develop
ideas for meeting the needs of the cities’ animals. For example:
Is there a local foundation or group of interested people who could offer funding for free spay
and neuter until the need is fully met to reduce numbers in the shelter?
Could a process be put in place so that animals could be returned home in their neighborhood
without needing to go SBC with all the trauma that entails for these animals and travel for
their owners?
Could foundation support provide increased licensing and micro-chipping so that owners can
be found more easily?
Could a foundation support a study for the feasibility and consequences of paying for foster
care for animals?
There are many people who are working hard to improve the situations for dogs at SBC. Do visit the
shelter and see what life is life for animals and give your helping hand! Please work with those who
want animals at the City of San Bernardino shelter to thrive. Please do what you can to STOP THE
KILLING NOW!!
With sadness,
Cecile Betit
Cecile G. Betit Ph.D.
Independent Researcher
Networker for SBC Dogs since 2016