MAS has capacity for 555 animals, per interim director James Rogers. Why are only 361 animals listed on PetHarbor today? And of those, why do 78 animals have no photo? Why are volunteers who offer to photograph and post the animals being turned away? With only 21 dogs and 18 cats listed as “adoptable”, where should Memphis area adopters be looking to find their new pet?
Does MAS currently have nearly 200 empty cages at the pound? They’re not killing animals while cages sit empty, are they? Do they need advocates to start networking to get animals imported from other shelters?
Do you know the hashtag for MAS?
I usually put them under the #NoKill blanket just because you know – hope springs eternal. But you could come up with something if you like.
I’m sure those questions are rhetorical because we KNOW MAS is not going to answer them. That’s due in part from from the fact that they don’t know the answer. But most importantly (or sadly), they don’t care what the answer is. They are just a killing machine and if they can keep cages empty, it’s less work and accountability (ha!) for them.
Exactly. Took the words right out of my mouth.
This place is just one blackhole of questions, abuse, apathy and well…suck.
I have noticed the high kill shelters here always start listing less animals on petfinder a couple of weeks before holiday weekends. If they have less animals, less staff needed, less holiday pay. Maybe MAS does the same.
We all know that the Pet Harbor photos are not kept current. There are animals on there that are dead and have been for some time, but no one bothers to maintain the site…it seems to be a low priority, along with all other opportunities to reunite animals with their owners and increase adoption rates.
In Cindy’s notes from the meeting, Rogers said –
“I have the total capacity for 555 – 128 puppies, 128 cats, 299 large dog kennels – this is a fixed capacity. The capacity to care is 356 – 113 puppies, 74 cats, 169 dogs – for every 30 animals at the facility, I must have one technician. I’m down three positions already.”
So…I’m not a rocket scientist, but wouldn’t it be a good idea to hire people for those three positions? And…you know, increase volunteers (or allow them to finally be effective, maybe?). Oh and how about this – INCREASE ADOPTIONS. Allow people to come in and PHOTOGRAPH animals! Allow people to network and promote your animals – ALL OF THEM (not just the lucky 30 that “Friends” scatters around pell-mell on their FB site when Jeanne manages to get around to it after her “scowl at people coming to the shelter” quota is met for the week).
Tracy Dunlap should be JUMPING UP AND DOWN to hear that people want to come in and photograph animals for him to help move them out and increase adoptions. He should also be putting up big signs about the Pet Harbor site and have links to it all over their web page. If he’s serious about adoptions and getting animals out alive, he needs to start acting like it.
As long as Jeanne is in charge of the volunteers, nothing will change. She has no business running the volunteer program there, maybe 20 years ago when she actually cared…but not now.
If he’s serious about adoptions and getting animals out alive, he needs to start acting like it.
Therein lies the problem . . .
I have also been wondering about the numbers at MAS. When dogs are mislabeled for their breed, a picture would really help. The Facebook page of Friends of MAS is no help at all when one is trying to figure out which dogs need adopting/rescuing.
I hope those precious little wee ones get out of there alive (and not for feeding snakes or training fighting dogs). What a beautiful little kitten.
Maybe that’s the big question for the next public meeting – “What has MAS done in the last two months to significantly increase RTO and adoption rates?”
Because I honestly don’t think that they think like that. I don’t think that they realize that they *can* do things to change those rates. It’s like…they feel like they’re victims of “the irresponsible public” and don’t know that THEY can be proactive in making changes to the community as a whole.
Until they realize that they can get adoption/foster/transport/RTO rates WAY UP just by changing how they approach things, MAS will continue to fail.
Where Iive they used to (may still) kill all the animals at the pound before a hurricane so they would have room for their personal pets to come in since they were on duty 24/7-
Disgusting!
Does anyone know the figures just for shelter operations at MAS
1. Shelter operating budget
2. What percentage of that is staff payroll? Utilities?
3. The amount left when you back out the above- how much is the cost per citizen in the taxing district?
Here it is $.50 per person per year and it shows.
According to this (page 285) http://www.memphistn.gov/pdf_forms/fy2012_adopted_op/MemphisOpbudget2012Adopted.pdf
Their budget for personnel 2012 is $2,428,550. (45 staff members) breakdown on page 290 Supplies $519,451 Capital Outlay $3000. Projected Revenue is $562,715
The projection for number of animals “sheltered” is 15,401 and animal control officers responding to 22,587 calls
If my math is correct that would break down to $191.61 per animal entering the “shelter”
Based on a human population of 646,889 (2010 census) it would break down to approx $4.56 per person per year
Grrr- just saw a shelter listed as no kill on the no kill nation site that while they don’t kill – animal control is out there three or four times a week picking up animals to be killed!!!!!
Grrrrr!!!!
This is not all that unusual. The ASPCA does a lot of the same stuff in NYC. It’s all about PR, not about animals.
I just looked through the list MAS has and many dont seem to be current. For instance, those puppies in the green basket have been there for quite some time. Wouldn’t it be SMARTER to update the pics?? Give potential adopters a better look at what is available??
THEY NEED HELP PERIOD. (MENTAL)