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17 (01)You don't often get email from alex9355b@outlook.com. Learn why this is important Date:3/22/2026 12:33:12 PM From:"Alex Brown" Alex9355b@outlook.com To:"Public Comment" publiccomment@anaheim.net Subject:[EXTERNAL] city council - Agenda Item #17 on March 24 Warning: This email originated from outside the City of Anaheim. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and are expecting the message. The press and OC residents have been documenting the shelter’s problems for the last 3 years. T he city has done nothing to push the shelter to clean house. Once you renew the contract, these are now YOUR problems. Information from the press with links found on https://OCShelter.com Fullerton Observer, March 18, 2026 Issues at OC Animal Care and Other Shelters https://fullertonobserver.com/2026/03/18/issues-at-oc-animal-care-and-other-shelters/ Recent articles and community opinions shed light on troubling issues at Orange County Animal Care (OC Animal Care) and other municipal animal shelters across California, highlighting concerns around data integrity, negligence, and the overall treatment of animals. Voice of OC, March 17, 2026 The Co unty Animal Shelter has a Data Integrity Problem https://voiceofoc.org/2026/03/mavrovouniotis-the-county-animal-shelter-has-a-data-integrity-problem/ Numbers don’t add up at OC Animal Care, and it’s not the first time. In shelter statistics, animals inexplicably vanish between reports. T he billing calculations are based on faulty data as well. Why do the county and OC cities allow this? Voice of OC, March 11, 2026 Advocates Demand Refo rm at California Animal Shelters, Including Orange County https://voiceofoc.org/2026/03/california-animal-shelters-reform/ Animal advocates sent cease and desist letters to municipal animal shelters across the Golden State, including OC Animal Care in Orange County. Excerpts: […] One of the major concerns menti oned i n the cease and desi st letters i s the concept of “reduced/managed intake” that mi nimi zes the overall number of ani mals comi ng into the shelter i n an attempt to reduce euthanasi a. Managed intake often involves shelters turni ng away ani mals or encouragi ng members of the publi c to keep the ani mal themselves, put it back where i t was found or contact a rescue organization. […] OC Animal Care, the county-run ani mal shelter i n Orange County, recei ved a cease and desi st letter dated Feb. 13. The county shelter — whi ch has been the subject of numerous grand jury i nvesti gations and resi dent protests over the past several years — practi ces managed i ntake for stray cats. [Read: Grand Jury: OC Animal Shelter Needs Updated Policies to Stop Ki lli ng More Animals] The shelter does not accept healthy stray cats. Instead, i t only accepts sick, injured or underage cats. Virga sai d thi s could be a vi olati on of the Hayden Act, a 1998 state law that outlines certai n requirements for animal shelters li ke mandatory veteri nary care and holdi ng periods for stray animals. […] To read the cease and desi st letter sent to OC Ani mal Care, cli ck here. Orange County Supervi sors also wei ghed i n on the shelter’s condi ti ons duri ng thei r Feb. 24 meeting. Supervisor Janet Nguyen sai d the shelter has made improvements over the past year, but it’s a work i n progress. “Please know that we appreciate you, but there i s still some work to be done,” she said at that meeti ng. Nguyen sai d animal shelter staff are worki ng on a report regardi ng the 2018 strategic plan and asked for an update within the next 30 days. Supervisor Vi cente Sarmiento thanked residents for pushi ng for i mprovements at the shelter and sai d staff should issue regular updates to make sure OC Ani mal Care i s meeting goals laid out in the strategi c plan. “I thi nk we need to do somethi ng on a periodi c basi s, almost as a dashboard, and make sure we’re able to see how we’re doi ng on these di fferent concerns that we have that are outli ned i n the strategic plan,” he sai d. […] “Shelters should be learni ng from their mi stakes and movi ng forward and adopting the more enli ghtened approaches that some of the other shelters i n other areas are adopti ng,” Dales sai d. “We’re not seeing that in California on the whole.” Fullerton Observer, March 5, 2026 Co mpanio n Animal Pro tectio n So ciety Releases Sho rt Do cumentary Entitled A CAPS Investigatio n o f OC Animal Care https://fullertonobserver.com/2026/03/05/companion-animal-protection-society-releases-short-documentary-entitled-a-caps-investigation-of-oc-animal-care/ Shelter mismanagement and failure by the county to conform to a strategic plan and audits have resulted in animal suffering. You can view the 15-minute video here: A CAPS Investigation of OC Animal Care Voice of OC, February 2, 2026 Lamirande: Ho w Negligent are OC Cities in Their Co ntract with the County Animal Shelter? https://voiceofoc.org/2026/02/lamirande-how-negligent-are-oc-cities-in-their-contract-with-the-county-animal-shelter/ Dear city officials, if you hire people with a track record of dishonesty and incompetence, you’re responsible for the consequences. If you are in favor of good governance and a good shelter you must make two demands: First, get rid of toxic managers. Second, transparently implement the Strategic Plan. Research study, February 2026 How long do do gs stay in a shelter? We can measure this accurately and link it to shelter o peratio ns https://link.growkudos.com/1eob559gykg Voice of OC, January 4, 2026 OC Animal Care Faces Negligence Lawsuit After Dog Mauling https://voiceofoc.org/2026/01/oc-animal-care-faces-negligence-lawsuit-after-dog-mauling/ A former volunteer is suing the county animal shelter after she was attacked by a shelter dog, bitten 18 times while screaming for help. Voice of OC, December 4, 2025 Is the Co unty Working to Fix the Animal Shelter’s Pro blems? If so , Why Haven’t Any Pro gress Repo rts Been Released? https://voiceofoc.org/2025/12/vaughn-is-the-county-working-to-fix-the-animal-shelters-problems-if-so-why-havent-any-progress-reports-been-released/ While there’s some positive change in the shelter, serious problems remain. OC needs to be transparent about the implementation (or not?) of the shelter’s taxpayer-funded Strategic P lan. It also needs to value its experienced volunteers, instead of restricting them to crowded walkways and yards deteriorating into mud pits. OC Register, August 17, 2025 Owner o f Woo fy Acres dog rescue charged with 16 co unts o f animal cruelty https://www.ocregister.com/2025/08/15/owner-of-woofy-acres-dog-rescue-charged-with-multiple-counts-of-animal-cruelty/ Excerpts: The owner of a Southern Cali forni a dog rescue has been charged wi th 37 criminal counts of mi streati ng the ani mals, nearly 100 of whi ch were i n such bad conditi on they had to be euthanized. Woofy Acres fi rst made headli nes i n early 2024 after Bedford was accused of abandoni ng 32 dogs — many from Orange County — at a Rowland Hei ghts kennel i n Los Angeles County. Woofy Acres was heavi ly used by Orange County Ani mal Care. Orange County Animal Care has released a total of 149 dogs to Woofy Acres, wi th the last placement i n January 2024. It i s unclear whether any dogs from Orange County were among the dogs sei zed by authori ti es. Voice of OC, August 7, 2025 Two Do gs Dead in Transport from OC Animal Care to Idaho https://voiceofoc.org/2025/08/two-dogs-dead-in-transport-from-oc-animal-care-to-idaho/ Excerpt: “U.S. Department of Transportati on stati sti cs show shortnosed breeds of dogs are more likely to di e during ai r transport than dogs wi th normal-length muzzles, and si milar risks are li kely during road transportati on,” reads a best practices resource document from the AVMA for relocating pets i n non-emergency si tuations. “This i s thought to be related to respi ratory problems that are exacerbated by stress and di ffi culty with thermoregulation, so caution should be exerci sed when transporting these animals during warm weather,” it conti nues. When transporting ani mals on the road, the Ameri can Veteri nary Medical Associati on recommends keepi ng the tri ps as short as possible. Research Study, March 2025 Yo u’re more likely to adopt a dog yo u see face to face: Animal shelter visitation po licies matter https://link.growkudos.com/1ewal0slvr4 Voice of OC, February 18, 2025 OC Cities are Badly Served by the Co unty Animal Shelter. Is Reform Possible? https://voiceofoc.org/2025/02/lamirande-oc-cities-are-badly-served-by-the-county-animal-shelter-is-reform-possible/ Residents paid OC Animal Care $5.8 million in license fees. On top of that, OC cities paid $15.7 million out of their budgets. The county bureaucracy collected $8.4 million in admin costs. Supervisors Nguyen and Sarmiento, representing high-paying cities, are pushing for a better shelter. Supervisor Foley is protecting the mismanagement. Excerpts: The county took in $5.8 mi lli on i n li cense fees from pet owners. But that covers only a fracti on of OCAC’s budget and left $16.8 million i n net expenses. Of thi s, the county allocated $15.7 million or 93% of the cost to the cities, to be paid out of their muni ci pal budgets. To recap, the county pays 7% of the billable amount, or $1.2 million, but collects $8.4 million to feed i ts bureaucracy. That’s why the county wants to control the ani mal shelter. It’s revenue for county headquarters. OCAC i s not meeti ng standards on kennel staffi ng, because money is goi ng to overhead rather than rank-and-file staff. […] county bureaucrats are attempti ng to downgrade shelter standards by “updati ng” (read: canceli ng) the Strategi c Plan. They i ssued an RFP that had only one bi d from some generi c consultant. Then Dylan Wright’s bureaucracy that consumes mi lli ons i n admi n costs took 4.5 months for “ranki ng” one bid. Huh? If this RFP wasn’t malfeasance, it was total incompetence. It should be invalidated… and investigated. Wi th good poli ci es, the exi sti ng plan i s the cost-effecti ve way to serve the compani on ani mals as well as the taxpayers of OC. In the Board discussion about kennel staffing, Foley chimed in: “we do intend to follow the NACA gui delines for standards of care i n animal shelters, I believe that that’s the case.” How convenient. Did Foley look up the recommendation of the county’s own consultants to see that OCAC is falling way sho rt of these standards? Let me help. Foley can go to pages 4-5 of these excerpts from the JVR recommendations to read: “Staffi ng for dai ly cleaning and feeding based on HSUS, NACA, ASV: … Thi s equates to 26 Full-Time-Equivalent staff members per day.” That’s a careful calculation, done by experts in animal sheltering. Instead, Foley blindly sided with Schmidt’s PR. Contact the ci ti es that use OCAC and tell them to start exploring other opti ons. If they don’t, the county bureaucracy wi ll corner them i nto another sucker contract. OC Register, September 29, 2024 The OC’s inexcusably badly run animal shelter https://enewspaper.ocregister.com/infinity/article_popover_share.aspx?guid=bc40bdc0-13d9-44e7-b6fb-4c1c55b3ec16&share=true (letter to the editor; scroll to the 4th letter down) OC Register, September 25, 2024 Co unty managers failed our animal shelter https://www.ocregister.com/2024/09/24/county-managers-failed-our-animal-shelter/ [No te: There’s a problem in the OC Register app. If that app is on your device, press and hold the link, copy it, and then paste it into your web browser.] If you’re having trouble with the above link, try this Shareable Link. https://www.ocregister.com/2024/09/24/county-managers-failed-our-animal-shelter/?share=2opwholwe04gnaisaeiw As a last resort, there is also a P rint Edition Link but then you don’t have access to the links embedded inside the article. https://edition.pagesuite.com/popovers/dynamic_article_popover.aspx?guid=b13ee9db-5147-4f55-afd9-44c3bbdcaecd&appcode=OCR108&eguid=6fc45ebd-3c76-43f1-a3af- be1d2ca327cf&pnum=56# OC Register, September 9, 2024 Wo o fy Acres do g rescue under criminal investigatio n, 114 dogs seized by San Bernardino Co unty https://www.ocregister.com/2024/09/09/woofy-acres-dog-rescue-under-criminal-investigation-114-dogs-seized-by-san-bernardino-county/?share=eyrmnnoh0pcao1eddcns 'T here's no denying those dogs were neglected,' said a volunteer with Orange County Animal Care, which sent 149 dogs to the P inon Hills rescue Voice of OC, September 5, 2024 The OC Animal Shelter Directo r is All Image and No Substance https://voiceofoc.org/2024/09/mavrovouniotis-the-oc-animal-shelter-director-is-all-image-and-no-substance/ The county bureaucracy prefers political spinning over operational knowledge and experience. T hat’s why they chose Monica Schmidt for OC Animal Care Director. She overstated her animal sheltering qualifications to get the job, and she habitually misleads the community and elected officials. Voice of OC, August 13, 2024 Yamashiro : Questionable Co ntracts and Understaffed Shelter, A Crisis in OC Animal Care https://voiceofoc.org/2024/08/yamashiro-questionable-contracts-and-understaffed-shelter-a-crisis-in-oc-animal-care/ Are county contracts being issued without proper oversight? A former OC Animal Care employee, now living out of state, received a contract that seems to have produced no tangible results. Meanwhile, OC Animal Care is understaffing kennels and ignoring the majority of their very expensive 2018 Strategic P lan. Voice of OC, May 16, 2024 Yamashiro : OC Animal Care – Mismanagement and Public Deception Regarding Small Pets https://voiceofoc.org/2024/05/yamashiro-oc-animal-care-mismanagement-and-public-deception-regarding-small-pets/ OC Animal Care has been involved in transferring small pets to a reptile organization, which subsequently transported them to Arizona. In a related situation, it was reported that small pets from San Diego Humane Society were likely sold in Arizona as snake food. OCAC has not provided clear explanations regarding the fate of these animals, and support from County Supervisors Wagner and Foley has been lacking. Voice of OC, April 16, 2024 Bo yer: A Deteriorating Animal Shelter and Millio ns in Suspicio us Contracts https://voiceofoc.org/2024/04/boyer-a-deteriorating-animal-shelter-and-millions-in-suspicious-contracts/ Is there a problem in county management? We praise and blame County Supervisors. We ignore the top managers in county bureaucracy. One agency, OCCR, is wasting taxpayer dollars and abetting the grim disarray of the animal shelter. What’s hiding behind their disinformation? Chapman P anther (Chapman University), March 19, 2024 Our co mmunity deserves a decent animal shelter https://www.thepanthernewspaper.org/opinions/opinion-our-community-deserves-a-decent-animal-shelter Excerpts: The mismanagement went on too long, and that’s depressingly obvi ous i n the shelter’s di smal stati sti cs, as exposed i n a most recent Orange County Register arti cle. Small steps are not enough. We already have the bluepri nt for a well-run shelter: the shelter’s own strategi c plan, whi ch was developed by national experts and unani mously approved by the Board of Supervisors in 2018. Was that just for show? By this plan, the shelter should: Give dogs dai ly opportunities to sociali ze wi th other dogs. Take cats out of their kennels at least three ti mes per week. Log and track these acti vi ti es for each animal. Mi ni mi ze the ani mals’ length of stay in the shelter. Remove roadblocks to getting ani mals adopted or, when appropriate, rescued. Provi de veteri nary care for ani mals that need i t, while maki ng them available for public adoption. Return at least 45% of stray dogs to thei r owners. Ramp up a program to trap, neuter, and return (TNR) community cats. Get at least 85% of incomi ng cats adopted or rescued. Follow nati onal standards written by the Associ ati on of Shelter Veterinari ans (ASV). The shelter is way behind on all of these. Fullerton Observer, March 12, 2024 Mo re Bad News About Orange Co unty Animal Care https://fullertonobserver.com/2024/03/12/more-bad-news-about-orange-county-animal-care/ Excerpts: On September 10 last year, the OC animal shelter handed over rescue dogs Baron, Kate, Enzo, and Nevin to the group Woofy Acres. OC staff were concerned. Jaime Link, OCAC Operations Manager, wrote: “We recently had a rescue pi ck-up wi th the li sted representati ve, Di ane (see PID screenshot), and the shelter team reported that her vehicle emitted an odor of animal waste and gri me remi niscent of most hoardi ng houses. She was also behaving errati cally and yelling at staff i n the lobby. The rescuer has recently been pulling a lot of aggressive dogs (5 today), and I am concerned they may be goi ng into less-than-ideal condi ti ons.” In the nine prior weeks (from July 5 to September 8 last year), the OC animal shelter had already given 21 dogs to Woofy Acres. T he shelter gave a total of 128 dogs to Woofy Acres in 2020-2023. In February, the OC Register reported that Woofy Acres abandoned 32 dogs at a dog boarding facility last year. Some were in the facility for two years. Woofy Acres is delinquent on its bills and state-mandated paperwork. Almost half of the abandoned dogs were given to Woofy Acres by OC Animal Care in 2021. T he OC shelter gave many more dogs to Woofy Acres in 2022 and 2023; what happened to them is unknown. Spokesperson Alexa Pratt told the Register that “the agency was unaware of any problems wi th Woofy Acres when it released dogs to the rescue, the last ones going i n early January.” But Jaime Link’s September 10, 2023 email tells a different story. OC was very aware of problems through the first-hand observations of conscientious staff. It is unknown what research the shelter did, but it seems it didn’t even try to verify Woofy Acres’s charity status with the state. Michael Mavrovouniotis, an animal welfare advocate, said, “Mid-level and frontli ne OCAC staff love the animals and are doing thei r best to get good outcomes for them. I applaud Jai me Link and the animal care staff, who spoke up. They did the ri ght thi ng. They showed a better shelter is possible. However, the top managers at the shelter and OC Community Resources don’t show the same concern for the welfare of the animals i n their care. They falsely clai m that they di dn’t know there were any problems.” The shelter just kept handing animals over to Woofy Acres. In the last five months of 2023, the shelter gave 48 dogs to Woofy Acres after Woofy Acres had already abandoned dogs. Of those, 23 dogs were handed over after Jaime Link’s red-flag email describing erratic behavior and signs of hoarding. Unaccounted animals include Tate, Bonnie, and Gadget, who came from Fullerton. None of these dogs are in the boarding facility. T he shelter booked them as successes in its statistics, but the actual fate of the animals is unknown. OC residents concerned about what happened to these dogs can [http://The%20OCAC%20has%20been%20criticized%20for%20not%20tracking%20animals%20in%20its%20statistics,%20giving%20pet%20bunnies,%20hamsters,%20and%20guinea%20pigs%20to%20a%20group%20specializing%20in%20snakes,%20and%20maintaining%20pandemic- era%20policies.%20On%20September%2010%20last%20year,%20the%20OC%20animal%20shelter%20handed%20over%20rescue%20dogs%20Baron,%20Kate,%20Enzo,%20and%20Nevin%20to%20the%20group%20Woofy%20Acres.%20OC%20staff%20were%20concerned.%20Jaime%20Link,%20OCAC%20Operations%20Manager,%20wrote] the Board of Supervisors and their local elected officials to ask for a full accounting. OC Register, March 5, 2024 Animal rescue abando ns do zens o f do gs at Ro wland Heights kennel Do gs from OC agency among 32 abandoned by gro up https://www.ocregister.com/2024/03/04/animal-rescue-abandons-dozens-of-dogs-at-rowland-heights-shelter/ Excerpts: Especially troubling to ani mal activists i s that Orange County Ani mal Care has released 128 dogs to Woofy Acres si nce 2019, accordi ng to county records compiled by acti vi st Mi chael Mavrovouni oti s. “The Orange County shelter just takes the vi ew that we don’t care who takes the animals as long as we get them off our books,” He believes Orange County Ani mal Care should do a better job of screening ani mal rescues and following up on placements. “It’s part of (Orange County’s) reli ance on rescues,” Mavrovouni otis said. “The shelter is not doing enough to make adoptions easi er and thei r safety valve i s to push as many animals as possible … to rescues.” OC Register, March 2, 2024 Fewer ‘fixes’ mean mo re dead cats in Orange County https://www.ocregister.com/2024/03/01/fewer-fixes-mean-more-dead-cats-in-orange-county/?share=ercnnpt0sef1dsidoota Column: Animal services in Los Angeles, Long Beach, do better, while Riverside is all systems go to 'fix' street cats and reduce deaths Excerpts: Consi der: The city of Los Angeles racked up a “li ve outcome” rate of nearly 81% for cats that entered its shelters last year. Just 19% were euthani zed or di ed i n care, accordi ng to city data. Orange County Animal Care, in contrast, racked up li ve outcomes of just 68.6% for cats. More than 30% were euthani zed or died i n care last year. That’s an 8% jump in the raw number of dead cats over 2019 (to 1,925 from 1,779), even as the total number of i mpounded cats plunged by nearly a third (to 6,393 from 9,369). Myri ad studies have found that spayi ng and neuteri ng street cats vastly reduces death. In 2019, the last year of the street cat spay/neuter program, 19% of cats di ed or were euthanized at OC Ani mal Care. In 2023, more than 30% di ed or were euthanized. Today, folks who bri ng healthy street cats to the shelter are turned away and told to return the ani mal to where they found i t, rescuers say. And i t appears those cats make more cats. Who make more cats. And so on. To make a dent i n the suffering, we can’t fi x one cat at a ti me, said Romina Yamashi ro. The county must commi t to high-volume, i ntensi ve TNR targeti ng large feral colonies. It’s in O.C.’s strategic plan for the shelter. It’s been urged by the grand jury. But, alas. “We’re so frustrated,” she sai d. “Orange County has a magni fi cent, $35 mi lli on faci li ty, several surgery sui tes, three or four vets on staff. If we could make that work to provide spay and neuter for feral cats, you’d see a reducti on i n intakes and that would help not just the cats i n the communi ty, but the people i n the communi ty.” The 14 ci ti es that contract with Orange County for ani mal servi ces — i ncludi ng Anahei m and Santa Ana —should be outraged, she said. OC Register, February 11, 2024 Fewer do gs, mo re death, at OC Animal Care https://www.ocregister.com/2024/02/11/fewer-dogs-more-death-at-oc-animal-care/ Column: Comparison of pre- and post-pandemic years show failure of shelter policies, critics charge. But things are changing, shelter asks for support Excerpts: The “kill rate” for dogs at Orange County’s main ani mal shelter shot up markedly under its appointment-centric vi si tati on system, where folks couldn’t browse the full furry i nventory at their leisure, data suggests. Rather than throwi ng the doors all the way open, Orange County stuck largely to pandemi c protocol last year, preferri ng that people peruse pooch photos online, then make appoi ntments to meet those animals i n person. […] “Concierge service,” they called it. Cri ti cs countered that the system benefitted shelter managers, not ani mals or the adopti ng public. It’s easier to not have all those pesky outside eyeballs on your operati ons, they charged. Three hours every day i s better, criti cs said, but all the kennels wi th adoptable ani mals should welcome the publi c every hour they’re open. Nati onally, the number of dogs who were euthanized or who di ed in care rose as well. But whi le that jumped 12% nati onwide, i t rose 54% i n Orange County. That, Mavrovouni oti s maintai ns, shows O.C. is doing something wrong. “By any metric I looked at, national trends don’t explai n OCAC’s decli ne,” he said. Yes, folks, please, absolutely. Foster! Volunteer! Help our unwanted ani mals be wanted and loved again! Let them sleep on the bed! We may be a bit naïve, but i t seems that supporti ng the shelter, and opening i t wider as activists demand, are not necessarily mutually exclusive things. “It’s quite si mple, really,” said Boyer. “They need to open up the shelter all the way, all the buildi ngs, so people can walk through and look at all the avai lable dogs. It was worki ng fi ne before COVID. Why don’t you back to doing what you di d?” The numbers, Boyers mai ntains, understate the full magni tude of the problem. “Because of slow adopti ons, the shelter got severely overcrowded i n the fall. A lot of dogs weren’t going to make it out ali ve, but the hangar fi re brought i n the ASPCA that saved 100+ dogs. “Under the partial re-openi ng, the public can vi ew only about 65 to 70 dogs. But the shelter has about 100 dogs available for adopti on. Vi sitors should be able to see all of them i n their kennels. The shelter shouldn’t be hi ding 30 to 35 dogs out of si ght.” Fullerton Observer, January 2, 2024 Animal Advocates Call for Independent Investigation o f OC Animal Care https://fullertonobserver.com/2024/01/02/animal-advocates-call-for-independent-investigation-of-oc-animal-care/ Excerpts with added web li nks to supporti ng documents: In just 20 months, OC Ani mal Care (OCAC) gave 273 rodents, 200 rabbi ts, and other small pets to a reptile group. On a recent simi lar case i nvolvi ng animals from San Di ego, the Sacramento Bee reports that: “Informati on clearly indi cates (the repti le breeder’s) i ntenti on to use these ani mals as feed instead of findi ng them adopti ve homes.” Snapshots of emai l correspondence obtai ned via Publi c Record requests show that the OC shelter typi cally offered many small pets at once. The repti le group then took rodents and rabbi ts i n bulk without aski ng for preci se numbers and types of animals. That’s highly unusual. OC Animal Care made this repti le group its primary destinati on for small pets. In the past, [the reptile group] has advertised the avai labi lity of “feeder” rodents, i ncludi ng li ve ones. An independent outsi de i nvesti gator must be appointed directly by the Board of Supervi sors to get a veri fi able paper trai l for every animal the OC shelter handed over to the repti le group. OC Register, December 10, 2023 Animal officials pro mise co mpassio n, but offer euthanasia https://www.ocregister.com/2023/12/08/animal-officials-promise-compassion-but-offer-euthanasia/ This item has also been picked up by a think tank and by Newsbreak: https://www.newsbreak.com/california-state/3266656921694-why-are-california-s-animal-shelters-killing-so-many-pets https://reason.com/2023/12/15/why-are-californias-publicly-funded-animal-shelters-are-killing-so-many-pets/ Excerpt: Obvi ously, fewer people will fall in love wi th a purri ng or barki ng buddy if they can’t wander through the kennels and see whi ch ani mal pulls at thei r heartstri ngs. You can no more pick out a pet based on a shelter’s photo than you can pi ck out a spouse solely on thei r dati ng website bi o. Animal Care i ncreased the number of walk-in visi ts ami d cri ti ci sm, but i t’s sti ll absurdly li mi ted and I gave up trying to get i nfo after a really long wai t on i ts phone li ne. The bureaucrats who run the faci lity – the largest muni ci pal “ani mal-care” operati on i n the West – depi ct these customer-unfriendly, animal-harmi ng poli ci es as a means to protect the critters from stress and protect the publi c from animal bi tes. In reali ty, i t’s just the latest i nstance of government putti ng the employees’ convenience above the public good OC Register, December 2, 2023 OC Animal Care so ught to avo id o ptics of sending bunnies to local reptile rescue group https://www.ocregister.com/2023/12/01/oc-animal-care-sought-to-avoid-optics-of-sending-bunnies-to-local-reptile-rescue-group/ Voice of OC, November 22, 2023 The OC Animal Shelter Lied Abo ut Its Safety Reco rd. It Needed an Excuse to Keep the Kennels Off-Limits and Ditch Its Strategic Plan. https://voiceofoc.org/2023/11/mavrovouniotis-the-oc-animal-shelter-lied-about-its-safety-record-it-needed-an-excuse-to-keep-the-kennels-off-limits-and-ditch-its-strategic-plan/ The county misinformed the public and the Grand Jury. It understated the number of bites that occurred at the animal shelter in 2021-2022. In reality, shelter policies resulted in no safety improvements. False statistics served as a smokescreen for disregarding the Strategic Plan, blocking public access, and lowering animal care standards. Voice of OC, November 14, 2023 Yamashiro : OC Animal Care Gave Hundreds o f Rabbits, Guinea Pigs, and Birds to a Reptile Gro up. What Happened to Them? https://voiceofoc.org/2023/11/yamashiro-oc-animal-care-gave-hundreds-of-rabbits-guinea-pigs-and-birds-to-a-reptile-group-what-happened-to-them/ Voice of OC, October 25, 2023 Lawther: Animal Shelter Deteriorates as Co unty Bureaucracy Keeps Superviso rs in the Dark https://voiceofoc.org/2023/10/lawther-animal-shelter-deteriorates-as-county-bureaucracy-keeps-supervisors-in-the-dark/ OC Community Resources covered up the deterioration of the animal shelter. It put together a false narrative for internal use, but kept it from the public. Meanwhile, the shelter’s kill rate is rising, dogs get very little socialization, and data collection is dismal. Why is the shelter flouting its own Strategic Plan? OC Register, October 14, 2023 Advocates ho rrified over mysterious fate of small animals https://www.ocregister.com/2023/10/13/advocates-horrified-over-mysterious-fate-of-small-animals/?share=saaeotyscecmamsaw1ie or https://www.ocregister.com/2023/10/13/advocates-horrified-over-mysterious-fate-of-small-animals/ Voice of OC, September 20, 2023 How to Fix OC Animal Care? Use the Strategic Plan! https://voiceofoc.org/2023/09/mavrovouniotis-how-to-fix-oc-animal-care-use-the-strategic-plan/ OC Community Resources is mismanaging the animal shelter. More animals are getting killed. Animal care and behavior assessment are substandard, creating dangerous conditions. Kennel staff and volunteers are exhausted. T here’s a solution: Implement the animal shelter’s Strategic Plan. Get off pandemic mode. Re-open the kennel areas to adopters. Voice of OC, August 24, 2023 Barba: OC Animal Care Needs to Get Its Facts Straight https://voiceofoc.org/2023/08/barba-oc-animal-care-needs-to-get-its-facts-straight/ OCAC is making false claims to cover up its poor performance. It can’t even count its animals correctly. Although fewer animals are coming in than pre-pandemic, the shelter has higher kill rates and longer stays. More adopted animals end up returned. OCAC has been failing its Strategic P lan – and hiding it. Fullerton Observer, August 16, 2023 (T his is a multi-section article. Make sure you scroll down!) OC residents raise co ncerns o ver OC Animal Care shelter Orange Co unty Tax Payers and Homeless Animals Deserve Better OC Animal Care is co ntinuing to mislead the public https://fullertonobserver.com/2023/08/16/oc-residents-raise-concerns-over-oc-animal-care-shelter/ Voice of OC, August 7, 2023 Lawther: OC Animal Care is Unable to Keep Track o f its Animals https://voiceofoc.org/2023/08/lawther-oc-animal-care-is-unable-to-keep-track-of-its-animals/ OCAC appears to have fabricated the only 2023 animal statistics it has published so far. We effectively know nothing about current animal intakes, outcomes, or kill rates. What we do know is that their data can’t be trusted. It’s time for the Board of Supervisor to act. Los Angeles T imes, June 9, 2023 Status quo at O.C. animal shelter ‘unacceptable’ as euthanasia rates rise, repo rt says https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2023-06-08/orange-county-animal-care-shelter-grand-jury-report-dogs-cats-euthanized KT LA 5 News, June 9, 2023 Grand jury raises co ncerns abo ut OC Animal Care’s po licies https://ktla.com/news/local-news/grand-jury-raises-concerns-about-oc-animal-cares-policies/ OC Register, June 9, 2023 OC Grand Jury raises concerns with management, animal welfare at OC Animal Care https://www.ocregister.com/2023/06/09/oc-grand-jury-raises-concerns-with-management-animal-welfare-at-oc-animal-care/ Voice of OC, June 8, 2023 Grand Jury: OC Animal Shelter Needs Updated Policies to Sto p Killing More Animals https://voiceofoc.org/2023/06/grand-jury-oc-animal-shelter-needs-updated-policies-to-stop-killing-more-animals/ Fullerton Observer, June 7, 2023 Grand Jury Report: The State o f Animal Welfare Overseen by the Co unty o f Orange https://fullertonobserver.com/2023/06/07/grand-jury-report-the-state-of-animal-welfare-overseen-by-the-county-of-orange/ OC Register, May 11, 2023 OC’s animal shelter still a killing zo ne https://www.ocregister.com/2023/05/11/ocs-animal-shelter-still-a-killing-zone/ OC Register, May 10, 2023 Revamp Orange County Animal Care shelter po licies, critics tell OC superviso rs https://www.ocregister.com/2023/05/10/revamp-orange-county-animal-care-shelter-policies-critics-tell-oc-supervisors/ KNX News, May 8, 2023 Orange Co unty animal shelter kill rates do uble for adult do gs in 3 years https://www.audacy.com/knxnews/news/local/orange-county-animal-shelter-kill-rates-double-in-3-years OC Register, May 7, 2023 Mo re adult do gs dying at OC Animal Care, kennels largely off-limits https://www.ocregister.com/2023/05/07/more-adult-dogs-dying-at-oc-animal-care-kennels-largely-off-limits/?share=tocecdmereiywdporla0