July 1, 2002

Dear Volunteer:

You may have read or heard of the June 22 Washington Post news account involving the Animal Welfare League of Arlington. It was one-sided, very unflattering and inaccurate. As a League volunteer, you have a right and a need to know the League's side.

First, the facts:

This spring, we learned that some League employees had falsified euthanasia and drug records and had taken animals from the Shelter -- mostly kittens, a few cats and critters and one pit bull. Many of these animals would have been euthanized for a variety of reasons: significant health problems, ranging from severe upper respiratory infections to bite wounds of unknown origins, which posed rabies risks; failure to thrive, a condition marked by continued weight loss and lethargy despite treatment; and breed behavior.

The Post article implied that all kittens are euthanized here. If you have visited our cat room during the spring and summer, you know it is filled with kittens, as well as cats. In reality, only a small number of very young or sick kittens are euthanized instead of being put up for adoption.

As you know, the League does not adopt pit bulls; in fact, only one local shelter does and it has proposed stopping. While we don't think every pit bull is aggressive, our research indicates that genetic instabilities make predicting aggression in these dogs impossible. This makes their adoption irresponsible to our community and poses serious liability issues.

Some, but not all, of the animals taken were returned to the League to be adopted. Some were kept as employee pets and some were given to friends.

We cannot know if any suffered or if they are all in safe and permanent homes. We cannot know if they will all be spayed or neutered instead of adding to the pet overpopulation problem.

While the employees involved acted with heartfelt intentions, their actions put the League in grave legal jeopardy. Records on controlled substances regulated by the federal Drug Enforcement Agency were falsified, thus putting the League at risk for being shut down by the DEA, the State Veterinarian and the State Pharmacy Board. These actions also jeopardized our contract with Arlington County. The League shelters approximately 4,000 animals a year. Where would those animals go if our doors were closed?

Obviously, the employees disagreed with the League's policies strongly enough to violate laws and shelter procedures. However, not one employee ever asked a member of the Board of Directors, most of whom work side by side with staff in the kennels and on the front desk, to reconsider a policy, nor have they requested a policy review since leaving.

Staff Changes

When asked about their actions, five employees resigned. These vacancies left us short-staffed for a few days. However, thanks to the dedication of the remaining League staff and our wonderful volunteers, we didn't miss a beat. I am pleased to say that animal care, adoptions, and response to emergencies did not suffer. We filled all five vacancies within two months and have been busy training new employees while continuing to seek some part- and full-time people for other positions. Further, we routinely send animals in need of medical care to veterinarians or have them seen by a visiting vet who volunteers at the Shelter as you do.

Another resignation saddened me. Linda Willen, our Executive Director, submitted her resignation to the Board because, these activities took place "on her watch, " although she was unaware of them. She asked the Board for time to fix the problems and she and the rest of the staff are busy doing that. While the Board has not considered her resignation yet, it is still on the table. Meanwhile, Linda continues to ably lead the organization, as she has for the last 18 years. I work closely with Linda, as Board President and as a front office and special events volunteer. I can truly say that she is one of the most humane people I know and that she is able to see boththe forest and the trees -- the 4,000 animals the League shelters each year and each individual animal. With limited financial resources, she must balance the needs of each animal against the needs of all the animals the League shelters and the hundreds of thousands of people in our community. I have every confidence in her ability to lead the League through this challenging time.

Policies

This incident raised questions about some League policies, which I would like to review with you.

1. Euthanasia: Euthanasia is a sad but necessary part of our work. Unlike most so﷓called "no kill" shelters that turn away animals they deem unadoptable, the League takes in every animal that it receives. Because it takes every animal, there are necessarily some animals that the League will not be able to adopt because of health, behavior, aggression, or age. These animals are humanely euthanized.

2. Fostering: Another issue raised by this incident is "fostering," or housing some shelter animals in private homes. The League currently does not foster animals outside of the Shelter for a variety of reasons:

• Fostering does not solve the basic problem faced by all animal shelters ﷓﷓ pet overpopulation. There are not enough homes for all animals. Fostering does not save lives; it merely changes which animals are made available for adoption. There are a finite number of homes and an infinite number of animals, so the unfortunate reality is that if one kitten gets adopted, another kitten or adult cat does not. Because fostering does not increase the number of homes, it does not actually save lives. It does make some animals, sometimes some very young and sick ones, available to compete for permanent homes with other animals who are often more socialized and healthier than the fostered animals.

• Prevention, not fostering, is the answer. The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) estimates that every person would have to have 7 dogs or cats to end pet homelessness ﷓﷓ a family of four would have 28 animals! The League is the only shelter I know that has both a low-cost and a free spay/neuter program.

• The League is fortunate to have more space than many shelters. Organizations without kennel facilities must rely on foster homes to house animals and must take pets to stores for adoptions. Some local shelters handle high numbers of animals with minimal space and staff. As you know, thanks to our supporters, the League recently expanded its animal space. We have 48 "double﷓wide" cages in our cat room, each large enough to hold two adult cats or a litter of kittens. In addition, we have space for another 30 cats or kitten litters in isolation. These "off view" cages offer in-shelter fostering space where stressed cats can calm down before going up for adoption, sick animals can get better and kittens needing a short time to grow up can become old enough and big enough to be adopted. Our 18 double dog runs and three isolation runs are adequate for our area's dog population. We rarely euthanize animals for space reasons, so we have not needed to send animals out to foster homes.

• Virginia just enacted legislation, SB 260, to regulate foster homes. The Virginia Federation of Humane Societies and the League applaud this legislation, as it holds foster homes to the same standards of cleanliness and care as shelters. The League is inspected annually by various groups﷓﷓the State Veterinarian's office, the DEA and the State Pharmacy Board. The additional manpower and finances needed to ensure compliance with SB 260 may lead some humane societies to drop or curtail their fostering programs.

• Our volunteers help socialize our cats, critters and dogs with walks, grooming, attention and love. This makes our animals more adoptable and helps them stay happier while they are here. Some foster homes have 20 or more animals in a home and the animals can receive very little human attention, as many fosterers work outside the home all day. Because of all our people time, the animals in our Shelter can actually be more adoptable than animals kept in foster situations.

The League's Board of Directors, which determines policy, will review the fostering policy over the next few months. I will let you know the results of those deliberations.

What You Can Do to Help

Whenever there is negative publicity about any animal shelter, the animals are the innocent victims. We know that you want to ensure that League animals continue to receive excellent care and find permanent, loving homes. As a volunteer, you can help:

1. You can continue your important work with us. Whether you walk, socialize, groom, clean, answer phones, do adoptions, take animals to nursing homes or raise money, your work is crucial to the animals' well﷓being.

2. You can tell your relatives, friends and colleagues about our good work:
   • We take in every animal that comes to us ﷓﷓ 4,000 each year.
   • We adopt 94% of all adoptable cats and 93% of all adoptable dogs to responsible homes.
   • Our free educational programs reach thousands.
   • Our pet therapy programs allow 500+ people each month to enjoy the love of animals.
   • We house animals of victims of fire, domestic abuse and other emergencies at no charge.
   • We offset the costs of hundreds of spay/neuter procedures each year.
   • We provide in﷓home pet care for pets of people needing temporary help.
   • We offer financial assistance to people in need to help with veterinary care for their animals.
   • We have more than 600 wonderful volunteers!

3. You can provide your comments ﷓﷓ good or bad. Or you can ask questions. As a volunteer, you are part of the League family, and we value your suggestions, concerns and ideas. You may address them to me at the League or e﷓mail them to mail@awla.org.

On behalf of the League's Board of Directors, please accept my thanks for all you do as a volunteer. All of us at the League, two﷓legged and four﷓legged, appreciate your help and are relying on your continued support.

Sincerely,