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January 25, 2018
LOS ANGELES — Mayor Eric Garcetti announced today that the City of Los Angeles has reached its “no-kill” goal for dogs under the care of the Department of Animal Services.
“Every pet should have a home where they are loved, cared for, and valued,” said Mayor Garcetti. “The City’s extraordinary partnership with the No-Kill Los Angeles Coalition has helped save the lives of hundreds of thousands of animals. Every Angeleno who loves animals can help by adopting, fostering, and volunteering at their local shelters.”
The City first committed to working toward no-kill — defined as 90% of dogs and cats entering shelters eventually leaving alive — in 2012. In 2017, L.A.’s live/save rate reached 92.4% for dogs and 81.3% for cats.
“Putting an end to the senseless euthanasia of domestic animals in our L.A. shelters has been one of my lifelong goals,” said Councilmember Paul Koretz of the 5th District and chair of the Personnel and Animal Welfare Committee. “For more than thirty years I have worked on animal welfare issues including a ban on puppy mills. I couldn’t be more delighted that in the same year the State of California has banned pet stores from selling domestic animals (modeled after my local ordinance), we have also come so close to fully-reaching No-Kill in Los Angeles. But what is really critical is that we create systems, programs and partnerships to not only achieve a 90% live-release goal in both dogs and cats but sustain it permanently.”
Overall, the City’s total live/save rate in those six years increased from 57.7% to 87.2% — saving the lives of more than 227,000 animals. Led by Best Friends Animal Society, the No-Kill Los Angeles Coalition has been a key partner in this achievement.
“Since the City committed to becoming No-Kill, we’ve implemented more humane policies and practices and developed strategic partnerships with our No-Kill Los Angeles Coalition,” said Animal Services General Manager Brenda Barnette. “While we still have more work to do, I’m so proud of how far we’ve come.”
To reaffirm the City’s commitment to no-kill, Mayor Garcetti convened a November meeting with the No-Kill Los Angeles Coalition Steering Committee — to discuss new and innovative practices that will be implemented in the coming year.
Over the next several months, Mayor Garcetti and the Department of Animal Services will launch a campaign dedicated to raising awareness of spay/neuter laws, cat adoptions, and kitten fostering. Los Angeles Animal Services is also exploring options for expanding the City’s Spay and Neuter program.
In addition, new positions will be created to oversee the day-to-day work of reaching No-Kill. The new positions include an Assistant General Manager of Life-Saving and Life-Saving Coordinators in every city shelter — all of whom will use real-time data to guide strategies geared toward preserving animals’ lives.
“This is not only a game-changer for Los Angeles, but for the entire country. We know that if a city the size of L.A. can achieve this milestone, it will be possible across the country by 2025,” said Judah Battista, Co-Founder/Chief Regional Programs Officer, Best Friends Animal Society, the lead partner in the NKLA Coalition. “The NKLA initiative is anchored by an innovative public/private partnership between Best Friends, Los Angeles Animal Services and the 133 L.A.-based animal welfare organizations working together to Save Them All. We are incredibly proud to work with all of these dedicated people and are thrilled to be so close to achieving the goal we set out back in 2012.”
For more information about the NKLA Coalition and the work of the Best Friends Animal Society, please visit www.BestFriends.org.
