January 2013 is a banner month with the appointments of animal control officers in both Oakland County and Macomb County. New leadership gives new hope that both the Oakland County Pet Adoption Center/Animal Control Shelter and the Macomb County Animal Shelter will score far higher on their animal save rate in the coming year.
The Michigan Pet Fund Alliance in 2011 took the annual shelter reports that each licensed shelter is required to submit to the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development and performed calculations within each report to determine the shelter’s performance in saving lives. The report breaks down reporting shelters into categories including:
Listed according to admission policy.
- Limited admission = Only accepting animals when space is available at the shelter or in foster homes, selecting animals for intake.
- Open Admission = Accepting all strays even if full and accepting or making arrangements for owner surrender when full.
Listed according to size.
- Open Admission Small Shelters < 1000
- Open Admission Medium Shelters 1000 - 5000
- Open Admission Large Shelter > 5000
There is nowhere to go but up
Both the Oakland and Macomb shelters are found under the category of Open Admission > 5000. In the 2011 Save Report produced by the Michigan Pet Fund Alliance, Oakland County had a weak save rate at only 62.61%. This was a respectable number considering that Macomb County came in at a deplorable 25.08%. In comparison is a remarkable shelter found in the same category as Oakland and Macomb. The Humane Society of Huron Valley, Ann Arbor was reported with a 79.79% save rate in 2011.
Introducing Oakland County’s Robert Gatt
Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson has appointed Robert Gatt of Novi to lead Oakland’s animal control operations. Gatt currently serves as the mayor of Novi, and has served two four-year terms on the Novi City Council since 2003 and was chief of field operations for Oakland County’s Community Corrections Division since 2002. Gatt began his career in law enforcement in 1975 as a patrol officer for the Novi Police Department with progressive promotions up to the rank of sergeant supervising the police department’s Patrol Division. Gatt has a bachelor of science degree in business administration from Wayne State University and a master’s degree in interdisciplinary technology from Eastern Michigan University.
Introducing Macomb County’s Jeffery Randazzo
Appointed by Macomb County Executive Mark Hackel, Jefferey Randazzo of St. Clair Shores will begin his new role as the new animal care and control manager for the shelter on January 22, 2013. Randazzo has worked for the Michigan Humane Society and Oakland County Animal Control. He has a degree in equine and livestock management from Michigan State University. Welfare activists and the surrounding community are excited and supportive of Randazzo in this role.
Thinking outside the kennel
It is the Detroit Dog Examiner’s sincerest hope that both Gatt and Randazzo will look to each other for cross-county support and make solid linkages with area pet rescues, advocates and citizens to successfully rehome pets and increase their save rate along with making significant efforts toward public education around topics such as sterilization, vaccination programs, animal cruelty and breed discrimination among other health and welfare related issues.
Comments