A photographic trip down BARC's (and Mayor White's) memory lane

June 29, 6:26 PMHouston Animal News ExaminerNicole Sica

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In a recent story from the Texas Watchdog (and if you haven’t seen this blog yet, you’re in for a nice surprise), reporter Rosanna Ruiz places the spotlight on how important public image is to Mayor White.

Publishing email documents between White and a downtown developer obtained through a public information request, White makes it very clear that on his way out he wants to make a lasting, visual impression.

According to Ruiz’s report, in an e-mail to Parks and Recreation Director Joe Turner regarding one of his ongoing projects, Discovery Green, White writes:

“These visual images are precious and good marketing for both public support and private donations… It is important as we look to the completion of this last term of my Administration that we have a visual record of some of the accomplishments … to challenge those who come after and set the bar.”

Setting the bar with Mayor White’s administration would be a big mistake. Raising the bar may actually be more accurate. For example, here’s a visual record of White’s “accomplishments” when it comes to BARC:

Filthy Conditions

White has been dogged throughout his administration regarding BARC and its deplorable conditions. For instance, activists, welfarists, rescues, and just the public in general have made countless complaints regarding the cleanliness of BARC’s facility. Here are just a few examples of what these concerned citizens were talking about. Please note, all of these pictures were taken within the past three months.

Ongoing Disease

In a recent news story by Craig Malisow of the Houston Press, BARC officials requested supplemental funding because between July 2008 and January 2009 only 8% of animals were vaccinated. This time frame is just a drop in BARC’s disease bucket, however, as there have been excessive amounts of puppies and dogs dying from distemper since BARC’s inception. White’s response? In a word, nada.  Here are just a couple examples of the precious lives lost to unnecessary disease. Remember, there are families at the end of these sad tales who were devastated by White’s apathy and BARC’s lack of vaccination protocol, i.e. care.

City Sanctioned Abuse

In a recent post by a Chron blogger, photographic evidence of the starvation which occurs behind closed doors is clearly evident. These dogs, all brought to an offsite adoption event, are shocking evidence of criminal neglect. And, the blogger avers, these dogs had been at BARC “for weeks or months”—long enough for them to have gained weight if they had entered BARC in these conditions. But wait! If anyone thinks this is something new at BARC, you might want to read page four of the 2006 whistleblower lawsuit, City of Houston vs. Sam Levingston, DVM, a former veterinarian at BARC. In it, Dr. Levingston reports BARC employees did not “properly feed and water animals…” Dr. Levingston won the suit, by the way.

The Cadaver Parade

And now, the last ride Houston’s luckless, homeless pets receive—compliments of the City. Coined the “Cadaver Parade” by disgusted volunteers and citizens, on at least two occasions BARC officials were notified that corpses were being hauled to the city dump uncovered or in clear plastic bags.  So what, you might say --they were already dead, right? Try explaining that to the unsuspecting individuals (read: kids) traumatized by the gruesome scene rolling down I-45, or the BARC workers who had to suffer the stench of decomposing, un-bagged bodies rotting behind the facility.

*And just as a sidenote, in this second picture, it was only after a citizen complained about the exposed bodies in the back of this truck (un-bagged and uncovered) that the sanitation department covered the dead animals with a tarp.

Memory Lane

We hope you have enjoyed our “precious images” gallery. Mayor White is running for a Senate seat this year.  We hope you won’t forget this trip down memory lane while in the voting booth, and if you have a minute, here’s a few emails you may want to consider when writing about the unceasingly deplorable conditions at Houston’s BARC.

·         Stephen Williams, Director of DHHS (Department of Health & Human Services) which directly governs BARC:   Stephen.Williams@cityofHouston.net

·         Michael Terraso, Assistant Director of DHHS:   Michael.Terraso@cityofHouston.net

·         Ray Sim, the laughable and inept clown currently BARC’s Bureau Chief: Ray.Sim@cityofHouston.net

·         And here is a list of emails to our City Council members, ready to be copied into an email:

atlarge1@cityofhouston.net;

atlarge2@cityofhouston.net;

atlarge3@cityofhouston.net;

atlarge4@cityofhouston.net;

atlarge5@cityofhouston.net;

districta@cityofhouston.net;

districtb@cityofhouston.net;

districtc@cityofhouston.net;

districtd@cityofhouston.net;

districte@cityofhouston.net;

districtf@cityofhouston.net;

districtg@cityofhouston.net;

districth@cityofhouston.net;

districti@cityofhouston.net