By Leslie Collins
Northeast News
October 19, 2011

Only 10 percent of Kansas Citians have licensed their pets and it’s creating a strain on the city’s animal control and animal shelter budget.

Two and a half years ago, the city contracted out the operation of the city’s animal shelter, and the number of euthanizations decreased while the number of pet adoptions increased. However, nine months ago, the city received complaints about the operation of the animal shelter and a medical malpractice complaint was filed through the Missouri Veterinarian Board.

As a result, the city did not renew the contract and took over animal shelter operations in May.

Built in 1973, the animal shelter building desperately needs upgrades and no longer provides adequate square footage.

A new operator has been chosen, but funding the cost has created a dispute.

A review board chose Kansas City Pet Project, a non-profit organization, to oversee the animal shelter and the Kansas City Parks and Recreation Department is proposing an ordinance to transfer

$285,000 from the city’s Contingency Fund to the Neighborhood Community Services Department to help fund the contract. The six-month contract is $588,155.50 and is renewable at the end of the six months. This Following the first year, the contract will allow up to four additional one-year renewals with a 3 percent increase on Nov. 1 of each year for the operation of the animal shelter.

This year’s animal shelter budget is $700,000 and $300,000 is left in the account.

“I am very concerned about the financial implications of this ordinance,” City Council member Jan Marcason told the Public Safety and Emergency Services Committee Oct. 12. “My concern is the use of the Contingency Fund for what I see as an ongoing operational expense. If we take this funding out of the Contingency, we are teetering on just barely having enough in a good year for snow removal. We would be losing our cushion.”

Marcason added the city shouldn’t be the only avenue for funding. Both cat and dog owners need to take responsibility and license their pets with the city and fundraising must be considered as an option, she said.

The fee for registering an altered cat or dog with the city is $10 and $33 for unaltered animals, said David Park, director of Kansas City’s Neighborhood and Community Services Department.

Currently, licensing revenue is only $250,000. If the city could garner 50 percent of pet owners to license their pets, that would generate an additional $1 million per year, Park said.

“I think this is a bad precedent to set and a bad policy,” Marcason said of using the Contingency Fund.

In addition to snow removal, the fund has been used for other emergency situations, such as tornado, flood and storm damage, she said. The city started off with $4.7 million in the fund this year, but a portion of it has already been used, she said.

“It’s only October. We have until the end of April for this Contingency Fund to be available,” Marcason said. “It’s very unpredictable and trust me, emergencies will arise.”

Park discussed several solutions to increasing the number of licensed pets. If owners register their pets, it ensures the pets will be returned to the owner’s residence and animal shelter fees can be avoided, Park said.

Several representatives from the Kansas City Pet Project spoke during the meeting and explained their services. President Brent Toellner said the organization already has programs in place for fundraising and would assist in the fundraising effort. Executive Director Kim Staton said Kansas City Pet Project is experienced in animal shelter disease control, an issue the city has struggled to address.

“The disease issue at Kansas City, Missouri’s shelter is not uncommon to older facilities,” she said.

A number of things, however, can be implemented to control disease and offer better care for the animals, which include better segregation of sick animals, immediately vaccinating new animals when they arrive, among other strategies, she said. With fundraising efforts, the organization could also replace aging kennels, offer extend shelter hours and provide care for animals with serious illnesses, she said.

Pet Project Vice President Michelle Davis told Northeast News that any fundraising they do would go directly toward the Kansas City Animal Shelter and nothing else.

Committee members voted to pass the proposed ordinance out of committee with a recommendation of “do pass.”

Committee member John Sharp said the ordinance can “always be amended.”