AS-2010-09-21
The Coppell Animal Services board met on September 21, 2010 at 5:30pm. The meeting
was held at the animal shelter located at 821 S. Coppell Rd. Coppell, TX 75019. The
following members were present: Garfield Reed DVM and new member Linda Pate-
Ulmer. City Liaisons, shelter manager Robert Smith, Police Chief Gary Nix, recording
secretaries Charlene Trego and Jonathan Horner were also present.
Item 1: Call meeting to order
Robert Smith called the meeting to order at 5:36pm.
Item 2: Introduction of new board member
Robert Smith introduced the newest board member, Linda Pate-Ulmer to others in
attendance.
Item 3: Distribute monthly report
Robert handed out copies of the monthly report to all in attendance. Dr. Garfield asked
if this was a correction of last months’ numbers. Robert replied that it was the current
numbers and he also had a correction of the last months’ numbers to be handed out.
Linda inquired about the circumstances for euthanasia. Robert and Chief Nix gave
examples of why we might euthanize an animal. Some examples included an extremely
sick or injured animal, an aggressive animal or an animal too young to receive proper
care and nutrition at our facility. Robert also informed her of the “stray hold” period for
animals that are acquired as strays, stating that the period is five days, in order to allow a
potential owner enough time to locate the animal. Dr. Reed asked what the difference was
between the “cats rescued” versus “cats impounded” numbers meant. Robert explained
that “cats rescued” included only cats that were pulled by reputable rescue organizations.
Linda then inquired about our relationship with rescues. Robert informed her of when we
might use a rescue resource, such as when we have an animal in the shelter for a
prolonged period of time with no interest from the public. Chief Nix went on to add that
many of the cats that do not leave the shelter alive are feral cats that would not be suitable
adoption candidates.
Item 4: Discuss correct euthanasia numbers
Robert passed out an adjusted report as a supplement to the report that was handed out
at the last meeting. The purpose of this report is to clear up the discrepancies in the
number of animals euthanized versus adopted. He explained that there were some things
that were previously not entered in correctly or not entered in at all and this report has
much more accurate numbers. Dr. Reed asked what “cats in field” meant. Robert
explained that this would have been animals that were never technically put into our
system as being impounded. This would include severely injured animals or perhaps
orphaned baby animals that were not kept in the shelter, but instead euthanized
immediately due to their condition. Linda asked if this was an oversight or if this was
something that was happening on a regular basis. Robert explained that ALL animals
were being correctly impounded now and that practice would continue.
Item 5: Open discussion for Board members
Linda asked if anyone had heard the news regarding the Sanger animal control where
extremely large numbers of animals were being euthanized and records were not being
properly kept. Linda and Robert went on to discuss the statistics of that situation and how
we work very hard not to have anything like that happen here in Coppell. Linda cited a
specific instance where a dog that had an owner was euthanized without any contact
attempts being made and no proper stray hold period. Robert assured her that nothing like
that would be taking place in our city. Dr. Reed added how it was fairly easy to
distinguish a dog that has been strayed for awhile versus a dog that has a potential owner,
just by physical appearance. Chief Nix explained to the group that our city works hard to
uphold a good reputation and provide excellent service to our residents/customers. The
group briefly discussed the differences between ours and other neighboring
municipalities. Linda apologizes for bringing up such negative subject matter. Robert
praises the animal services staff and acknowledges that they are all passionate about their
jobs and take a lot of pride in what they do.
Chief Nix explained to the group some history about Coppell Animal Services. He
explained how it has, in the past several years, undergone several changes, including staff
changes, departmental hierarchy and facility and equipment upgrades. He explained that
as a result of all of those things, there is a higher level of service being provided to our
residents. Robert added that the staff these days has a great attitude when it comes to
servicing the citizens and coming up with ideas and options to help them out in different
situations. Chief Nix went on to say that no one under the Police dept. as a whole are the
type of people that say “that’s not my job.” He explained how each employee will make
it a priority to assist citizens however possible. If it is not something they, specifically,
can remedy, they will forward the citizen to the department that can best assist them.
Dr. Reed brought up the issue of increasing the size of the board, as discussed in the
prior meeting. Chief Nix stated that he would need to do some research and find out what
steps needed to be taken in order for that to potentially take place. He stated that he didn’t
believe there was necessity for a huge board but instead that about 4-5 members in total
might be realistic. Dr. Reed stated that his position in particular was supposed to be
primary medical advice, not so much to assist in the larger decisions regarding the
department. They both agreed that it would be beneficial to have additional members so
there would be more of a presence if someone should be absent for any reason.
Robert informed everyone that a new board president would be chosen at the next
meeting.
Dr. Reed asked about the difference in the board now and about the official name of the
board, if it was an appeals board only or has changed to an advisory board. Robert and
Chief Nix explained that it was originally only an appeals board but now serves the
purpose of both an advisory board as well as an appeals board. Linda asked what those
two things meant. Chief Nix explained that an appeals board works on issues where a
resident is appealing a decision made by animal services and that this was only for
decisions that did not involve criminal charges or court proceedings. It was also
explained that the advisory board was responsible for bringing up new ideas and
inquiring about changes that might benefit the department. Dr. Reed explained how
things differ in his opinion now, versus when he first joined the board. Chief Nix gave
some more background including that Animal Services used to be under the
environmental health department.
Linda asked about the frequency of board meetings. Robert informed her that the board
meets three times a year. She also asked why someone on the board quit and needed
replacing. Robert and Chief Nix did not feel this needed to be discussed.
Robert asked if there was anything else anyone would like to discuss. No one had
anything else at this time. He informed the members that he would be contacting
everyone via e-mail when the next meeting was scheduled and would follow up to ensure
that everyone could attend. He stated that meeting would typically take place on
Tuesdays around 5:30pm since that seems to work well for everyone.
Item 6: Adjourn
Robert adjourned the meeting at 6:01pm
Robert Smith, Animal Services Manager
Charlene Trego, recording secretary