Finding of gross negligence comes with comparable cases against “no-kill” city shelter pending LOS ANGELES, California––Finding Los Angeles Animal Services guilty of gross negligence, a Los Angeles jury on May 31, 2023 awarded $6.8 million to German shepherd mix attack victim and former shelter volunteer Kelly Kaneko, 36. The Kaneko award came less than […]
“Peak dog” means no homes left––especially not for “behavior dogs”
“Peak dog” also means “Fix the problem before it gets worse.” LOS ANGELES, AUSTIN, SAN ANTONIO––City of San Antonio Animal Care Services did not mention “peak dog,” pit bulls, nor even spay/neuter in a September 1, 2022 bulletin lamenting that “Just this week, 26 dogs have been humanely euthanized due to our shelter’s capacity restraints.” […]
$20.8 million jury award for California dog attack
Retired police dog chased mail carrier before killing man, mauling woman EXETER, California––A San Luis Obispo County jury on July 28, 2021 awarded $7 million to Rachel, Sarah, and Steven Fear, the adult survivors of December 2016 dog attack victim David Fear, plus $13.8 million to David Fear’s former neighbor, Betty Long, who was […]
Los Angeles Animal Services chief Brenda Barnette to retire in May 2021
Took L.A. to “no kill” at cost of soaring pit bull attacks LOS ANGELES, California––Brenda Barnette, the third-longest-serving general manager of Los Angeles Animal Services since World War II, has announced her retirement, effective in mid-May 2021. The City of Los Angeles has officially not yet begun what is expected to become a nationwide […]
L.A. city council approves TNR: “project does not encourage feeding”
Not encouraging feeding sidesteps most objections to new Los Angeles neuter/return cat control program LOS ANGELES, California––The long-awaited Los Angeles Citywide Cat Program on December 10, 2020 won unanimous approval from the Los Angeles City Council. “The Council vote clears the way for the city to use municipal funds to operate the Citywide Cat […]
Horsemeat, dog meat, & how “angel” Marc Ching fell from grace
Donors ignored years of warnings about convict turned “rescue” celebrity LOS ANGELES––Marc Ching, who in November 2018 offered to sell the city of Los Angeles vegan food for impounded dogs at a substantial discount, is reportedly to be arraigned in December 2020 on one misdemeanor count each of practicing veterinary medicine without a license, false advertising, […]
Mary Lou Simms, Lori Golden, & Linda Lord focused their lives on animals
Geese, cats, dogs & potbellied pigs were beneficiaries of their work Mary Lou (Andrews) Simms, a journalist for 60 years, best known as author of more than 30 exposés of purges of non-migratory Canada geese, died on July 19, 2020 in hospice in Tallahassee, Florida, from complications of a brain tumor. Simms died one day […]
Deaths by pit bull: will new California law slow the mayhem?
Prosecuting shelters for withholding bite history might be a start DAYTON, Ohio; CONWAY, Kentucky; LOS ANGELES, California––The first two U.S. dog attack fatalities to be reported in 2020, both involving pit bulls, upstaged the possibly more indicative resignations of two strong pit bull advocates from senior positions with Los Angeles Animal Services and Orange […]
Pit Bull Federation of South Africa rips rescuer denial of what a pit bull is
Contradicts rhetoric of trend toward removing breed-specific labels from shelter cage cards LOS ANGELES, PRETORIA––Few voices anywhere might be considered more rabidly pro-pit bull than the Pit Bull Federation of South Africa, a self-described “breed-specific show organization” whose declared “main goal is always to portray the American Pit Bull Terrier in a positive light.” […]