* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. [00:00:04] OKAY. I'M CRAIG [CALL TO ORDER] NAZER, UH, COMMISSION CHAIR CALLING THE MEETING TO ORDER AT 6:01 PM. THIS IS THE ANNUAL ADVISORY COMMISSION MEETING, MAY 10TH VIA TELECONFERENCE. UH, LET'S HAVE A ROLL CALL OF THE COMMISSIONERS. SO LET'S SEE. GREG LASERS IS HERE, RYAN. KLENNER HERE. NANCY NEMER HERE. LISA MITCHELL HERE. KATIE YARROW HERE. PALMER NEW HOUSE HERE. EDWARD FLORES. DEAR DR. JOHN BRANDIS. MONICA FRIENDONE NORTON HERE. LOTTA MACULA. OKAY. LOTTIE, I THINK YOU'RE MUTED. OKAY, GOOD. SHE'S HERE. AND YOU'RE ALONDRA RODRIGUEZ PET. CHECO YOU LEARN YOURS. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. WELL THAT'S GOOD. UH, LET'S SEE. I WANT TO REMIND EVERYBODY THAT, UH, IF ANYONE THINKS THEY HAVE A CONFLICT OF INTEREST WITH ANY AGENDA ITEM, PLEASE SPEAK UP. OKAY. SO WE'LL ASSUME THERE'S NO CONFLICT OF INTEREST. UM, SO LET'S GO TO, UM, CITIZENS [CITIZEN COMMUNICATION: GENERAL] COMMUNICATION NEXT. UH, WE HAVE ONE SPEAKER ADD THAT AS PAT VALVE THREE IS PAT. YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES. ARE YOU HEARING? OKAY. THANK YOU, CRAIG. OKAY. YES, I AM HERE. CAN YOU HEAR ME? YEAH, WE HEAR YOU FINE. GOOD. OKAY. UM, OKAY. MY NAME IS PAT TODAY. YES. I LIVE IN DISTRICT NINE AND LAST MONTH, NICOLE CLARK AND I, NICOLE CLARK SPOKE AND SHE ASKED THE ANIMAL ADVISORY COMMISSION TO HAVE A WORK GROUP ON SPAY NEUTER. I SPOKE AND I INVEST FOR A WORK GROUP ON ANIMAL CRUELTY. I AM HERE TODAY TO, AGAIN, REQUEST THAT YOU AT LEAST HAVE AN AGENDA ITEM NEXT MONTH, TO DISCUSS SPAY-NEUTER AND ANIMAL CRUELTY AT THE JUNE MEETING. UH, YOU CAN, YOU KNOW, DECIDE THAT AT THE END OF THE MEETING AND, AND MAKE THAT REQUEST AT THE END OF THE MEETING, THAT THOSE BE AGENDA ITEMS FOR NEXT MONTH OR ANY TWO MEMBERS CAN MAKE THAT REQUEST AFTER THIS MEETING IS OVER AND THEN PUT THAT ON THE, UM, ON THE JUNE AGENDA. I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT IN ADDITION TO DISCUSSING THE ANIMAL SHELTER AND THE INTAKE AND THE OUTCOME REPORTS, WHICH I THINK ARE VERY IMPORTANT. AND I AGREE WITH, UM, THE COMMISSION FOCUSING ON THAT, I THINK IT'S ALSO IMPORTANT TO ASK QUESTIONS ABOUT SPAIN NUMBER AND WHAT IS BEING DONE ON SPAY-NEUTER AND ALSO ANIMAL CRUELTY. AND WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH ANIMAL CRUELTY. I UNDERSTAND THAT TOMORROW THERE'S GOING TO BE A DEMONSTRATION IN FRONT OF THE AUSTIN POLICE DEPARTMENT BECAUSE OF HOW AN ANIMAL CRUELTY CASE WAS, IS NOT BEING HANDLED OR IS PERCEIVED AS NOT BEING HANDLED IN A WAY THAT PROTECTS THE ANIMALS. AND I THINK THAT IF THE ANIMAL SERVICES DEPARTMENT INCLUDES A DIVISION CALLED ANIMAL PROTECTION, THEN THERE SHOULD BE A DISCUSSION ABOUT HOW ARE WE PROTECTING ANIMALS AND, AND ARE WE DOING A GOOD JOB IN THAT AREA? UM, MY SECOND REQUEST IS THAT NEXT MONTH'S MEETING, YOU HAVE AN AGENDA ITEM ON THE ANIMAL SERVICES BUDGET, AND THAT THE DISCUSSION ABOUT THE ANIMAL SERVICES BUDGET INCLUDE A DISCUSSION ABOUT THE DONATIONS FUNDING AND HOW THE DONATIONS FUND IS BEING USED. UM, ESPECIALLY AT THIS TIME WHEN A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE HURTING AND THERE ARE A LOT OF GOVERNMENT PROGRAMS TO HELP PEOPLE IN VARIOUS SITUATIONS DUE TO COVID, BUT I HAVEN'T HEARD ANY DISCUSSION ABOUT HOW THE ANIMAL SERVICES DONATIONS FUND IS BEING USED TO POSSIBLY HELP PEOPLE WHO CANNOT AFFORD VET BILLS OR HAVING TROUBLE WITH, UM, CERTAIN ANIMAL SITUATIONS THAT MAY BE THE ANIMALS SERVICES DONATIONS FUND COULD HELP THEM OUT. MY THIRD COOS IN MY FINAL REQUEST IS THAT IN THE JUNE MEETING, YOU HAVE AN AGENDA ITEM ON THE LAMAR BEACH VISION PLAN. AND WHAT IS HAPPENING WITH THE, UM, THE COUNCIL DECISION WHERE IN DECEMBER OF 2016 CITY COUNCIL APPROVED A, UM, A PLAN FOR THE ANIMAL SHELTER AT LAMAR BEACH BEING [00:05:01] TORN DOWN AND REBUILT, AND THAT WOULD, UM, INVOLVE A FUN FUNDRAISING BY AUSTIN PETS ALIVE TO THE TUNE OF, UM, $20 MILLION OR SOMETHING ALONG THOSE LINES. WE HAVE NO IDEA HOW THAT'S GOING. OKAY. THAT IS YOUR TIME. OKAY. I'M WRAPPING. OKAY. THANK YOU, PAT. UM, SO WE HAVE NO OTHER SPEAKERS. UH, SO LET'S GO ON TO, UM, WE HAVE TO APPROVE [1. APPROVAL OF MINUTES] THE MINUTES OF LAST MEETING. THE MINUTES WERE SENT OUT TO YOUR COMMISSIONER EMAIL. AND SO I'M LOOKING FOR A MOTION. I MAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE MINUTES FROM THE LAST LADY MAKES A MOTION. DO I HAVE A SECOND? AND NANCY SECOND SET. ANY DISCUSSION? OKAY. WELL THERE'S NO DISCUSSION, LESS VOTE. HOW MANY VOTE TO APPROVE THE MINUTES? LISA, DO YOU VOTE TO APPROVE? YES, MY VIDEO'S NOT WORKING AND JOHN BRAND IS HERE AND YOU'LL WANDA WAS NOT HERE. YEAH, WELL A LOT. OKAY. SO THAT'S, THAT LOOKS UNANIMOUS. OKAY. SO THE VOTE TO APPROVE MINUTES IS UNANIMOUS AND JOHN BRANDIS IS NOW HERE. OKAY. SO LET'S GO ON NOW TO, UM, [2a. Austin Animal Center and Animal Services Reports] THE NEXT ITEM ON THE AGENDA, WHICH IS AUSTIN ANIMAL CENTER AND ANIMAL SERVICES REPORTS. GOOD EVENING, COMMISSIONERS. JASON, I'M GOING TO GIVE YOU THE REPORT FOR APRIL. UM, THE LIVE OUTCOME PERCENTAGE FOR APRIL WAS 96.6%. WE HAD A TOTAL OF 889 ANIMALS THAT WERE BROUGHT TO THE SHELTER. UM, WE WERE ABLE TO ADOPT 304 ANIMALS, UH, 226 DOGS AND 78 CATS AND A TOTAL OF 101 DOGS AND CATS WERE RETURNED TO THEIR OWNERS EITHER THROUGH RETURN TO OUR RECLAIMED PERIOD OR AFTER THAT, WHICH IS OUR RETURNED OWNER ADOPT. UM, AND OUR PROTECTION IS STILL, UH, RESPONDING TO SERVICES OUT IN THE FIELD AND THEY WERE ABLE TO RETURN 53 ANIMALS TO THEIR OWNERS IN THE FIELD BEFORE THOSE ANIMALS COULD ACTUALLY BE BROUGHT TO THE SHELTER. UM, WE ARE, AND DON WE'LL TOUCH BASE ON THIS WITH, WITH SORT OF THE COVID, BUT WE ARE, UH, UPDATE. WE ARE STILL SORT OF, UM, SLOWLY BUT SURELY, I MEAN A LITTLE BIT HERE AND THERE. WE HAD 63 VOLUNTEERS COME AND DONATE 1,372 HOURS. UM, VOLUNTEERS DID ASSIST WITH OUR ONSITE MICRO TRIP CLINIC, WHICH I THINK DON WILL TOUCH BASE LATER ON IN THE AGENDA, UH, IS DIRECTED WITH TRAFFIC FLOW, MAKING THE PET ID TAGS AND PHOTOGRAPHING THE PETS FOR IDENTIFICATION PURPOSES. UM, WE HAD 200 FAMILIES PROVIDE FOSTER CARE, UM, AND 65 ANIMALS WERE DIRECTLY ADOPTED. UM, FROM THOSE THAT WERE IN FOSTER CARE, UH, 207 ANIMALS WERE TRANSFERRED TO 26 AAC PARTNERS, WHICH HELPED OUT IMMENSELY BECAUSE WE DID SEE SOME SOMETIMES WHERE WE HAD SOME SPACE CRUNCH, UM, AND JUST ELEVATE LEVELS OF INTAKE. AS FAR AS WITHIN THE PET RESOURCE CENTER. UH, WE WERE ABLE TO HAND OUT, UH, 3,400, A LITTLE BIT OVER 3,400 ITEMS TO RESIDENTS OF THE COMMUNITY. THIS INCLUDED LIKE JUST FOOD BED, LEASHES, ANYTHING THAT WOULD HELP SUPPORT THEM WITH THEIR PETS. UM, WITH OUR SORT OF FOUND, FOUND ANIMAL REPORTS AND LOSS REPORTS, WE HAD 179 FOUND ANIMAL REPORTS REPORTED AND ANOTHER 254 ANIMALS THAT WERE REPORTED IN THE, IN SORT OF THE NEW LOST ANIMAL REPORT, UH, UH, WEB FEATURE THAT'S ON OUR WEBSITE. UM, WE ALSO HAD 210 NEW SUBSCRIBERS TO OUR LOS AND FOUND TEXT PROGRAM. UM, THE CHAT BOT KEEPS ROLLING ALONG WE'VE, UH, THIS LAST, WE WERE ABLE TO HAVE OVER A THOUSAND CONVERSATIONS WITH COMMUNITY MEMBERS WHO ARE LOOKING FOR RESOURCES AND INFORMATION ON, ON JUST VARIOUS TOPICS. AND SO THAT'S ABLE TO HELP SORT OF GET PEOPLE, IMMEDIATE RESPONSES TO THEIR QUESTIONS RATHER THAN HAVING TO WORRY ABOUT EMAIL OR GETTING RESPONSES, THINGS LIKE THAT. UM, THEY CAN JUST UTILIZE THE CHAT BOT, UM, WITHIN OUR VET SERVICES, UH, THEY SAW ABOUT, THEY SAW 121 EMERGENCY CASES COMING TO AAC AND THEY TREATED THOSE ANIMALS ACCORDINGLY. UH, WE HAD, UH, 289 SPAY NEUTER SURGERIES THAT WERE PERFORMED. UM, HE HAS ALSO HAD SIX ORTHOPEDIC SURGERIES AND 28 OTHER SPECIALTY SURGERIES, AMPUTATIONS, MASS REMOVALS, HERNIA REPAIR, THINGS OF THAT NATURE. UM, OVERALL WE HAD 758 BED EXAMS PERFORMED ONSITE FOR THE MONTH OF APRIL. SO AT THIS POINT, I'LL TURN IT OVER TO DON TO CONTINUE THIS UPDATE. I HAVE A REQUEST IS IF YOU GUYS COULD, COULD YOU COME ON CAMERA OR IF THAT'S ARIZONA POSSIBLE CAMERA CAPABILITIES AT CITY HALL RIGHT NOW, UM, [00:10:02] IF TO GIVE YOU A VISUAL, WE ARE ALL SPREAD OUT ACROSS THE ROOM AND VARIOUS CORNERS. SO WE ALL LOOK LIKE WE'RE IN TROUBLE. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. OKAY. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. GO AHEAD, DON. GOOD EVENING COMMISSIONERS. UM, I WANNA TALK A LITTLE OUT OF ORDER HERE. I'M GOING TO TALK ABOUT THE COVID UPDATE BECAUSE THE CONTINUING PART OF THE ANIMAL CENTER, THERE'S A, I'VE GOT A VIDEO WE NEED TO SHOW AFTERWARDS. SO I'M GOING TO KIND OF MOVE THAT AHEAD. UH, OUR COVID WE'RE STILL IN, IN STAGE THREE, SO WE HAVE KEPT EVERYTHING THE SAME. WE DID MAKE A CHANGE THIS PAST WEEK ON THURSDAY, FRIDAY, SATURDAY, AND SUNDAY, WE DID A FOUR DAY EVENT. UH, WE HAD, WE WERE GETTING MORE ANIMALS IN, THEN WE CAN GET OUT WITH OUR APPOINTMENT SYSTEM AND WE GOT EXTREMELY FULL, YOU KNOW, SO IT WAS A DANGEROUS LEVEL FOR US AND WE NEEDED TO MOVE SOME ANIMALS. SO WHAT WE DID WAS WE PUT IN, UH, WE, WE COULD ALLOW 28 PEOPLE A TIME IN, AND SO PEOPLE DIDN'T HAVE TO HAVE AN APPOINTMENT FOR THOSE DAYS. THEY COULD JUST SHOW UP. AND WE HAD A, UH, A SYSTEM WHERE, YOU KNOW, WE COULD, WHEN SOMEONE CAME OUT, SOMEONE ELSE COULD COME IN IF WE WERE AT MAXIMUM CAPACITY. SO WE KNEW HOW MANY PEOPLE WERE IN THE CENTER AT ALL TIMES. AND, UH, IT SEEMED TO, TO REALLY WORK WELL FOR US DURING THAT TIME, WE WERE ABLE TO MOVE, UH, QUITE A BIT OF ANIMALS. AND SO WE WERE BACK IN THE GREEN, ON THE BIG DOGS THIS MORNING. UH, SO THAT WAS, THAT WAS SOMETHING THAT WAS VERY GOOD AND VERY SUCCESSFUL GOING FORWARD. UH, WE ARE TALKING ABOUT THAT. UM, MAYBE DOING THAT ON THE WEEKENDS AT THIS POINT, IF WE'RE ALLOWED TO. SO WE'RE, WE'RE STILL INVESTIGATING THAT, BUT WE'RE STILL DOING EVERYTHING WE CAN TO GET ANIMALS OUT, GET THE MOST PEOPLE IN THAT WE CAN AND DO IT SAFELY. SO THAT WAS A LITTLE UPDATE ON THAT. THE OTHER THING I WANT TO TALK TO YOU ABOUT IS WE CANNOT TALK ABOUT THE BUDGET AND BUDGET NUMBERS UNTIL IT'S RELEASED FROM THE CITY MANAGER. BUT I DID WANT TO TALK TO YOU ABOUT OUR STAFFING NUMBERS THAT ARE, WERE PART OF THE BUDGET. WE HAD TO SEND OUR BUDGET FORECAST AND THEY SENT ALL THAT UP. AND WE HAD, AND I SENT YOU SOME PAPERWORK. WE HAD ASKED OVER THE NEXT LAST FOUR YEARS, WE WERE GOING TO ASK FOR, UM, EMPLOYEES AND IT HAD 16 EMPLOYEES OVER SPREAD OUT. AND LAST YEAR WE ASKED FOR SEVEN AND WE DIDN'T GET ANY. AND THIS YEAR WE WERE SCHEDULED TO ASK FOR SIX, WELL, WE DID ASK FOR 11 AND THE BUDGET OFFICE DID TURN US DOWN. SO HERE'S WHERE WE NEED YOUR ASSISTANCE. UH, WE NEED YOU TO ADVOCATE TO YOUR CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS, AND IT WOULD BE NICE IF AS A GROUP Y'ALL COULD SEND SOMETHING TO THE COUNCIL, SUPPORTING OUR NEED FOR ADDITIONAL STAFFING I PUT TOGETHER, UM, THE STAFFING NEEDS AND THE DESCRIPTION OF THOSE. BUT THE ONE THING THAT I WANT TO TELL YOU THAT THE ONE THING THAT WE'VE GOT TO HAVE, IF THEY GIVE US NO OTHER STAFFING IS THE ONE THAT WAS HIGHLIGHTED AT THE BOTTOM, DEEMED A PUBLIC HEALTH EDUCATOR THAT, UH, IS ONE OF OUR NEIGHBORHOOD LEVEL PROGRAMMING. AND HE GOES OUT IN THE COMMUNITY. HE HAD 50% OF HIS JOB IS SUPPORTING ALL THE ANIMALS IN THE HOMELESS COMMUNITIES. SO THEY DON'T HAVE TO COME INTO THE SHELTER. AND HE IS RESPONSIBLE FOR KEEPING HUNDREDS OF DOGS OUT ON HIS OWN THAT BESIDES ANYTHING ELSE THAT HE DOES, THAT IT MORE THAN PAYS FOR HIS SALARY, BUT THAT IS A, UH, FUNDED GRANT POSITION. AND THE FUNDS WILL RUN OUT THIS FISCAL YEAR. SO AT THE END OF THE SUMMER, HE'S GONE UNLESS CITY COUNCIL APPROVES IT. AND THIS IS A VITAL, VITAL POSITION THAT WE NEED TO HAVE FILLED. AND SO WE'RE ASKING FOR Y'ALL'S ASSISTANCE TO HELP US AT LEAST GET THAT ONE POSITION, BUT WE WOULD LOVE TO HAVE, UH, ALL 11 THAT WE'VE ASKED FOR BECAUSE WE'RE DESPERATELY NEEDING THOSE WITH THAT. UH, THE GENTLEMAN THAT TAKES CARE OF THAT, HE DID HIT A MILESTONE THE OTHER DAY AND, UH, HE SENT A VIDEO AND POSTED IT ON HIS FACEBOOK ON OUR FACEBOOK PAGE. AND I DON'T KNOW IF YOU SAW IT, BUT, UH, WE'RE GOING TO SHARE THAT WITH YOU RIGHT NOW. YES, PLEASE. GOOD MORNING, AC FAMILY DOING WELL LAST NIGHT, BUT THE RAIN LAST NIGHT, BUT WE ARE OFFICIALLY OFFICIALLY ONE OH ONE. WE HAVE OWNER SURRENDER DEFERRED 101 DOGS. WHAT THAT MEANS, HOW ARE YOU? WHAT THAT MEANS IS THAT 101 DOGS HAVE NOT WALKED THROUGH THAT DOOR. 101 [00:15:01] MEMBERS OF OUR COMMUNITY THOUGHT THE LAST RESORT WAS TO SURRENDER THEIR DOGS TO THE AUSTIN ANIMAL CENTER. KELSEY'S PRC TEAM CONTACTED THEM QUICKLY, PROVIDED INFORMATION, PROVIDED RESOURCES, INFORMATION, TALKING, CARING, AND ALL 100. AND ONE PEOPLE DECIDED AFTER THE INFORMATION AND SUPPORT RESOURCES IS WHAT THIS NAME FOR RESOURCES. THEY GAVE THEM DECIDED TO KEEP THEIR DOGS IN THEIR HOME, WHERE THEY BELONG AND NOT HAVE TO LEAVE THEIR FAMILY, LEAVE THEIR HOME AND COME THROUGH HERE 101 VERY HAPPY ABOUT THAT. MY HAIR'S MESSY THIS MORNING, VERY HAPPY ABOUT THAT. 101 DOGS AND MORE TO COME SEE YOU SOON. BYE. AND, AND THAT IS, UH, BRENDAN. AND HE, LIKE I SAY, 50% OF HIS TIME IS SPENT IN THE HOMELESS CAMP, SUPPORTING THOSE ANIMALS AND KEEPING THEM OUT OF THE SHELTER AND THIS, HE HELPS WITH THE PRC, THESE OWNERS SURRENDER DEFERRALS. SO IT'S A VITAL POSITION THAT WE WILL NOT HAVE UNLESS WE CAN GET IT APPROVED. SO ANY HELP YOU CAN GIVE IS APPRECIATED. DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FOR ME? YES. MAMA QUESTION. THIS IS RELATED, I GUESS, WITH THE COVID UPDATE, WOULD THIS BE A TIME TO ASK IT? SURE. UM, ON THE SPREADSHEET NUMBERS WE RECEIVED, WE'VE GOT AN ABANDONED CATEGORY FOR INTAKE. THAT'S SEEN A HUGE INCREASE. AND I WAS WONDERING IF YOU COULD GIVE US SOME INFORMATION ON THAT. HMM. SO YEAH, THESE ARE, THESE ARE INDIVIDUALS WHO, WHO FOR ONE REASON OR ANOTHER, WE WILL FIND THE ANIMAL AT THE SHELTER. I MEAN, WE WILL ASK THEM IF AN INDIVIDUAL COMES AND BRINGS IN A STRAY. UM, YOU KNOW, WE ASKED THEM, COULD YOU FOLLOW THE THREE, ONE, ONE PROCESS SO THAT WAY WE CAN MITIGATE, AND FOR ONE REASON OR ANOTHER, THEY MAY LEAVE THE ANIMALS. SOMETIMES WE DO FIVE BOXES OF, OF KITTENS OR WHATNOT. THAT'S WHY THE CAT NUMBER ENDS UP BEING A LITTLE BIT HIGHER. AND SO WE FIND THEM ON SITE. YOU KNOW, WE WILL TAKE THE ANIMAL AND NOTED AS, AS AN ABANDONED AT AAC PROPERTY. SO IT'S ABANDONED, UM, I GUESS, AND, AND THERE MIGHT BE OTHER CASES TOO, WHERE WE, WE FIND AN ABANDONED INTAKE IF IT'S OUT IN THE FIELD OR WHATNOT AS WELL. OKAY. SO COULD WE GET MORE DATA ON THE BREAKDOWN OF AGE? I SEE THAT WE HAVE INFORMATION ON CAT AND DOG, BUT I MEAN, 51 CATS LAST MONTH AND 13 DOGS. UM, THAT'S, I KNOW IT'S LITERACY SEASON, BUT THAT'S A HUGE JUMP. AND I GUESS THAT I FEEL I WAS TRYING TO GO BACK AND LOOK THROUGH HOW, WHAT OTHER WHAT'S HAPPENED DURING THE OTHER MONTHS, AND SINCE THE DATA IS BEING PIECED TOGETHER. AND WE'RE TRYING TO UNDERSTAND IT. COULD YOU DO A REPORT OF THAT FOR THE PAST 12 MONTHS, THE BREAKDOWN BY DOG AND CAT, BUT ALSO BY AGE, AND THEN I GUESS, WHERE ARE WE? ARE THEY THERE WHEN NO ONE'S AT THE SHELTER, DO WE KNOW LIKE SPECIFICS, LIKE, ARE THEY BEING ABANDONED IN FRONT OF PEOPLE AND PEOPLE ARE LEAVING OR ARE YOU COMING THERE AND FINDING THEM IN THE MORNING? UH, WELL, IT'S, IT'LL, IT'S A LITTLE BIT OF EVERYTHING. I MEAN, I THINK ALSO THE GYM THAT WE ALSO SAW IS BECAUSE WE RECENTLY OPENED THE GATES, UM, SO THAT INDIVIDUALS ARE ABLE TO GET TO THE SHELTER. WE WERE HAVING A LOT OF MISSED ADOPTION APPOINTMENTS BECAUSE THEY WEREN'T WERE, WEREN'T FINDING THEIR WAY INTO THE SHELTER. UM, THE ABANDONMENT CATEGORY, AS I UNDERSTOOD IF I REMEMBER WASN'T CREATED UNTIL LAST YEAR, MAYBE 2000 LATE, 2019. SO I'LL, I'LL TRY TO FIND THE DATA OF WHAT WE HAVE UP UNTIL THAT POINT. UM, I FOUND SOME STUFF. YEAH. I, IT WAS, I, IT WAS ALL ZEROS PRIOR TO KIND OF COVID, IT LOOKS LIKE FROM WHAT I WAS ABLE TO PIECE TOGETHER. YEAH. CAUSE ONE, CAUSE THE TIMES THAT WE'VE HAD IT, I'M SORRY. YEAH, BECAUSE THE TIMES THAT WE'VE UTILIZED THAT, OR WE, THE REASON WE CREATE IS BECAUSE IF THERE WERE TIMES WHERE WE HAD SOMEONE WHO JUST LET A DOG LOOSE AND, AND DROVE AWAY, WE WERE CATEGORIZING IT AS A STRAY, BUT IT WASN'T, IT WAS MORE LIKE AN ABANDONED. SO WE REALLY DIDN'T GET ANY INFORMATION ON WHERE THE DOG CAME FROM OR WHATNOT. SO WE CREATED THAT CATEGORY IN ORDER TO CAPTURE IT ACCURATELY. UM, SO I CAN GET A BREAKDOWN. I'M, I'M, I'M PUTTING TOGETHER THE SPREADSHEETS. I'M SLOWLY LEARNING OUR PROCESS AS I DO DEEPER DIVE. SO I'LL FIGURE OUT HOW TO GET THAT BREAKDOWN FOR YOU. THAT'D BE GREAT. UM, JUST THE INCREASE. YEAH. I JUST FEEL LIKE WE NEED TO LIKE, SEE IF THERE'S SOMETHING THAT DIFFERENT THAT SHOULD BE DONE. THAT'S A LOT OF, YOU KNOW, 64 ANIMALS ABANDONED AT THE SHELTER LAST MONTH. YEAH. AND WE'LL GET YOU THE RECOGNIZED, ESPECIALLY IF IT WAS, YOU KNOW, IF IT MAY HAVE BEEN LIKE A BOX OF KITTENS OR, OR JUST CATS OR, UM, OR [00:20:01] WHAT ARE THE SORT OF THE CIRCUMSTANCES, CAN I KEEP IT INTO MY MIC? UH, WHAT THE CIRCUMSTANCES WERE? CAUSE I KNOW ONE INSTANCE WHERE I BELIEVE SOME KITTENS WERE JUST FOUND IN THE PARKING LOT. AND SO WE HAD TO, WE TOOK THEM IN SOME AND SO INTAKE THEM, BUT I'LL LOOK INTO IT AND REPORT IT OUT. THAT'D BE GREAT. AND, AND WE CAN, WE LIKE KEEP THIS AS PART OF THE COVID, SINCE THIS SEEMS TO BE INCREASING, CAN WE KEEP THIS PART OF, KIND OF THE COVID REPORT WHERE WE LIKE ARE UPDATED ON WHAT'S BEING DONE? UM, WHAT DO WE NEED TO DO SOMETHING TO ADDRESS THIS AS MY QUESTION? WELL, HISTORICALLY I'M GONNA PUT IT ON THERE BECAUSE NOW THAT IT'S SORT OF A CATEGORY THAT THAT'S THERE, I'LL KEEP IT NOW, IF EVERYTHING GOES WELL, WHEN WE REPORT ZEROS, IT'LL STILL BE THERE AS JUST REPORTING ZEROS. SO WE'LL HAVE IT THERE. AND THEN, YOU KNOW, WE'LL DO, DEPENDING ON THE CIRCUMSTANCE, ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU SEE AN INCREASE FOR NEXT YEAR, KNOCK ON WOOD, WE DON'T, YOU KNOW, WE, WE WE'LL, WE'LL SORT OF GIVE SOME INFORMATION ABOUT WHAT WE SAW OR WHAT WE FOUND IN THOSE CASES. THESE ARE THEN GOING INTO THE STRAY CATEGORY AND GOING THROUGH STRAY HOLDS IS THAT WHAT'S THAT WELL, ESSENTIALLY THAT, BUT THEY'RE CATEGORIZED AS AN INTAKE, AS AN ABANDONED. AND SO THE STRAIGHT HOLD WOULD APPLY ON SMART SLOPE. SLOW. YEAH. OH, MARK. MAYBE HAVE JOINED THE CALL. I KNOW HE'S ON THE PHONE QUESTIONS. UH, I THINK, UH, LET'S SEE, JOANNE HAS A QUESTION JUST REAL QUICK ON ABANDON. UM, JUST SO I MAKE SURE I'M CLEAR. THERE WAS LIKE THE DOG THAT WAS TIED UP LAST WEEK, SO THAT IN FRONT OF THE SHELTER. SO THAT WOULD BE ABANDONED, BUT I ALSO READ THE NOTES AND THERE ARE ANIMALS THAT ARE ABANDONED AND APARTMENTS THAT WE BRING IN. ARE THOSE CATEGORIZED AS STRAIGHT OR ABANDONED? I BELIEVE THAT IF WE FIND NO OWNER OR, OR WHATNOT, AND IF AN ACO OR APO PICKS THEM UP, I MEAN, THEY MAY CATEGORIZE AS ABANDONED, BUT THE STRAY HOLD STILL APPLIES SINCE THEY DON'T TECHNICALLY HAVE THEIR OWNER PRESENT OR THEY'RE ESSENTIALLY A LOST OR ABANDONED PET, UM, SHOW UP UNDER PUBLIC ASSIST. IT ONLY THEY'LL SHOW UP AT PUBLIC ASSIST IF, IF APD WILL OR TRAVIS, A LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY CALLS US FOR THE ASSISTANCE. AND SO EVEN AT THAT POINT, THERE MIGHT BE A SUBTYPE OR SUB CATEGORY THAT SAYS THERE ARE PUBLIC ASSIST, BUT IT WAS AN ABANDONED CASE. IF THAT MAKES SENSE. YES. YEAH. WE NEED, IF YOU COULD LIKE WHERE I'D BE GREAT. IF WE COULD CLARIFY WHAT THE ABANDONED CATEGORY IS ON THIS SPREADSHEET. YEAH. CAUSE THERE'S A LOT OF ANIMALS THAT ARE ABANDONED. LIKE WE HAD THOSE 18 GUINEA PIGS THAT WERE ABANDONED AND THE PEOPLE JUST LAUGHED. SO I WOULD THINK THOSE WOULD BE, I KNOW WE DON'T DO GUINEA PIGS HERE, BUT THAT'D BE CLASSIFIED AS ABANDONED. YEAH. THEY WOULD BE PROBABLY CATEGORIZED AND WHATEVER SUBTYPE THE SITUATION DICTATED FOR THEM. WE WILL PUT THIS SUBTYPE ALONG THE NOTES, BUT IF IT'S, IF IT'S SOMETHING WHERE IT'S TIED UP AT PROPERTY OR LEFT AT AN APARTMENT OR HOUSE AND WE WILL, IT'LL USUALLY BE IT'LL, IT'LL BE CATEGORIZED AS ABANDONED. OKAY. THANK YOU. MONICA. DO YOU HAVE A QUESTION? YEAH. I'VE GOT A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS. THANK YOU FOR, UM, JASON. I JUST WANTED TO QUICKLY THANK YOU FOR PIECING TOGETHER AS MUCH OF THE DATA AS YOU CAN. UM, I APPRECIATE LOOKING AT IT AND I KNOW YOU'RE FRUSTRATED NOT BEING ABLE TO RUN THE REPORTS THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO RUN IN PRESENT FOR THEM. I, I SHOULD'VE LISTENED MORE IN COMPUTER SCIENCE. THAT'S ALL I THAT'S. RIGHT. YEAH. UM, LAST MONTH YOU DID HAVE THE SPECIES BREAKDOWN ON LIVE RELEASE. RIGHT? DO YOU HAVE THAT AGAIN THIS MONTH? NO, I DIDN'T CATEGORIZE THAT. SO I TAUGHT THAT, SORRY. OKAY. YOU DO HAVE CAPABILITY OF DOING IT THOUGH, RIGHT? TO DO THE MATH OUT IN YEAH. THE DIFFERENT, THE DIFFERENT SPECIES. YEAH. I'LL HAVE TO DO THE MATH OUT FOR WILDLIFE AND DOGS AND CATS. AND UM, BECAUSE IT'S, IF I REMEMBER, YEAH. I I'LL HAVE TO FIGURE IT OUT. THE, THE, THE LI THE OVERALL OUTCOME MINUS THE, THOSE THAT WERE, UM, YOU KNOW, DIED HER OR WERE EUTHANIZED, AND THEN I'LL FIGURE OUT THE PERCENTAGE. THANK YOU. YEAH, THAT WOULD BE GREAT. IF WE COULD GET THAT PUT BACK ON THE REPORT. UM, THE MONTHLY REPORT, THE SPECIES BREAKDOWN. I KNOW YOU'RE WORKING ON IT. UM, LAST MONTH, UM, DON, YOU HAD SAID THAT THEY'RE THE NEONATAL KITTENS WERE COMING IN, AND THAT WAS HOW THE CAUSE OF THE DECLINE IN THE, IN THE FELINE LIVE RELEASE RATE. IS THAT STILL SOMETHING WE'RE CONCERNED ABOUT AT THE CITY SHELTER? MONICA, YOU BROKE UP ON THE FIRST PART OF YOUR QUESTION. COULD YOU REPEAT THAT PLACE? YEAH. LAST MONTH YOU HAD SAID THAT THE, THE DROP IN THE FELINE LIVE RELEASE RATE WAS IN LARGE PART DUE TO NEONATAL KITTENS AND THEIR OBVIOUS FRAGILITY. AND, AND, UM, ARE YOU STILL FEELING LIKE THAT IS THE CAUSE OF, OF, UM, ANY DROP THAT THERE IS IN THE FEELING LIVE RELEASE RATE? UM, LOOKING AT, UM, DR. LYDEN SHE'S SHAKING [00:25:01] HER HEAD. SHE SAID SHE DIDN'T KNOW THAT AT THIS POINT, WE'D HAVE TO LOOK INTO THAT. OKAY. YEAH. UM, I LOOKED AT, I LOOKED AT THE DATA PORTAL AND TO ECHO PALMER'S POINT, IF WE COULD GET, UM, AGE BREAKDOWN, I THINK IT WOULD BE HUGELY HELPFUL AS I'M TRYING TO NAVIGATE WHATEVER DATA WE CAN GET. AND WE'RE ALL PIECING, PIECING IT TOGETHER. BUT FROM WHAT I WAS ABLE TO GLEAN, IT LOOKS LIKE THE KITTENS ARE DOING FABULOUS, BUT LIKE, I, DON'T ALMOST 98% LIVE RELEASE RATE. WHEREAS THE ADULT CATS ARE AT 90 FOR THE MONTH OF APRIL. SO I'M TRYING TO MAKE SENSE, AM I UNDERSTANDING THE DATA CORRECTLY HOSPITAL OR NOT? SO AT LEAST WHAT THE SPREADSHEET THAT I HAD PUT TOGETHER, THAT'S WHAT I SAW AS WELL. THERE WERE, THERE WERE NOT, WE DID PRETTY WELL ON NEONATES AND KITTENS, BUT, UM, YOU KNOW, THE CAT, AT LEAST FOR, FOR, UH, OVERALL WENT UP OR AT LEAST IN RELATION TO HOW MANY, HOW MANY OVERALL OUTCOMES WE HAD TO IT. SO IT WAS, I THINK, AT LEAST FOR MY NUMBERS, WE HAD A 102, UH, FOR ADULT CATS, 90, UH, AND THEN WE HAD LIKE 10 THAT WERE DIED OR WERE EUTHANIZED. SO NIKE AT 90%. OKAY. SO LAST MONTH IT TURNS OUT MORE ADULT SOMETHING. OKAY. YEAH. SO WHAT WE'D HAVE TO LOOK AT THOSE SPECIFIC CATS AND RECORDS TO FIND OUT, YOU KNOW, IF THERE WERE, YOU KNOW, IF WE EVER DID SEE, LIKE, YOU KNOW, IF WE DID SEE THE MAJORITY OF THAT 120 EMERGENCIES ENDED UP RESULTING IN A EUTHANIZATION. I MEAN, THAT MAY, THAT MAY BE IT, BUT WE'D HAVE TO DO A DEEPER DIVE INTO THE, IN TO THOSE SPECIFIC RECORDS AND REPORT IT OUT. YEAH, OF COURSE. I'M KEY. AGAIN, KEEPING AN EYE ON KITTEN SEASON ACROSS THE COUNTRY WHERE WE'RE AT. UM, LAST QUESTION WE'VE GOT DOWN ON THE, ON THE REPORT THAT WE HAD, UM, FOUR, IT SAYS WE ENCOUNTER OFFICER'S UNCOVERED 255 RABIES EXPOSURE REPORTS AND SUBMITTED 58 SPECIMENS FOR TESTED POSITIVE FOR RABIES. UM, FOR WHAT, FOR WHAT WERE THEY BATS OR CATS OR DOGS OR UNIT. THERE ARE PROBABLY MORE IN PRIMARILY WILDLIFE, USUALLY, UM, BATS OR, OR RACCOONS, BUT I'LL, WE'LL HAVE TO GO INTO THAT SPECIFIC RECORDS TO, TO BREAK DOWN THOSE SPECIES OF WHAT THE, THERE WASN'T ANY CATS AND DOGS. DR. LONDON'S TELLING ME WRITE THAT RIGHT NOW, BUT IT WAS, THAT WOULD BE VERY, VERY CONCISE. OH. AND I, I JUST DID GET A TEXT FROM STAFF. IT WAS ALL BAD. ALL BASS. YEAH. YEAH. UM, ARE WE, I WANT, THAT'S THE, PROBABLY A SILLY QUESTION. IF WE'RE ANY CLOSER TO GETTING THE BREAKDOWN ON WILDLIFE INTAKES AND OUTCOMES, BUT YOU'RE, YOU'RE PROBABLY NO CLOSER WITH FAB. RIGHT. UM, I, I FIGURED OUT HOW TO DO IT. I, UM, YEAH, SO I, I CAN PROBABLY REPORT IT OUT. IT'S JUST A, AND WE'LL COME UP WITH IT. GOOD LUCK, JASON, LET US KNOW. CHAMELEON'S NOT MY FRIEND, BUT WE'LL GET ALONG. THANK YOU VERY MUCH, JASON. I APPRECIATE YOUR HARD WORK. I JUST WANT TO POINT OUT THAT WE DO HAVE A TEAM THAT WE MET WITH LAST WEEK THAT IS WORKING ON REPORTING OUT IN ANOTHER FASHION, BESIDES THE CHAMELEON REPORTING, AND THEY'RE DOING A GREAT JOB, BUT, AND THEY'RE MAKING PROGRESS, UH, VERY RAPIDLY, BUT IT'S, THEY'RE TRYING TO, YOU KNOW, THERE'S SO MANY LITTLE NUANCES IN THE SHELTER THAT, YOU KNOW, OKAY. THEY FORGOT THIS TO PUT IN IT, SO THEY HAVE TO GO BACK AND, YOU KNOW, REPROGRAM IT TO ADD THAT. AND SO THEY'RE, THEY'RE MAKING GREAT PROGRESS. SO WE'RE VERY HOPEFUL, UM, BECAUSE THEY'RE WORKING ON IT VERY DILIGENTLY. AND I THINK WE'LL SEE RESULTS FROM THAT BEFORE WE SEE RESULTS FROM CHAMELEON GETTING FIXED. ACTUALLY, CAN I ASK TWO QUICK QUESTIONS, JASON, THIS IS LISA. UM, HOPEFULLY I'LL LET YOU HEAR ME. OKAY. THE TWO QUESTIONS ARE THIS NUMBER ONE. ARE WE GONNA, IS THIS THE FORMAT THAT WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE TO SEE, OR IS THIS SORT OF OUR INTERIM FORMAT? THIS IS AN INTERIM FORMAT. YEAH. I'M, I'M TRYING TO JUST GET Y'ALL THE RAW DATA AS, AS BEST I CAN WITH FIGURING OUT THE SYSTEM, UM, TO, TO, TO JUST JUMP ON WHAT DON SAID WITH THE TEAM THAT WE MET AND WE'RE BEING SUPPORTED, YOU KNOW, WE'VE MADE ADDITIONAL REQUESTS AND TO ACTUALLY GET INTO PORTER FROM OUR CORPORATE, UH, CTM, OUR IT DEPARTMENT. AND SO, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE, THEY'RE HELPING GET THIS TO WHERE WE CAN HOPEFULLY PUBLISH THESE REPORTS AND WITH, WITH THE WAY WE USED TO BE WITH, WITH SORT OF ALONG THE LINES OF THE CRYSTAL REPORTS THAT WE WERE DOING, BUT THIS WILL BE, UM, YEAH, THAT'S THE GOAL, BUT IN THE INTERIM, YEAH, THIS IS, THIS IS WHAT I GOT. OKAY. AND DO YOU WANT THAT? THAT'S FINE. I UNDERSTAND YOU'RE WORKING WITHIN THOSE LIMITATIONS, BUT MY REQUEST WOULD BE FOR BOTH THE INTERIM REPORTS AND PERHAPS ANYTHING WE'RE GOING TO GET IN THE FUTURE. CAN YOU PUT AT THE BOTTOM OF IT OR SOMEWHERE ON IT? THE, THAT IT'S BEEN REVISED BECAUSE I KNOW THAT I GOT A LITTLE BIT CONFUSED. I'M KIND OF PULLING UP SOME THINGS PREPARING FOR TONIGHT BECAUSE I KNOW WE'VE HAD A COUPLE OF VERSIONS OF SOME OF THESE, I THINK, IN THE MARCH NUMBERS. SO IF YOU WOULDN'T MIND, JUST MAYBE PUTTING LIKE A REVISION DATE ON IT SOMEWHERE THAT WOULD GREATLY HELP ME OUT. OKAY. I'LL NOTE THAT. THANKS. APPRECIATE IT. [00:30:09] I DON'T KNOW HOW I GOT MOVED. OKAY, GO AHEAD. THANKS. I HAVE A FEW QUESTIONS. UM, MY FIRST IS, UM, WHAT ARE THE CURRENT WAIT PERIODS, UM, FOR, UH, GETTING AN ADOPTION OR FOR AN OWNER SURRENDER, UH, FOR ADOPTIONS IT'S IT'S SAME DAY. UM, RIGHT NOW, I MEAN, WE, WE STILL ARE DOING APPOINTMENTS. UM, AND, AND IT'S, IF SOMEONE WERE TO SHOW UP AND WANTING TO ADOPT, YOU KNOW, AND WE, WE ARE AT GOOD CAPACITY LEVELS, THEN STAN WILL, WILL ALLOW THEM TO COME IN. AND SO THERE'S, THERE'S NOT REALLY A WEIGHT ON IT. PEOPLE ARE ABLE TO SET THEIR THEIR TIMES, UM, UH, OR APPOINTMENT TIMES AND ARE ABLE TO COME IN. UM, AS FAR AS, AS, UH, INTAKES, UH, WE, WE TRY TO GET FOLKS TO, TO STICK TO THEIR APPOINTMENTS AS MUCH AS THEY CAN UNDERSTANDING. UM, IF THERE'S ANY SORT OF ISSUES THEY MAY BE, BE, BE DOING IT. AND WE LEAVE THAT TO THE DISCRETION OF STAFF, BUT, YOU KNOW, IF THEY GET THEIR APPOINTMENTS, WE, WE, WE WILL BOOK IT OUT. AND I HONESTLY, I DON'T KNOW EXACTLY HOW FAR WE BOOKED IT OUT, BUT NO, WE WERE A COUPLE OF HUNDRED. DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH WE WERE AT DONE? UM, NO, HE'S NOT ON IT. UM, BUT YES, WE WERE LOOKING AT SORT OF A, YOU KNOW, 150 PLUS PEOPLE WHO ARE WAITING TO, TO SURRENDER. DO YOU THINK IT'S WEEKS OR DAYS OR ANY TESTS, IT'S IT FOR AN OWNER, AN OWNER SURRENDER CONSULT WE'LL WE USUALLY DO IT THE SAME DAY, BUT IT COULD BE THREE TO FOUR WEEKS FOR THE ACTUAL INTAKE APPOINTMENT, YOU KNOW, BUT WE WILL WORK IN EMERGENCIES AS NEEDED AGAIN, WE'LL CONSULT WITH THE INDIVIDUAL, FIND OUT WHAT THEIR, WHAT THEIR PLIGHT IS, TRY AND OFFER SUPPORT, JUST IF THEY WILL HOLD THE, THE, THE, THE PET OR ANIMAL FOR LONGER. BUT IF NOT, YEAH, WE WILL WORK WITH THEM. AND IF WE HAVE TO TAKE IT IN AND ON THE ADOPTIONS, YOU SAID PEOPLE ARE MAKING APPOINTMENTS. ARE THOSE APPOINTMENTS AVAILABLE? SAME DAY. LIKE IF SOMEONE LOOKED TOMORROW MORNING, COULD THEY GET AN APPOINTMENT TOMORROW? YES. YEAH. WELL, THAT'S AWESOME. THAT'S A GOOD CHANGE. UM, NEXT QUESTION. IS THERE ANY INFORMATION ON, WHEN DO YOU GUYS HAVE ANY INFORMATION FROM A CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE WITH RESPECT TO WHEN YOU'LL BE ABLE TO OPEN UP MORE WIDELY WHEN IT WILL, WHEN THINGS WERE RETURNED TO NORMAL, IF THERE CRITERIA UNDER WHICH YOU CAN RETURN TO NORMAL OVER THERE? WELL, WE'LL HAVE TO RELY ON WHEN THE STAGES DROP. AND I KNOW THEY'RE LOOKING AT THAT CURRENTLY. UM, I KNOW THERE'S CITY DEPARTMENTS THAT STARTING TO OPEN UP SOME OF THEM, UH, JUNE 1ST THAT'S BRINGING PEOPLE BACK IN THAT ARE TELEWORKING. UH, SO THAT NECESSARILY DOESN'T NECESSARILY MEAN THEY'RE OPENING THEIR DOORS. UH, THE LIBRARIES ARE OPENING, UH, A NUMBER OF THEIR LIBRARIES. UM, SO I THINK AUGUST IS WHEN THE LIBRARIES ARE PLANNING ON OPENING FULLY. SO WE'RE JUST HAVING TO TAKE DIRECTION WHEN, UM, WE CAN, AND AS SOON AS, YOU KNOW, THEY OPEN IT UP AND DROP THE STAGES, WE'LL LINK THE DOORS OPEN. I ASSUME THAT'S A, THAT'S A CITY MANAGER'S DECISION ON HA WHAT DID, WHAT YOU DO UNDER PARTICULAR STAGES? IS THAT RIGHT? YES, WE HAVE THERE'S GUIDELINES FOR EACH STAGE. AND THEN THE LAST QUESTION IS I JUST WANTED TO GIVE YOU THE OPPORTUNITY TO RESPOND TO, UM, THE, THE, UM, THE SWIRLING CONTROVERSY ABOUT, UH, ABOUT A PARTICULAR ABUSE, UM, ALLEGATION. AND, UM, I, YOU MAY DECIDE THAT YOU DON'T WANT TO RESPOND AND THAT'S FINE. I JUST WANTED TO GIVE YOU THE OPPORTUNITY TO, BECAUSE I'M SURE YOU'VE HEARD, HAS HE GOTTEN THE EMAILS AS WE HAVE, AND JUST WANTED TO GIVE YOU THE OPPORTUNITY TO TALK ABOUT IT IF YOU WANT IT TO, WELL, YOU UNDERSTAND THAT, UH, ANIMAL AUSTIN ANIMAL CENTER ANIMAL SERVICES DOES NOT DO ANYTHING WITH CRUELTY. THAT'S ALL HANDLED AT THE POLICE DEPARTMENT AND YOU, WHAT WE'VE BEEN TOLD IS, YOU KNOW, IT'S ONGOING INVESTIGATION AND WHAT'S, THEY PUT OUT TO THE PUBLIC IS EXACTLY WHAT WE NOW. YES. WHAT APD PUT OUT TO THE PUBLIC. UH, UM, I HAVEN'T SEEN THAT. DO YOU MIND JUST, UH, I DON'T KNOW IF YOU CAN SUMMARIZE IT. I JUST WANT, THERE ARE PEOPLE I'M SURE THAT ARE WATCHING OUT THERE. I JUST WANTED TO GIVE THEM THE OPPORTUNITY. THEY, THEY, UH, SUMMARIZED IT, THAT THE ANIMAL HAS, UH, ISSUES WITH, UH, NEUROLOGICAL ISSUES. THAT'S WHY IT HAS A HARD TIME STANDING AND THINGS LIKE THAT. AND, UM, THAT THEY DID NOT FIND ANY ANIMAL ABUSE, BUT THAT, UH, [00:35:01] IS STILL AN ONGOING INVESTIGATION AND THEY'RE WORKING WITH THE OWNER, BUT THE ANIMAL HAD A VET APPOINTMENT TO BE EUTHANIZED. AND IT HAS SINCE BEEN EUTHANIZED BY THE OWNER BECAUSE OF ITS DECLINING CONDITION. THAT'S ALL I HAVE. THANK YOU. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS FOR STAFF? OKAY, WELL, I JUST LIKE TO ADD, I, I, I AGREE THAT I WOULD LIKE TO SEE THE, THE NAMES OF THE SPECIES INVOLVED IN THE RABIES, UH, BECAUSE THAT IS INFORMATION THAT SOMETIMES IT'S GOOD FOR COMMISSION TO HAVE FROM TIME TO TIME. WE GET PEOPLE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD WHO WORRIED ABOUT RABIES AND YOU KNOW, THIS ANIMAL OR THAT ANIMAL AND SIZE. NICE TO KNOW. UH, YOU CAN TELL, WELL, NO, WE HAVEN'T DETECTED ANY RABIES AND, YOU KNOW, COYOTES FOR INSTANCE. SO ANYWAY, THANK YOU. WELL, LET'S GO ON THEN. UH, WE NOW HAVE OLD BUSINESS AND A UNDER OLD [3a. Update, Discussion and Possible Action on Comparative Evaluations of Monthly Release Rates] BUSINESSES UPDATE, DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION ON COMPARATIVE EVALUATIONS OF MONTHLY RELEASE RATES. THAT'S MINE. CRAIG. I'D LIKE TO LEAVE THAT ON SINCE WE'RE HAVING A HARD TIME DRAWING, COMPARATIVE LABOR LOOSE RATES WITH, OR WITH OUR ONGOING DATA CONCERNS. OKAY. WELL, ALL RIGHT. I CAN AGREE WITH THAT. AND I DO AGREE THAT, UH, SOMETIMES IT'S HARD TO FOLLOW ALL THESE NUMBERS, UH, BUT IT'S IMPORTANT FOR US TO DO SO. I AGREE WHAT WE'LL TRY AND GET THAT WORKING BETTER. I HOPE. THANK YOU. OKAY. A B UPDATE, [3b. Update, Discussion and Possible Action from Working Group on Off-Leash Dogs] DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION FROM WORKING GROUP ON OFF-LEASH DOGS, AND THAT WOULD BE JOANNE. THANK YOU. UM, SO IT'S BEEN A BUSY AND GOOD MONTH. UM, CRAIG AND I PARTICIPATED IN, UH, TWO MEETINGS WITH THE PARK AND RECREATIONS, UM, BOARD, UH, COMMISSIONERS FOR THEIR AWFULLY STOCK WORKING GROUP. UH, WE'RE GOING TO BE, UM, COMMUNICATING TWICE A MONTH. UM, I THINK THE BASIC BREAKDOWN BETWEEN THE TWO OF US WILL BE, UM, PROBABLY WE'LL BE WORKING MORE ON THE PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENTS AND, UH, UH, EDUCATION CAUSE, UM, THAT'S, HE'S REALLY GOOD AT THAT. AND I'LL, I'VE VOLUNTEERED, UM, TO BE ON A, UH, PROGRAM TO, UM, FIND A PATHWAY FOR CITIZENS TO, UM, EASILY REQUEST AN OFF-LEASH DOG PARK IN THEIR AREA, UM, MIGHT NOT HAPPEN, BUT AT LEAST THEY'LL HAVE A WAY TO DO IT. SO IF THEY NOTICE A LOT OF OFF-LEASE DOGS IN A PARTICULAR PLACE, MAYBE WE COULD HAVE SOME PATHWAY TO HAVE A FENCE AREA FOR THEM. SO THE DOGS DON'T SPILL OVER INTO PEOPLE'S PICNICS AND SUCH, UM, THE, UM, I ATTACHED TWO DOCUMENTS, UM, ONE IS A SPREADSHEET AND THESE, THIS IS A FLUID DOCUMENT THAT I USE AS A REFERENCE WHEN I STARTED LOOKING INTO THIS ISSUE BECAUSE OF ISSUES ON NEXT DOOR AND EMAILS WERE GETTING, I TRIED TO PUT THE GENERAL ISSUES DOWN IN THE SPREADSHEET. SO, UM, I COULD TRY TO, UM, TAILOR THE SOLUTIONS TO ACTUALLY THE ISSUES PEOPLE ARE EXPERIENCING IN THE PUBLIC. UM, AND THEN, UH, I ALSO SENT THE, UM, WEBSITE UPDATES. THESE ARE THE ONES THAT, UM, WE, UH, UH, CRY AGAIN, UH, AARON, THE OTHER WORKING GROUP, A MEMBER, AND I, UM, PUT TOGETHER TO TRY TO, UM, UPDATE AND MAKE THE INFORMATION ON THE CITY'S WEBSITE. MORE, A LITTLE CLEARER. UM, THERE WAS ONE ISSUE, THE DANGEROUS DOG INSURANCE IS STILL A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS. I DON'T KNOW WHERE I GOT THE OTHER NUMBER FROM, UM, AND, UH, AAC, UM, CAME BACK AND SAID THEY WERE WILLING TO MAKE THE CHANGES, UM, AND ALSO TO, UH, UPDATE THEIR CHAT BOX, UM, WITH THESE CHANGES. SO HOPEFULLY IF THE PUBLIC GOES TO THE WEBSITE, THEY'LL SEE SOME OF THESE CHANGES. SO, UM, UH, BEFORE I GO ON, I WANT TO SEE IF ANYBODY HAS QUESTIONS ON ANY OF THOSE DOCUMENTS. UM, THE, UM, I THINK A BIG PART OF WHAT WE'RE GOING TO BE DOING IS JUST, UM, EDUCATING THE PUBLIC AND MANAGING EXPECTATIONS. UM, A COUPLE OF INTERESTING THINGS WE LEARNED, UH, THE CITY HAS 17,000 ACRES OF PARKLAND, UM, INCLUDING 300 PARKS. AND, UM, THEY HAVE WITH SUPERVISORS, A TOTAL OF 21 PARK RANGER POSITIONS TO MANAGE ALL THOSE PARKS, NOT A LOT, AND THEY CAN ONLY WRITE TICKETS FOR, UM, PARKING. UM, BUT THE PARK RANGERS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR, UH, VOLUNTARILY ASKING PEOPLE TO NOT HAVE, [00:40:01] UM, OPEN GLASS CONTAINERS IN THE PARKS, NOT THE CAMP IN THE PAR, UH, NOT DEV OP POLICE DOGS IN THE PARKS. SO IT'S A BIG POSITION FOR THEM. UM, ALSO TRAVIS COUNTY HAS 900 SQUARE MILES AND WE HAVE 20 ANIMAL PROTECTION, UM, OFFICER POSITIONS. SO, AND AGAIN, THESE ARE SEVEN DAY A WEEK POSITIONS. I BELIEVE MOST OF THEM ARE AT LEAST TWO SHIFTS. SO IF SOMEBODY WAY UP NORTH AND WE GET A COST FOR WAY SOUTH, YOU KNOW, THEY MIGHT NOT MAKE IT THERE BEFORE THE PEOPLE LEAVE WITH THEIR DOGS. SO NOT A LOT OF, UM, NOT A LOT OF EMPLOYEES TO COVER A LOT OF POSITIONS AND, UH, THAT'S SOMETHING WE'LL HAVE TO TACKLE BECAUSE I DO THINK FOR THE MOST PART PUBLIC CALLS AND SAYS, THEY'RE HERE NOW IN THE PARK WITH ALL THESE OFF-LEASE DOGS, BUT THERE'S JUST NOT PHYSICALLY PEOPLE AROUND TO RUN THERE AND GET THEM THE PRIORITY FOR ANIMAL PROTECTION WILL BE, UM, UH, AGGRESSIVE DOGS OR INJURED DOGS OR SOMETHING. AND THAT'S WHY IN THE WEBSITE, WE'VE TRIED TO SAY, WELL, HERE'S, WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN. YOU GO TO THREE, ONE, ONE, YES, THEY CAN OPEN A TICKET, BUT THAT JUST OPENS A TICKET THEN IN THE, UM, SAY THE CITY, UH, ANIMAL PROTECTION SYSTEM AND THREE ONE, AND CAN'T GO BACK AND LOOK AT THAT TICKET TO SEE A STATUS OF IT. AND THAT'S TRUE. UM, MY UNDERSTANDING FOR ANY CITY DEPARTMENT THAT IT OPENS A TICKET IN. SO WE, WE KIND OF WANT TO LET THE PUBLIC KNOW WHAT'S HAPPENING AND I HOPE THAT HELPS ANY QUESTIONS ON ANY OF THAT. UM, SO, UM, IT'S POSSIBLE. UM, I DON'T KNOW IF WE NEED MOTIONS ON A COUPLE OF THINGS, BUT I'LL THROW IT OUT. UM, ONE IS THAT, UM, CRAIG AND I MAYBE INVITED TO ATTEND SOME NEIGHBORHOOD MEETINGS, UM, AS COMMISSIONERS TO TALK ABOUT THE OFF-LEASH DOG ISSUES THE NEIGHBORHOODS ARE EXPERIENCING. I THINK SO PARK, UH, MIGHT BE ONE. AND WE'D ALSO LIKE TO, AS PART OF OUR, UM, INFORMATION FROM ANDERSON ACCOMPANY PARK RANGERS, TO SOME OF THE PARKS, LIKE IF YOU'VE EVER BEEN TO SEOUL CREEK, THEY HAVE AWFULLY STOGY AREA QUICKLY BECOMES AN ADULT DOG AREA. AND THE DOGS USUALLY ARE STILL ON A LEASH ARE STILL OFF LEAST WHEN THEY GO DOWN THERE. SO MAYBE SPEND TIME IN DIFFERENT PARKS AROUND THE CITY PROMOTING, UM, THAT THIS IS AN UNLEASHED DOG AREA AND YOUR DOG SHOULD BE ON A LEASH. SO, UM, SINCE WE WILL BE THERE AS COMMISSIONERS, WE NEED APPROVAL FROM Y'ALL TO DO THAT. I WASN'T SURE IF WE NEEDED APPROVAL OR NOT, I WOULD GET IT BECAUSE IF YOU GO AND YOU SPEAK AT ANYTHING AND YOU SAY YOU'RE THERE AS A COMMISSIONER, YOU'RE THERE REPRESENTING THE INTERESTS OF THE COMMISSION. UM, OR AT LEAST THAT WAS SOMETHING I WAS TOLD SOME TIME AGO. SO I DON'T KNOW THE EXACT RULE, BUT I THINK THAT IT IS SOMETHING WE PROBABLY SHOULD VOTE ON. UH, YES, THE RULE SAYS THAT THE COMMISSIONERS, I JUST READ IT TODAY. THE COMMISSIONERS HAVE NO AUTHORITY EXCEPT WHEN ACTING AS A COMMISSION. SO I THINK SHE'S RIGHT. SO I WOULD, UH, ENTERTAIN A MOTION. SO WITH THE, SO THE, THE MOTION WOULD BE THAT YOU ARE I, AND, UM, ATTEND, UM, NEIGHBORHOOD MEETINGS OR ACCOMPANY PARK RANGERS STUFF, PARK EVENTS, UM, AS PART OF, UH, AWFULLY STOCK WORKING. YEAH. AND SPEAK FOR THE COMMISSION AT THOSE EVENTS. IS THERE A FRIEND LIKE, UH, I'LL GIVE IT A SECOND AND THEN A FRIENDLY AMENDMENT. YES. I WOULDN'T. I WOULD NOT SAY THAT YOU'RE THERE SPEAKING AS THE COMMISSION, I WOULD IN FACT, MAKE A DISCLAIMER THAT YOU ARE NOT DOING. SO I THINK WE'RE VOTING TO ALLOW YOU TO ATTEND IN YOUR CAPACITY AS COMMISSIONERS, BUT NOT GIVE ANY ADVICE OR SPEAK AS, AS THE BODY. I MEAN, SOMEBODY ELSE CAN CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, BUT I THINK THAT'S PROBABLY HOW I WOULD AMEND THAT. AND I CAN DO IT BETTER FOR BELINDA IF SHE NEEDS ME TO, THAT WOULD BE FINE EITHER WAY. LISA'S RIGHT. LISA IS CORRECT THOUGH. I WOULD, I THINK YOU'D BE BETTER OFF GOING AS INDIVIDUALS, RATHER THAN SPEAKING FOR THE COMMISSION, BECAUSE THAT COULD HAVE KINDS OF, UH, UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES AS WELL. WITH RESPECT TO THE GOING WITH THE PARK RANGERS THINGS. I WOULD HAVE NO OBJECTION AT ALL TO LIKE RIDE ALONGS, BUT I WOULD HAVE A MAJOR OBJECTION TO ANYBODY LIKE INTERACTING WITH THE PUBLIC AND, UM, ACTING AS LIKE JUNIOR RANGERS. I DON'T KNOW. WHAT'S I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'RE ANTICIPATING BY THAT. I MEAN, I DON'T THINK YOU NEED OUR VOTE TO DO A RIDE ALONG, UM, BECAUSE YOU'RE JUST, YOU'RE JUST GOING TO [00:45:01] OBSERVE. BUT IF YOU WERE LIKE PLANNING ON, I DUNNO, ACTING, I WOULD HAVE A BIG PROBLEM WITH THAT. I DON'T, I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU HAVE IN MIND. I THINK THE IDEA IS EDUCATION IS TO DISSEMINATE INFORMATION. I THINK THE TRUTH IS THAT MOST PEOPLE DON'T REALLY KNOW WHAT THE LAW IS AND THEY DON'T REALLY KNOW WHAT THE RULES ARE OR THEY DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY THE RULES ARE IMPORTANT. AND SO IT'S JUST TO GO ALONG TO, TO, TO TALK WITH PEOPLE AND ALSO TO GET INFORMATION TOO, I MEAN, ON, ON THE WORKING GROUP, THERE'S A LOT OF QUESTIONS TO, WHAT CAN WE DO? THIS IS A TOUGH PROBLEM, I THINK, AND WHAT CAN WE DO? AND IN ORDER TO KNOW WHAT WE CAN DO, IT HELPS TO TALK TO THE PEOPLE WHO ARE MAYBE, YOU KNOW, VIOLATING THE RULES ARE NOT SURE TO SEE WHY THEY'RE DOING WHAT THEY'RE DOING. YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN? SO IN A WAY IT MAYBE IS LIKE, UM, FACT-FINDING TOO. I, UH, LET ME JUST ADD, I'D BE REAL CAREFUL DOING ANY OF THAT IN THE GUY UNDER THE GUISE OF BEING AS EITHER AS A COMMISSIONER OR AS THE COMMISSION, HOWEVER YOU WANT TO FRAME IT. ONLY BECAUSE I HAVE EXPERIENCED THIS, I WENT TO A MEETING ONCE AND I SAID, I WAS ON THE COMMISSION. I SAID, I WAS NOT THERE AS A MEMBER OF THE COMMISSION. IT DID NOT GO WELL, I WAS BITTEN BACK. SO I'M JUST TELLING YOU THIS, AS SOMEBODY WHO'S EXPERIENCED IT, YOU MIGHT, UM, I DON'T KNOW. I WOULD MAYBE CONSIDER RUNNING IT BY LIKE STEPHANIE HALL OR SOMETHING. I DON'T KNOW, BUT I I'D BE REAL CAREFUL. I'M TELLING YOU THIS BECAUSE I AM AN EXAMPLE. YOU DON'T WANT TO FOLLOW IN THIS REGARD BECAUSE IT DIDN'T GO WELL. SO THAT'S MY 2 CENTS. I MEAN, I CAN SEE THAT. SO WE, ABOUT AS FAR AS I'M CONCERNED, I, I WOULDN'T MIND GOING JUST AS AN INDIVIDUAL. I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU FEEL ABOUT THAT, JOANNE, BUT THAT'D BE FINE WITH ME. YOU KNOW, I'M JUST A FRIENDLY GUY OUT THERE TALKING TO PEOPLE ABOUT THEIR DOGS AND CONCERNS AND, YOU KNOW, THEY DON'T WANT TO TALK TO ME. THEY DON'T HAVE TO. YEAH. I THINK FOR THE PARKS PART, UM, I WOULD JUST LIKE TO HEAR WHAT PEOPLE TELL THE RANGERS, OR IF THE RANGERS SAY SOMETHING TO THEM, YOU KNOW, WHAT THE FEEDBACK IS FROM THE PUBLIC, UM, AS TO WHY IT'S HAPPENING OR WHAT THEY WANT CHANGED OR WHAT THE, WHAT THE RANGERS, YOU KNOW, FACE. UM, IF, UH, WE A BROCHURE OR SOMETHING AND WE WANTED TO GIVE IT TO SOMEBODY, WE COULD CERTAINLY DO THAT. BUT MY GUESS IS THEY WOULDN'T LIKE IT. UM, I THINK TO ME THAT'S MORE FACT-FINDING, UM, IT, FOR THE NEIGHBORHOOD MEETINGS, IT'S KIND OF LIKE LOOKING AT, UH, TO ME, IT'S KIND OF LIKE LOOKING AT A NEXT DOOR WHERE PEOPLE POST THINGS OR ASK QUESTIONS. AND MAYBE SINCE WE'RE LOOKING AT THE TOPIC, WE CAN WRITE DOWN WHAT THEY'RE INTERESTED IN, OR AT LEAST EXPLAIN TO THEM SOME OF THE, SOME OF WHAT WE'RE FINDING OUT LIKE ABOUT THE FACT THAT, YOU KNOW, WE'VE GOT A LOT OF ACRES OF PARKLAND AND VERY FEW PARK RANGERS AND THEY HAVE, UM, EH, YOU KNOW, THEY REALLY LOOK FOR VOLUNTARY PARTICIPATION. SO IF THEY GO TO SOMEONE AND SAY, I'M SORRY THAT, YOU KNOW, THIS IS ON LEASH AREA, COULD YOU PUT YOUR DOG ON A LEASH? THEY CAN'T WRITE A TICKET TO THAT PERSON AND SAY, OKAY, I'M TICKETING YOU FOR NOT DOING IT. THEY CAN JUST ASK THEM TO VOLUNTEER LATE, BUT THE DOG ON THE LEECH. AND, UH, AND I THINK THAT THERE'S A LOT OF, UM, MISCONCEPTION OUT IN THE PUBLIC AS TO WHAT THEY CAN DO. SO IT'D BE INTERESTING TO HEAR WHAT THEY THINK, WHAT THEY THINK COULD HAPPEN OR IS HAPPENING. WELL, IF, IF WE'RE JUST GOING TO ACT AS INDIVIDUALS, WE DON'T REALLY NEED THE APPROVAL OF THIS COMMISSION. WE, WE, IF WE DO THAT, JOANNE, I THINK WE JUST GO OUT AND WE DON'T, YOU KNOW, DON'T ADVERTISE, TIES OURSELVES AS COMMISSIONERS WERE FRIENDS OF THE SHELTER, AND WE'RE TRYING TO GET INFORMATION TO ADDRESS THIS. THAT'S FINE WITHOUT WORK WITH IT. DO YOU THINK EVERYBODY THINKS THAT WOULD WORK? I THINK THAT WOULD BE FINE. OKAY. I PERSONALLY THINK YOU CAN, UM, GO TO A, UM, A MEETING AND LISTEN, ASK PEOPLE YOU WANT TO HEAR ABOUT THEIR CONCERNS YOU WANT TO HEAR ABOUT THEIR ISSUES. AND, UM, I DON'T HAVE ANY OBJECTION TO ANY OF THAT, BUT MY MAIN WORRY WAS THAT, UM, THERE WAS GOING TO BE SOME FALSE ATTRIBUTION OF AUTHORITY TO SOMEONE, UM, GOING OUT AND TALKING TO PEOPLE, RIGHT. YOU KNOW, NEXT TO A PARK RANGER. AND I THINK THAT WOULD WE GET INTO VERY DANGEROUS TERRITORY THERE, BUT, UH, AS INDIVIDUALS RIGHT ALONG, I DON'T THINK YOU NEED OUR PERMISSION AT ALL, FOR THAT TO HEAR WHAT'S GOING ON. I THINK ALL OF US HAVE BEEN INVITED TO DO THAT WITH, UM, WITH THE CITY ANIMAL WELFARE STAFF. AND IF YOU HAVEN'T, I WOULD ENCOURAGE YOU TO DO SO. IT'S A REALLY, REALLY GOOD EXPERIENCE. I AGREE WITH WHAT BRIAN JUST [00:50:01] SAID. I MEAN, THAT WAS THE REASON I RAISED IT AS THIS, THIS IDEA THAT THERE'S, YOU KNOW, A MISPERCEPTION. UM, SO I LEAVE IT TO Y'ALL'S DISCRETION TO DECIDE TO GO OUT INDIVIDUALLY. I MEAN, THAT'S FINE BY ME. ONE OTHER THOUGHT THAT I HAD, WOULD IT BE HELPFUL TO MAYBE INVITE ONE OF THE PARK RANGERS AT SOME POINT TO A COMMISSION MEETING TO SEE WHAT FEEDBACK THEY'VE BEEN GETTING SO THAT WE COULD HEAR IT AS A GROUP? I DON'T KNOW IF THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL TO JOANNE'S GROUP OR NOT, BUT THAT'S JUST ONE THOUGHT THAT I HAD, CAN IT BE THAT IN FUTURE MEETINGS AS, UH, OUR REPORT, WE CAN CAUSE WE'RE GOING TO BE MEETING WITH MORE OF THEM COMING UP AND, UH, KIMBERLY TO, UH, SHE'S COME TO SOME OF THESE MEETINGS. SO YEAH, WE CAN DO THAT IN THE FUTURE. WE CAN BRING THAT INFORMATION HERE. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, JOANNE, IF YOU HAVE ANY OTHER HEAR ANYTHING OR HAVE ANY IDEAS OR LOOK AT THE SPREADSHEET AND YOU HAVE OTHER IDEAS ON HOW WE CAN, UM, TACKLE SOME OF THESE ISSUES, PLEASE REACH OUT. WE APPRECIATE YOUR SUPPORT. I THINK JUST UPDATING THE WEBSITE. IF PEOPLE LOOK AT IT, IT'S GOING TO BE, UM, VERY HELPFUL AND I APPRECIATE, UH, DIRECTOR BLAND AND HIS STAFF FOR AGREEING EVEN AGREEING TO DO IT. SO I THINK THAT'S A VERY IMPORTANT POINT. IF YOU HAVEN'T LOOKED AT THE WEBSITE, LOOK AT IT, THE BETTER THAT WEBSITE IS AND THE MORE GOOD INFORMATION IT HAS, MORE, THE MORE PEOPLE ARE LIKELY TO VISIT IT. AND THAT'S REALLY KIND OF OUR BEST WAY TO GET IN FOR GOOD INFORMATION OUT. SO WHATEVER YOU CAN DO, GREG, I HAVE ONE MORE QUESTION. YES, YES. UH, HAVE YOU GUYS THOUGHT ABOUT OR LOOKED INTO AT ALL, UM, SIGNAGE AT PARKS? I WAS JUST WONDERING IF THAT'S, IF THAT PLAYS INTO IT OR ARE THERE ENOUGH SIGNS ALREADY TELLING PEOPLE AND THEY'RE JUST IGNORING THEM OR, OR, OR REALLY IS THERE NOT ENOUGH SIGNAGE THAT PEOPLE DON'T EVEN KNOW FROM? I DON'T TAKE MY DOGS TO DOGS, DOG PARKS, CAUSE THEY TEND TO BE MISBEHAVE DOGS. UM, SO I DON'T HAVE ANY PERSONAL EXPERIENCE IN THIS AT ALL. I MEAN, TOOK MY DOG FOR A WALK, I THINK ONCE ON A TRAIL AND THAT WAS WORSE, ONE OF THE WORST DAYS OF MY LIFE. SO I NEVER WENT BACK. UH, SO ANYWAY, I WAS JUST WONDERING, DO YOU FEEL LIKE THE SIGNAGE, OR HAVE YOU BEEN THOUGHT ABOUT LOOKING INTO WHETHER THE SIGNAGE IS, IS GOOD FOR THAT KIND OF THING? OH, WE TALKED ABOUT SIGNAGE. UM, THERE ARE ISSUES WITH IT. NUMBER ONE, IT'S COSTLY AND YOU KNOW, THE SIGNAGE IN PARKS COMES FROM THE PARK BUDGET AND YOU KNOW, THE OTHER THING ABOUT SIGNAGE IS IT'S HARD TO MAKE REALLY GOOD SIGNS, UH, PR IN SOME PARKS, LIKE I KNOW IN WALNUT CREEK, METROPOLITAN PARK, YOU KNOW, IS, IS OFF-LEASH NORTH OF THE RIVER ON ONLY SOUTH RIVER. YOU'D HAVE TO PUT A SIGN IN THE RIVER, YOU KNOW, IN WALNUT CREEK. AND THEN ALL THE HIKE AND BIKE TRAILS ARE ON LEASH ONLY. SO YOU HAVE TO PUT THESE SIGNS ON THE EDGE OF THE TRAIL, WHICH WAY IS IT FACING? YOU KNOW WHAT I'M SAYING? IT, AND THEN THEY GET VANDALIZED. SO YEAH, IT'S A CAN OF WORMS. YEAH. UM, DIRECTOR MCNEELY HAS A LOT OF, UM, DATA AND THAT WAS ONE OF THE, UM, DATA POINTS. SHE WAS, UM, GETTING SOME INFORMATION ON FOR US AND WHAT'S GOING TO COME BACK AT THE NEXT MEETING AND, UH, AND DISCUSS THAT. SO, UM, IT IS SOMETHING THEY'RE LOOKING AT THAT WE'RE LOOKING. UM, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? WELL, LET'S MOVE ON AND WE'LL KEEP THIS ON THE AGENDA BECAUSE WE'RE GOING TO HAVE SOME MORE MEETINGS AND MAYBE WE CAN, UH, IT'S A TRICKY PROBLEM. OKAY. SO, UH, [3c. Update, Discussion and Possible Action from Working Group on How to Increase Microchipping in the City of Austin] C UPDATE, DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION FROM WORKING GROUP ON HOW TO INCREASE MICROCHIPPING IN THE CITY OF AUSTIN. OKAY. I'LL TAKE CARE OF THAT. UH, WE HAD A VERY SUCCESSFUL MACRO DRIVE THROUGH INITIAL INAUGURAL MICROCHIP CLINIC AT THE SHELTER IN APRIL. UM, IT WAS VERY SUCCESSFUL. WE DID FIND OUT THAT, UH, WE CAN DO, UH, FOUR TIMES MORE THAN WE HAD SCHEDULED. SO OUR NEXT EVENT IS GOING TO BE MAY 15TH AND IT WOULD BE A DRIVE-THROUGH EVENT. AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO MICROCHIPPING FOUR TIMES MORE ANIMALS AT THIS, THIS ONE. UH, IT'S A MODEL THAT WE'LL BE ABLE TO REPLICATE MOVING FORWARD WHILE WE ARE STILL UNDER, YOU KNOW, PANDEMIC SHUTDOWN, UH, CAUSE PEOPLE, YOU KNOW, STAY IN THEIR CARS AND, UH, IT, IT, WE CAN, YOU KNOW, DISTANCE THE PEOPLE FROM US AND IT WORKED REALLY WELL. UH, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT IS ALTERNATE LOCATIONS, UH, FROM THE HIGH INTAKE AREAS THAT WOULD LET US USE THEIR PARKING LOT. I KNOW, UH, OUR APO OFFICERS, YOU KNOW, ARE WORKING IN, LOOKING AT, YOU KNOW, CAN IT, COULD IT BE, YOU KNOW, A CHURCH PARKING LOT OR, YOU KNOW, A GROCERY STORE AFTER HOURS, IT WAS SO DIFFERENT, DIFFERENT PLACES THAT WE [00:55:01] CAN LOOK AT OFF CAMPUS. SO THAT'S, THAT'S ONE OF THE NEXT ROLL-OUTS, UH, WE ARE ATTENDING, UH, AN EVENT, UH, ON MAY 29TH. IT, UH, PAUL'S ON CHACONE IS HAVING AN EVENT. IT'S A DOGGY DRAG SHOW AND WE WILL BE THERE MICRO-CHIPPING ANIMALS. WE MIGHT HAVE TO UNDRESS THEM TO TAKE, GIVE THEM A MICROCHIP IF THEY NEED IT, BUT WE'RE WILLING TO DO THAT. UM, SO THE, UH, ANOTHER EVENT, BUT ON YOUR CALENDAR IS AUGUST 15TH, THAT IS NATIONAL CHECK THE CHIP DATE. WE DON'T KNOW WHAT EVENT WE'LL HAVE THAT DAY, BUT WE WILL BE DOING SOMETHING, UH, ON AUGUST 15TH BECAUSE THAT IS, YOU KNOW, A NATIONAL EVENT THAT GETS PUSHED. ONE OF THE OTHER THINGS I WANT TO TALK ABOUT IS, UM, ONE OF THE PLACES THAT HAS THE HIGHEST RETURN TO OWNER RATE OF 31% IS RENO, NEVADA. AND THEY HAVE BEEN, YOU KNOW, MICROCHIPPING FOR DECADES AND THEY HAVE DEVELOPED A CULTURE IN THEIR COMMUNITY THAT WHEN SOMEONE SEES A LOST DOG, IT'S NOT AUTOMATICALLY TAKE IT TO THE SHELTER. IT'S LIKE, OH, YOU KNOW, IT'S PROBABLY MICROCHIP, LET'S GET IT SCANNED OR GET IT BACK HOME AND KEEP IT IN THERE. SO THEY REALLY, THEIR WHOLE COMMUNITY WORKS TO KEEP ANIMALS OUT OF THE SHELTER. AND WHEN THEY DO COME IN THE SHELTER, THEY'VE BEEN MICROCHIPPING FOR SO LONG THAT THEY DO HAVE AN EXCELLENT RETURN, RIGHT. AND THEY EVEN A, YOU KNOW, CONTEST AMONG THEIR APO STAFF ON, YOU KNOW, WHO THAT MONTH SCAN AND WAS ABLE TO TAKE MORE ANIMALS HOME, YOU KNOW, SO THAT THEY EVEN DO THINGS INTERNALLY TOO. SO, YOU KNOW, TRYING TO LEARN FROM SOME OF THESE BEST PRACTICES IS SOMETHING THAT WE'RE GONNA CONTINUE TO LOOK AT. UM, AND THAT'S OUR UPDATE AT THIS POINT IN QUESTIONS. UM, IT'S YOURSELF, EDWARD, I AM, I JUST WANTED TO, UH, MAKE VAPE. UM, SO I WANTED TO, THIS WAS A, THIS WAS AN IDEA THAT ACTUALLY BELINDA HAD, UH, FOR THE COMMISSIONERS. IF WE COULD REACH OUT TO OUR COUNCIL MEMBERS, ANYONE WHO APPOINTED US TO GET US, UH, MAYBE A SPECIFIC AREA THAT THEY FEEL IS HIGHER NEED FOR A MICROCHIPPING EVENT FROM THE APO OFFICERS THAT WOULD BE GREATLY APPRECIATED. IF YOU COULD COME BACK WITH ANY FEEDBACK TO US, SEND IT TO US IN AN EMAIL. AND, AND, AND WE CAN AT LEAST GET THE, TO THE APO OFFICERS TO SEE WHAT AREAS LIKE DON HAD MENTIONED, UM, WHETHER IT'S A CHURCH OR SOME SCHOOL THAT COULD BE HELPFUL IN ORDER TO GET ANY MORE ANIMALS. MICROTIP THANK YOU. AND I DID FORGET TO MENTION THAT WE ARE WORKING WITH, UM, SOME CONTACTS THAT EDWARD PUT US INTO TOUCH WITH ON LEARNING SOME PSA'S, UM, AND ON THE SPANISH STATIONS. AND SO WE, WE WERE ALREADY WORKING FROM OUR SIDE TO DO SOME PAID ADVERTISING FRONT WITH THEM, BUT THEY STEPPED UP TO DO SOME PSA'S WHERE WE CAN COME ON, SOME OF THEIR RADIO SHOWS AND SHOWS AND THAT WE CAN ADDRESS THIS ISSUE. AND SO WE'RE MARKETING TEAM IS TRYING TO WORK OUT ALL THE LOGISTICS TO GET THAT DONE TOO. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? OKAY, WELL THAT SOUNDS LIKE A GOOD REPORT. I THINK THAT'S VERY IMPORTANT. AND I ALSO, WHILE WE'RE CONTACT YOUR CITY COUNCIL MEMBER LESSEN A BIT LESS, LET'S MAKE SURE WE DON'T LOSE THAT POSITION AT THE SHELTER. UH, SO IF THERE'S NOTHING ELSE, THAT'S THE, UM, UH, AGENDA, ARE THERE THERE'S ONE NEW ITEM UNDER ONE BUSINESS QUAD. YEAH. NEW BUSINESS. OH YEAH, THERE IS. SORRY, I DIDN'T PUT IT DOWN. UPDATE DISCUSSION. [4a. Update, Discussion and Possible Action on Monthly Reporting of Data] PAUSE POPS WILL ACTION ON MONTHLY REPORTING OF DATA. WE ACTUALLY HAVE, UH, QUICK QUESTION. UH, CRAIG, I APOLOGIZE FOR INTERRUPTING. IS THAT ITEM THREE, A OLD BUSINESS STILL STAIN ON, UH, YEAH, WE'LL TALK ABOUT THAT AT, WITH, UH, THE, UH, FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS. I WOULD START OUT AS A MATTER OF FACT OF FACT THOUGH, I THINK THERE'S A RULE THAT SAYS, IF YOU HAVE A WORKING GROUP, THEY NEED TO REPORT EACH TIME. AND IF YOU DON'T PUT THEM ON THE AGENDA, YOU HAVE TO DISSOLVE THEM. I THINK THAT'S THE WAY YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO DO WORK IN GROUPS ANYWAY. SO AS LONG AS YOU'RE DOING WORK, YOU TELL US WHAT YOU'RE DOING. UH, SO UPDATE, DISCUSSION POSSIBLE ACTION ON MONTHLY REPORTING OF DATA. I'LL START. YEP. PALMER. YEAH. SO, AND ALSO, JASON, THANK YOU FOR ALL THAT YOU HAVE PULLED TOGETHER. IT'S MUCH APPRECIATED. UM, BUT I DO HAVE A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS. [01:00:01] DON, YOU HAD MENTIONED THAT, UM, YOU ALL HAVE BEEN MEETING WITH A TEAM THAT IS FORMULATING THE NEW REPORTS. CAN YOU ALL SHARE WITH US WHAT TYPE OF REPORT SINCE YOU SAID, THIS WILL BE REPLACING CRYSTAL, WHAT WE CAN EXPECT TO BE REPORTED ON DATA-WISE AND WHEN WE EXPECT TO START RECEIVING THOSE? WELL, WE, IT WILL BE IN A FORMAT OF A MICROSOFT POWER BI AND IT'S VERY INTUITIVE. AND ALL OF THE REPORTS THAT THE, UH, CITY COUNCIL HAS REQUESTED THE 16 REPORTS THAT WERE IN THE RIGHT TO RESCUE ORDINANCE. THOSE ARE ONES THAT WILL BE, UH, PRODUCED AND THEY'RE, THEY'RE WORKING ON THOSE LISTS. AND LIKE I SAID, THEY, THEY GAVE US A COUPLE OF WEEKS AGO, A PREVIEW OF ONE OF THE FIRST ONES THEY WROTE AND IT, IT HAD SOME ERRORS IN IT DIDN'T ADD UP. AND SO THEY HAD TO GO BACK AND, YOU KNOW, DIG THROUGH AND FIND OUT WHAT THEY'RE MISSING. BUT, UM, I KNOW THAT THEY'RE WORKING FAST AND FURIOUS TRYING TO GET IT IN INTO US AS, SO I DON'T HAVE A TIMELINE. UH, I KNOW THAT. DO YOU HAVE A TIMELINE, JASON? UM, I DON'T, WE ARE, WE'RE ACTUALLY SETTING UP A FOLLOW-UP MEETING JUST AS THE, THE ISSUES THAT WE FOUND IN THAT MEETING THAT DON MENTIONED TO SEE IF THEY ADDRESSED IT. SO THAT WAY, SO I MEAN, OPTIMISTICALLY, HOPEFULLY BY, BY, BY MID SUMMER, I MEAN THEY, BUT, UM, YEAH, THAT'S, THAT'S WHAT WE'RE WORKING ON. UH, WE, AGAIN, THEY'RE, THEY'RE TRYING TO INCORPORATE AND LEARN CHAMELEON AS FAST AS THEY CAN, SO THEY KNOW WHAT TO PULL SO THAT THE DATA IS, IS CORRECT. AND IT'S NOT, THE NUMBERS ARE ESSENTIALLY ADDING UP IN ANY DISCREPANCIES THAT WE DO FIND WE'RE ABLE TO ADDRESS IT QUICKLY. SO WE HAVE OUR FOLLOW-UP MEETING, I THINK, IN THE NEXT COUPLE OF WEEKS AND GET AN UPDATE FROM THEN OR THINGS START LOOKING GOOD, YOU KNOW, HOPEFULLY, HOPEFULLY SOON. UM, BUT OKAY, THANK YOU FOR THAT. SO, SO WHAT THEY'RE WORKING ON PRODUCING SHOULD COVER MOST, EVERYTHING THAT WE'RE ASKING WITH THESE HOLES AND QUESTIONS ON THE CURRENT INFORMATION WE'RE RECEIVING THEN PLUS THE REPORTS THAT WERE DIRECTED BY COUNCIL. EXACTLY. THE ONLY THING THAT MAY, THAT THEY PROBABLY WILL NOT BE ABLE TO DO ONLY BECAUSE WE DON'T, WE DON'T CAPTURE BY A CHAMELEON OR WHATNOT IS THE ONE DATA POINT REGARDING, UM, SPAY AND NEUTERS OUTSIDE IN THE COMMUNITY. WE GET THOSE THROUGH THE INVOICES FROM, FROM OUR PARTNERS THAT WE CONTRACT WITH. AND SO THAT WILL PROBABLY HAVE TO BE CAPTURED SOMEWHERE ELSE AND REPORTED, BUT THE MAJORITY, I THINK IT'S 15 OUT OF THE 16 ARE GOING TO BE CAPTURED WITHIN POWER BI. OKAY. THANK YOU FOR THAT UPDATE. THAT'S THAT'S GREAT NEWS. AND I JUST WANT TO ADD THAT WHEN, WHEN THIS GETS WRITTEN, IT WILL HAVE THE CAPABILITY. YOU KNOW, IF WE'RE SITTING HERE IN A MEETING AND YOU ASK A QUESTION, WE'LL BE ABLE TO TAP INTO IT RIGHT THEN AND PRODUCE THAT REPORT INSTANTANEOUSLY. I ASK IF YOU SAID, OKAY, WHAT ABOUT THIS? WELL, WE CAN PULL THAT UP AND LOOK AT IT BECAUSE IT'S, IT'S A REAL TIME THAT WE'LL BE ABLE TO, UH, LOOK INTO THE SYSTEM. WONDERFUL. THANK YOU. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? OKAY. WELL THEN IF THERE'S NOT LESS [5. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS] TALK ABOUT FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS. SO WHILE WE WOULD CONTINUE WITH, UM, DO WE WANT TO LEAVE A ON THERE UPDATE DISCUSSION POSSIBLE ACTION ON CO COMPARATIVE EVALUATIONS OF MONTHLY RELEASE RATES? YES. YES. OKAY. WE'LL LEAVE THAT ON THERE. B ADD, WE'LL LEAVE ON THE B AND C BECAUSE THOSE ARE OUR WORKING GROUPS PAIN. UH, ARE THERE ANY OTHER ITEMS, CAN WE, CAN WE MOVE THE NEW BUSINESS ITEM, THE UPDATE DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION ON MONTHLY REPORTING OF DATA TO OLD BUSINESS SO WE CAN KEEP HAVING UPDATES UNTIL THIS REPORTING, UH, STUFF IS ROLLED OUT AND STRAIGHTENED OUT, UH, OR THAT GO UNDER STAFF. I ACTUALLY, I THINK IT'D BE GOOD TO HAVE IT AS AN ITEM WHERE WE COULD TALK ABOUT IT. OKAY. W HOW IS THAT RELATED TO THE OLD BUSINESS, A UPDATE DISCUSSION ABOUT ACTION, COMPARATIVE EVALUATION, MONTHLY RELEASE RATES. YEAH. THEY'RE TWO DIFFERENT THINGS. YEAH. THERE, THERE ARE TWO DIFFERENT THINGS. OKAY. SO WE'LL PUT THAT AS BE, I GUESS IN THE WORKING GROUPS WILL BECOME C AND D I GUESS, CAUSE IT RELATED. DOES THAT SOUND GOOD WITH EVERYBODY? OKAY. WELL, I REMEMBER THAT, UH, TWO, UH, IF TWO OF YOU, UH, COMMISSIONERS, CALL ME UP, LET ME KNOW. WE CAN ADD ANOTHER ITEM ONTO THE AGENDA. SO, UH, YOU KNOW, THAT'S ALWAYS A POSSIBILITY WITHIN THE NEXT MONTH. [01:05:01] UH, SO LET'S SEE, UM, GREG, JUST TO, JUST TO REMIND BINDER, NEW AGENDA ITEMS THAT COME IN, UM, BY THOSE TWO SUPPORTING MEMBERS, WE NEED THOSE FIVE DAYS WORKING DAYS BEFORE THE MEETING. WE CAN'T DO IT ON THURSDAYS AND FRIDAYS ANYMORE. YEAH. THAT'S THING BECAUSE AUSTIN LEGAL WANTS TO LOOK AT IT. WE GOT TO, THEY WANT TO MAKE SURE WE DO IT. ALL RIGHT. OKAY. UM, SO, WELL THAT, WHAT THAT MEANS IS THAT IT'S TIME TO ADJOURN. AND AT, UH, I JOINED THIS MEETING OF THE OSS ANIMAL ADVISORY COMMISSION AT 7:07 PM. AND I'LL SEE ALL YOU GUYS NEXT MONTH. * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.