Out of the Cage! (Spring 2007)

The Oklahoma Alliance for Animals: Making Life More OK for Tulsa's Animals

by Jane Warshaw

If you think that the problems of homeless animals in New York City are vastly different than the problems in Oklahoma, think again: Cats are cats and dogs are dogs and many of the problems they face if they're homeless aren't limited to any zip codes.

The Oklahoma Alliance for Animals (OAA) is concerned with the overpopulation of cats and dogs in the Tulsa metropolitan area. Not surprisingly, its mission is "to transform the city's area shelters into facilities whereby no Tulsa (and Greater Tulsa area) dog or cat of reasonable health and temperament is euthanized merely because they do not have a home."

Sound familiar? The Oklahoma Alliance was modeled, in part, after the Mayor's Alliance for NYC's Animals. Jamee Suarez-Howard, President of the OAA, was visiting shelters across the U.S., hoping to find solutions to the pet overpopulation problems in Tulsa, and she came to New York City. She liked the Mayor's Alliance best because it involved collaboration among city government, rescue, and veterinary communities. Jane Hoffman, President of the Mayor's Alliance, helped her overcome her skepticism about the Tulsa community being able to accomplish an overwhelming task. And so in 2004, the Oklahoma Alliance for Animals was established.

Tulsa's Mayor then was on board and favorable to work towards a no-kill Tulsa. Unfortunately, the Tulsa Animal Shelter was not ready to embrace a partnership with OAA. It took two years before the OAA and the city shelter could develop a positive working relationship. The Tulsa Animal Shelter wasn't the only organization slow to get on board. Area animal rescues were not inclined to collaborate with one another, and there was a lot of misunderstanding about what the OAA was trying to accomplish. Surprisingly, rescue organizations in rural communities were the first to sign on to the idea of no-kill. The OAA teamed up with Spay Oklahoma and created an annual "It's Hip to Snip" spay and neuter campaign to raise public awareness about the overwhelming pet overpopulation problem in Oklahoma by helping low-income pet guardians to spay and neuter their pets.

The OAA and the Tulsa Animal Shelter developed a better working relationship by 2006 and that relationship has continued to flourish. OAA and the Tulsa Animal Shelter are collaborating on several projects, including the "Adopt A Little Okie" program. They began showcasing adoptable shelter pets in large-scale events one Saturday every month. They're planning to expand the program to be held every Saturday, and to hold off-site events as well. OAA is assisting the shelter in developing an essential volunteer program to help with things like socializing animals and basic administrative work.

OAA currently has 10 Member Organizations and many more interested in joining the alliance. Suarez has had some difficult times, particularly the sudden death of her husband in an accident and a change in the mayoralty that made animal issues less of a priority in the new administration. But OAA has worked hard and formed a new partnership with the office of the current mayor to address the needs of the Tulsa Animal Shelter. Low-cost spay and neuter programs continue statewide, including a mobile outreach program.

Oklahoma has some unique problems. Although Tulsa is definitely an urban area, it's surrounded by a rural population with many people living at or below the poverty level. It's been a hard road to get animal welfare issues seen as a serious problem when people themselves are in such need. And unlike New York, with a population over 20 million people and 50 licensed dog dealers, Oklahoma has a population of 3.5 million people and 271 licensed dog dealers. It's the second largest "puppy mill" state in the country. Surprisingly, it's the only state that has not a single state regulation covering those facilities. Suarez says, "There is both an unwillingness and lack of funding to enforce what few regulations exist with regard to responsible pet ownership and the ethical treatment of animals. This, of course, creates an unmanageable number of animals left unwanted, which our community shelters are ill-equipped to deal with."

Besides crowding the shelters, it creates large numbers of animal neglect cases. Oklahoma is the seventh poorest state in the U.S., with a population that's declining, not growing. Animals' needs, animal cruelty, and the enforcement of neglect cases are often forced to take a back seat to the needs of the human population. And, of course, a smaller tax base has contributed to the problems of the Tulsa Animal Shelter.

Not surprisingly, Oklahoma is also one of the top five states with documented domestic violence. And it's third nationally in the number of people imprisoned for violent crime. The OAA is beginning to make people aware of the correlation between domestic violence and violence against animals and the need for law enforcement agencies and other humane organizations to intervene in these cases more quickly.

The Tulsa Animal Shelter remains a problem when it comes to getting other animal organizations to work with the alliance. The shelter was built to be an animal control facility, not an adoption facility. Last year, it took in over 18,000 animals with no way to separate adoptable animals from the rest of the animal population, so even the healthiest animals are at risk. That makes many larger rescue organizations reluctant to take animals from there. Some vets do have space to quarantine animals, but that space isn't always available. The OAA is committed to solving the problem, since the goal is no unnecessary euthanasia. They are determined to make the Tulsa shelter a healthier place for pets to be kept temporarily. When they have that problem solved, other rescue groups will be more likely to take adoptable animals from the shelter and collaborate with the OAA.

If you step back and look at Oklahoma as a whole, it's easier to understand the problems faced by the OAA. Statewide there exists an environment that tolerates violence against humans and animals. More than half of the state has no animal shelters at all. And in rural areas, 91 percent of the shelters that do exist refuse to let even a single cat in the door, period. People bring their animals to Tulsa and abandon them there. The OAA is trying to reach those communities to educate pet owners about responsible pet ownership and also to provide spay/neuter services and cruelty prevention programs.

Despite the large number of animal cruelty and neglect cases, which have to be handled by legal authorities, many communities don't have the money to take these cases to court. And Oklahoma has only half the level of rural law enforcement officers compared to the national average. The OAA has stepped in where the lack of resources would have allowed animal cruelty cases to fall between the cracks. Here are some of the things they've been involved in:

Funding the necropsy of two horses who died of starvation, helping to reverse a decision of a local prosecutor who had declined to press charges.

Establishing an emergency fund to feed over 1,000 goats, sheep, cattle, and horses seized for neglect on a northern Oklahoma ranch.

Providing ongoing information and resources to Oklahoma police officers about how to identify animal neglect and abuse.

Setting up the first animal cruelty information table at the Oklahoma Sheriff's and Peace Officers Conference in 2007, the largest law enforcement officers conference held in Oklahoma.

In conjunction with the Oklahoma Humane Federation, partnering to provide information on the correlation between domestic violence and animal cruelty at the Court Appointed Special Advocates Conference held in Oklahoma City.

Actively partnering with a growing number of community interest organizations and agencies to create greater awareness of the impact and consequences of animal cruelty. The OAA is the first organization in Oklahoma to do so.

Suarez and other members of the OAA are active on the boards of several animal rights and welfare organizations, like the Animal Welfare Committee of the Oklahoma Veterinary Medical Association (as a non-voting member) and the Oklahoma Humane Federation. That helps them network with other animal advocates working on statewide issues to move Oklahoma in a more humane direction. Ruth Steinberger, an active member of OAA, gave testimony recently and made recommendations concerning regulating the high-volume breeding done in puppy mills. They've also developed solid partnerships with members of the media who are eager to publicize the importance of responsible pet ownership and the serious problem of pet overpopulation.

The OAA says, "We truly believe that we are on the verge of something great in Tulsa and the state of Oklahoma."

 

Jamee Suarez-Howard, Shelli and Bill Handi, and Ruth Steinberger of the OAA were all very helpful in providing information for this article.