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City Council holds public hearing on animal response

 

More than a year after changes in key services were made at the Hawaiian Humane Society, there’s still some confusion about who’s supposed to respond to animal calls.

At a City Council public hearing Thursday, the Honolulu Police Department said its officers are not trained to handle such cases.

“We have about 2,000 officers and at this point, it would be difficult to train all our officers in handling animals correctly without causing injury to the officer or the animals,” said Maj. Calvin Tong, Honolulu Police Department.

Under the current contract, the Hawaiian Humane Society will respond to animal cases from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. seven days a week.

According to HHS, their officers will respond to the containment and securing of loose and aggressive dogs. The responsibility will then be transferred to HPD after those hours.

“I think it’s clear that we cannot continue the lack of services. The way that it’s going right now is not efficient for police department to be handling animals,” said Honolulu City Councilmember Kymberly Pine.

“I think the community is saying they’re not satisfied with what the current status is,” said Pamela Burns, president and CEO of the Hawaiian Humane Society.

Rep. Pine says she plans to continue this discussion and hopes they can find a more efficient way to handle these issues.

To contact the Hawaiian Humane Society, call 356-2250.

– KHON Article

 

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Councilmember: Animal welfare complaints unheard after contract change

KHON2 News – By Manolo Morales

A Honolulu City Council member says animal welfare cases aren’t being addressed because of a gap in services.

According to Kymberly Pine, changes in the city’s contract with the Hawaiian Humane Society aren’t working. The new contract started over a year ago after the city cut the funding for the society.

“We’ve actually had numerous complaints of animal cruelty of violent animals in the community and nothing being done about it, because of the cuts that have been made to the humane society’s contract,” Pine said. “This is really becoming a very serious situation.”

Humane society services were cut back last year in August, so the pickup of stray animals and complaints about barking dogs were then transferred to Honolulu police.

Pine says that has led to many situations where people don’t know who to call.

She brings up a recent situation where someone posted a photo of a dog in Waianae that’s been tied up and tangled outside the owner’s home. There were numerous complaints to the city and the humane society.

The Hawaiian Humane Society says it even got calls from concerned people in Europe. It says investigators have met with the owner several times and the dog is now in an enclosed lanai and receiving treatment for an infection. They are working with the owner on proper care for the dog.

Pine is holding a City Council hearing on Thursday to clarify who should be responding to animal welfare calls and what can be done to improve the service.

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Councilmember Pine Says City Must Address Gap In Animal Rescue Services

 

November 17th, 2014

For Immediate Release Councilmember Pine Says City Must Address Gap In Animal Rescue Services Public Hearing Set for Thursday

Waianae – A trending story of a dog left tangled in his own wired leash for days has touched residents, who are outraged that the City hasn’t done anything to help the local pet. “The present situation is unacceptable,” said Councilmember Kymberly Marcos Pine. “This story is the latest of numerous calls about abandoned, loose, or cruelly-treated pets, that we’ve received. It pains me to know that this and other stories may have been prevented if the City were doing its job and providing the animal control service the public expects.” The City is required to develop a public complaint process with its animal control contractor in consultation with the Honolulu Police Department.

The process, to protect the public and its pets, has in years past, been attended-to by the Hawaii Humane Society – which contracted with the City for animal care and control. Animal-related law enforcement work historically encompassed 11,000 to 15,000 calls for help from the public. However, since August 2013, the City reduced the scope of that animal control contract, removing all law enforcement work from the Humane Society and not specifying who or what agency would pick up the slack. “In light of this gap in service, our communities deserve to know what City agency is responsible for enforcing the law and protecting our pets,” Councilmember Pine added. This Thursday, the Intergovernmental Affairs and Human Services Committee, Chaired by Pine, will hold a public hearing at 2:30 p.m. to receive an update from the City Administration and the Hawaiian Humane Society on animal control services.

 

Information for Thursday’s meeting and instructions on how to submit written testimony or register to speak can be found here:

http://www4.honolulu.gov/…/Documen…/112014IAHSAGENDA.pdf

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Pause for Paws Pet ID Event (Ewa)

pause for paws, ewa, beach

Keep Your Pet Safe

Join the Hawaiian Humane Society at James Campbell High School’s

Pause for Paws
Pet ID Event

Saturday, May 17
10 a.m. – 1 p.m.
PETCO Ewa Beach
(Laulani Shopping Center)

Featured activities:

$10 on site microchips
Pet ID tags
Ask a Vet booth
Games & prizes
Performances by Campbell High School students

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