On September 27, 2011 the Talk About It! Campaign, hosted an event called “Reno Achieved No Kill: San Antonio CAN too!” featuring , an open community conversation at the Norris Conference Center from 6PM to about 9PM.
In attendance were two No Kill experts from Washoe County in Reno, Nevada. Our featured experts were Bonney Brown, executive director of the Nevada Humane Society, and Mitch Schneider, the current manager of the Washoe County Regional Animal Services. They both shared multiple strategies on how Reno became a No Kill community. It is our goal, San Antonio, to duplicate their success in our own community deep in the heart of Texas. There are eight different topics to be covered in our blog, so there will be a total of eight posts to browse through!
These questions were submitted by community members that were in attendance at the event through their registration, a written submission during our conversation, or there was unfortunately not enough time for these questions to be answered at the event.
Here we go San Antonio: Questions regarding Shelter Management are answered below!
Q: Is the City planning on opening another shelter that is located in a more central area? The location at Highway 151 is too far and doesn’t allow people to learn how severe the issue is. If people see these animals face to face, they will be more inclined to help.
A: The City of San Antonio is designing an Adoption, Spay/Neuter, and Education facility to be located in Brackenridge Park on Tuleta Street across from the San Antonio Zoo. A public meeting to present the Design Concepts for the Animal Care Facility will be held on Monday, October 10, 2011, from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm at the Witte Museum Ballroom, 3801 Broadway.
Q: Is the Reno Animal Shelter open 7 days per week?
A: The Nevada Humane Society is open for adoption 7 days per week, including all holidays except Thanksgiving and Christmas.
The Washoe county shelter hours are:
- All Services, 10:00am to 5:00pm, Monday – Friday (excluding holidays)
- Reclaiming an Owned Pet Only:
Monday – Friday (excluding holidays) 8:00am to 5:00pm
Saturday and Sunday 11:00am to 4:00pm
Holidays 11:00am to 3:00pm
Q: In Reno, are all of your sites open and readily available to the public?
A: The sites that we have are the Washoe County RAS and Nevada Humane Society shelters. The hours are shown above.
Q: How do you motivate shelter staff?
A: First, the Nevada Humane Society established its top priority, which is Life Saving and creating Life Saving solutions. Everything is based on that.
The NHS established its daily priorities for staff:
- Create life saving solutions for dogs and cats. Reward staff for taking initiative and being creative with solutions.
- Involve the community in our work.
- Deliver quality customer service using retail principles.
Provide excellent care for the dogs and cats.
Q: Please describe the relationship between your City animal care facility and rescue partners, specifically what percentage of adoptions each is responsible for.
A: Washoe County RAS does not do adoptions. All live releases are returns to owners or rescues. The Nevada Humane Society stepped up to take all owner surrenders and all dogs and cats that were not rescued by other rescue groups. They work together as partners and have respect for each other’s mission.
There are eight different topics so there will be a total of eight posts to browse through! Make sure to enrich our blog with feedback! Our next blog post will feature Q & A regarding Feral Cats! Meow!
