Monterey County Grand Jury
• 2017-2018
• Agency Response
Response to:
Animal Control in Monterey County
Monterey County County Administrative Office*
⚠️ Translation Notice: This content has been automatically translated. The original English text is the official version. Translation may contain errors.
⚠️ Este contenido ha sido traducido automáticamente. El texto original en inglés es la versión oficial. La traducción puede contener errores.
Note: Missing finding numbers detected: F5, F6
Findings and Recommendations 13 findings
F1
The lack of signage on Hitchcock Road poses a safety hazard for traffic approaching the tum to the animal shelters from South Main Street. Response F-1: The County agrees with this finding.
Related Recommendations (1)
R1
The City and the County should determine responsibility14 for signage and install a sign on the northeast side of Hitchcock Road an appropriate distance from the intersection with the shelter access road. Response R1: The County agrees with this recommendation.
F2
The purpose statements included in the budgets of the two entities are appropriate and recognize the importance of public service. The County statement focuses on rabies control and health concerns. The City statement focuses on return and placement of lost and unclaimed animals. When considering the two shelters as totally separate entities both statements are relevant and appropriate. However, fundamental differences may impede the consolidation process. Response F2 The County disagrees with this finding. The differences are not significant enough to impede the consolidation process.
Related Recommendations (1)
R2
The City and the County should bring together the entire staff from both shelters for the purpose of developing a single statement of purpose. Response R2: The County agrees with this recommendation.
F3
The Pilot Project will impose greater responsibility on the County Operations Manager and the Animal Services Administrator. Response F3: The County agrees with this finding.
Related Recommendations (1)
R3
The County should fill the position of Operations Manager. Response R3: The County agrees with this recommendation.
F4
The difference in staffing of Animal Control Officers is considered reasonable because the County is patrolling a much larger geographic area than the City. Response F4: The County agrees with this finding.
No recommendations for this finding
F7
County Animal Control personnel have career ladders providing greater promotional opportunities than the City. Response F7: The County agrees with this finding.
Related Recommendations (1)
R7
staffing levels and procedures should be reviewed
F8
Both shelters have the physical capacity to shelter more animals. Response F8: The County agrees with this finding.
Related Recommendations (1)
R8
Regardless of the outcome of the MOA and Pilot Project, the City and the County should contact incorporated cities which are not currently under contract, to determine if their animal shelter needs could be met by either entity. If so, contracts should be pursued. Response R8: The County agrees with this recommendation.
F9
Given that the preponderance of cats coming into the County shelter are strays, and the preponderance of outputs are through euthanasia, it is likely the county would benefit from a more aggressive spay/neuter program coupled with more education and outreach regarding owner responsibility. Response F9: The County agrees with this finding.
Related Recommendations (1)
R9
The County should consider the advantages and disadvantages of a feral cat spay/neuter program, and begin returning neutered feral cats to the field when appropriate. Response R9: The County agrees with this recommendation.
F10
Access to the Pet Harbor website is much simpler from the City website than from the County website. Response F10: The County agrees with this finding.
Related Recommendations (1)
R10
The County should review and streamline access to the Animal Services website. Response R10: The County agrees with this recommendation.
F11
Cat cages at the City shelter, which were replaced in 2013-14, provide greater cleaning efficiency and less stress on the cat than the older-style County cat cages. Response F11: The County agrees with this finding.
Related Recommendations (1)
R11
When County cat cages require replacement, the County should purchase reconfigurable cages. Response R11: The County agrees with this recommendation.
F12
If successful, the combination of services at the two shelters should result in less public confusion when looking for a lost animal or preparing to adopt one. Response F12: The County agrees with this finding.
Related Recommendations (1)
R12
REPORT TITLE: ANIMAL CONTROL IN MONTEREY RESPONSE BY: Monterey County Board of Supervisors RESPONSE TO: Findings F-1, F-2, F-3, F-4, F-7, F-8, F9, F10, F11, F12, F13 and F14
F13
If successful, the combination of services should result in greater effectiveness, efficiency and consistency of procedures for both the City and County. Response F13: The County agrees with this finding.
Related Recommendations (1)
R13
The Jury requests that copies of both the 5 and 8-month written reports be provided to the Monterey County Civil Grand Jury impaneled as of the date of the release of the reports. Response R13: The County agrees with this recommendation.
F14
The MOA and resulting Pilot Program are positive steps toward consolidation of Animal Control Services. Response F14: The County agrees with this finding.
Related Recommendations (1)
R14
The Jury requests the County and City invite other incorporated cities to join with them in developing a Joint Powers Agreement or Joint Powers Authority so that a separate legal entity could be established to provide animal control services to all jurisdictions within the County. Response R14: The County agrees with this recommendation.
F15
Success of the Pilot Project will be dependent, at least in part, on having the day-to-day operations of the separate shelters handled efficiently with sufficient time available to support the efforts of the Animal Services Administrator throughout the period of the Pilot Project. Response F15: The County agrees with this finding. REPORT TITLE: ANIMAL CONTROL IN MONTEREY COUNTY RESPONSE BY: Monterey County Board of Supervisors RESPONSE TO: Recommendations R1, R2, R3, R5, R6, R7, R8, R9, R10, R11, R12, R13 and R14
No recommendations for this finding
* This report's PDF did not contain easily extractable text and required Optical Character Recognition (OCR) for analysis. There may be minor errors in the extracted findings and recommendations due to OCR limitations with scanned documents.