Reforming Animal Control In Your

Community ThroughEffective Political

Advocacy

The No Kill RevolutionStarts withYOU

A P U B L I C A T I O N O F R E S C U E F I V E - O

Table of ContentsSTEP ONEARM YOURSELF 1

STEP THREEFIGHT SMART 8

STEP FIVEANTICIPATE THE OPPOSITION 12

STEP TWOPREPARE FOR BATTLE 6

STEP FOURBE POLITICAL 11

STEP SIX

STEP SEVENNEVER GIVE UP 16

BECOME THE STATUS QUO 15

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES 17Rescue Five-0 is grateful to Ryan Clinton, founder of FixAustin.org, for authoring this guide.Clinton is an appellate attorney at Hankinson Levinger LLP (HankLev.com). He has six timesbeen named one of the best attorneys in Texas and was a 2009 recipient of the No Kill Advocacy Center’s Henry Bergh Leadership Award for his advocacy efforts on behalf ofcompanion animals.

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Reforming Animal Control InYour Community Through Effective Political Advocacy

There was a time when Austin’s municipal animal shelter was a very dangerous place for lost andhomeless pets. In 2005, the shelter put to death 14,304 animals. That’s almost 40 dogs and catskilled every single day of the year. The shelter director at the time had no interest in increasingthe number of animals leaving the shelter alive and opposed common-sense alternatives to killing,

such as a foster program and offsite adoptions.In other words, Austin was a typical animal con-trol shelter that killed more animals than itsaved. And there was no internaldesire to change, except for lip-service to a mythical time in thefuture when they would not haveto kill because the “irresponsi-ble public” would have be-come responsible.

All told, the then-director ofthe shelter killed over

100,000 animals during her tenure. And she did so after refusing to implementcommon-sense alternatives to killing. She refused to stop killing even after astate inspection report noted that the shelter routinely had hundreds of emptycages. She argued to the press that she did not have time to focus on adop-

There was a time when Austin’s municipal animal shelter was a verydangerous place for lost and homelesspets. In 2005, the shelter put to death14,304 animals. But those days are nomore—a bygone era of a tragic past.

It is a story as old as our movement. The shelter in your community is killing large numbers of ani-mals, the quality of care in the shelter is low, and the bureaucracy that oversees the shelter appearsindifferent. A group of advocates wants the shelter to stop the needless killing and to start treatingthe animals as they deserve. But everywhere they turn—to the City Council or County Commissioners,to the media, to the large national organizations like the ASPCA or Humane Society of the UnitedStates—leads to nowhere. They get excuses, “It’s pet overpopulation,” “It’s the public’s fault,” “There isnothing we can do.” But someone has to do something, you think. That someone is you.

Starts withThe No Kill Revolution

YOU

The No Kill Revolution Starts with YOU 2

tions, did not want to do offsite adoptions,did not trust the public enough to foster kit-tens.

Worse still, a failed late-1990s campaign tobecome a “No Kill” city was forgotten, invisi-ble even in the rear-view mirrors of animaladvocates and policy makers. And some whowere advocates for change in the 1990slearned the wrong lesson from their failedeffort: instead of researching and advocat-ing for proven lifesaving programs to reduceAustin’s shelter killing (programs they had notdemanded in the late 1990s), they abandoned hope and became entrenched in an effort to de-fend the status quo they subsequently joined. For example, after resigning from the Austin HumaneSociety in the late 1990s, the then-Executive Director of the organization switched sides and ledan ASPCA-sponsored effort against shelter reform in 2007. Even as the shelter director was killingwell over a thousand animals each month, the ASPCA was publicly backing that director, opposingreasonable reforms, defending the killing, attacking advocates, and blaming the animals them-selves for their own fate. In their own words: “The problem is not getting adopters to the shelter,but rather, having enough desirable and placeable animals to choose from.”

There was no foster care program, no offsite adoption program, no progressive director, no “NoKill Equation.” There were just a lot of excuses and a lot of killing—14,304 animals in one yearalone. But those days are no more—a bygone era of a tragic past.

Today, more dog and cats are leaving Austin’s shelter alive than at any time in its history; roughlynine out of ten are going out the front door in the loving arms of families. A successful reform ef-fort led by animal-welfare advocates succeeded despite heavy opposition from the former shel-ter manager, the local humane society, some policymakers, and the ASPCA. How it happened is alesson for other communities whose pounds and shelters are overseen by regressive directors—communities in which No Kill advocates must fight not only institutional inertia and uncaring withinhealth departments, police departments, or other bureaucratic agencies of government, but alsothe large national organizations—like the ASPCA—that inexplicably and indefensibly want theold-guard, high-killing paradigm to continue.

Austin’s success was not the result of “community collaboration,” as others have suggested. It wasthe result of a fight. A fight against the powers-that-be. A fight against indecency and uncaringthat took place every time an animal was injected with poison from a bottle marked “Fatal-plus.”It was also a fight over community values and priorities, and it was a fight for access to the ani-mals that the shelter wrongly deemed “unadoptable” and “unwanted.”

How Austin went from a community that killed over 14,000 animals a year to a fraction of thatprovides a road-map for your community. How they did it is how you can do it, too.

Today, more dogs and cats are leavingAustin’s shelter alive than at any timein its history; roughly nine out of tenare going out the front door in the loving arms of families. How they didit is how you can do it, too.

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Nothing happens without leadership. AchievingNo Kill success in your community depends on in-dividuals willing to take on the difficult task offighting for change. But do not go looking for“someone to do something.” That “someone” isyou. In Austin, a handful of people with busy,hectic lives including full-time jobs, companionanimals, relationships, and more, fought for aNo Kill Austin and ultimately prevailed. You cando it, too.

Do Your HomeworkThe first step in your advocacy efforts is to pre-pare yourself for the battle ahead: do yourhomework and get to know the No Kill move-ment. Familiarize yourself with the programsand services of the “No Kill Equation.” This is theonly model that has successfully created a NoKill community, and it is a model that has alsobeen replicated in multiple cities across thecountry with the same successful results. The programs of the No Kill Equation are basic, common-sense policies to replace killing that even the staunchest No Kill opponents have trouble counter-ing.

But it isn’t enough for a shelter to have each of these programs and policies. No Kill is onlyachieved when they are rigorously and comprehensively implemented so that they replace killingentirely. All neonatal kittens and puppies, for example, should be sent into foster care; not justsome of them.

Thankfully, there are now No Kill communities in California, New York, Kentucky, Virginia, Michi-gan, and elsewhere. Familiarize yourself with them, such as Washoe County (Reno), Nevada. InReno, the Nevada Humane Society led a successful No Kill initiative that has resulted in a county-wide save rate better than 90%, despite a per-capita intake rate that is over twice the nationalaverage. Reno is a shining example of a community that could rely on excuses for shelter killing,but instead chose to fully embraced the No Kill Equation.

STEP ONE

Knowledge is power. Effectiveadvocacy requires being fullyinformed about the No Kill move-ment. Nathan Winograd’s booksRedemption: The Myth of PetOverpopulation and the No KillRevolution in America and Irrec-onciliable Differences: The Battlefor the Heart and Soul of Amer-ica’s Animal Shelters are must-reads for every No Kill activist.

ARM YOURSELF

The No Kill Revolution Starts with YOU 4

Finally, familiarize yourself with the oppo-sition’s purported alternative strategy: Leg-islation, Education, and Sterilization (LES).The opposition will say that the real keys tosaving lives are tough mandatory laws(like pet-limit laws, licensing, bans on feed-ing outdoor cats, and mandatory spay-neuter laws), humane education, andsterilization. It’s a strategy they’ve beenpushing for over 30 years, but that hasnever created a single No Kill community.

Remember, while increasing spay andneuter rates is an important part of savinglives, and community outreach is a finegoal in theory, “LES” has never achievedNo Kill success anywhere in the country. In fact, most communities that have achieved No Kill suc-cess did so even before a comprehensive, high-volume spay/neuter program was in place. More-over, some programs of this strategy—like mandatory pet-limit laws or mandatory spay/neuterrequirements—have actually increased shelter killing by increasing the number of animals surren-dered to or seized by animal-control authorities. What works is the proven, cost-effective pro-grams and policies of the No Kill Equation. It represents the future of lifesaving success, not thehistory of failure resulting from “LES.”

THE NO KILL EQUATION IS:1. A Trap, Neuter, Release Program for Free-Living Cats2. High-Volume, Low-Cost Spay/Neuter3. Working with Rescue Groups4. A Foster Care Program5. Comprehensive Adoption Programs6. Pet Retention Efforts7. Medical and Behavioral Rehabilitation8. Public Relations / Community Involvement9. Working with Volunteers10. Progressive Field Services & Proactive

Redemptions11. A Compassionate Director

No Kill Success requiresa shelter to replace killingwith the programs andservices of the No KillEquation for every animal,every time.

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Get to Know the Players In Your CommunityOnce you’ve conquered the basics of the No Kill philosophy and understand how America’s shel-ters can dramatically reduce unnecessary shelter killing, it’s time to figure out what precisely isgoing on in your community. After all, you cannot know what change to ask for if you do not knowwhat your shelter and community are doing—or not doing—for companion animals already.

Take some time to speak with allof the significant animal-welfarestakeholders in your community.Go meet with the leaders of therescue groups. Go meet with rep-resentatives of your local humanesociety or SPCA. Go meet withyour local low-cost spay/neuterand veterinary-care providers.Find out whether these stakehold-ers are open or hostile to No Killprograms and policies. The an-swers may surprise you, and unfor-tunately not in a good way.

Also, go meet with your shelter di-rector and give him or her achance to be a hero. Let him/herknow that all you want to do issave lives, and that your goal is togive him/her the tools to dramati-cally reduce shelter killing. Thereare some shelter directors who,given a chance, will em-brace No Kill reformsand the necessarychanges to save lives atmunicipal shelters. Mostwon’t, and don’t makethe mistake of delayingprogress by allowingthem to placate you withyears of empty promises.But don’t walk away with-out first giving him or herat least one chance todemonstrate a commit-ment to lifesaving.

When you’re meeting with your community’s animal-welfare stakeholders, use these meetings as an op-portunity to gather important information for yourefforts:

• What are the shelter’s adoption hours? Is it open onevenings and weekends when working people aremore likely to adopt?• Does your shelter have an offsite adoption pro-gram? Seven days a week in multiple locations?• Does your shelter have a foster program? Howmany animals were fostered last year? How does thatcompare to successful No Kill communities? • Does your shelter have a TNR program? Volunteerprogram? Pet retention program?• Does your shelter director embrace lifesaving poli-cies? Or does your shelter director blame the publicand reject all responsibility for shelter outcomes?

Go through the steps of the No Kill Equa-tion and determine which, if any, your

shelter and communitymembers are already im-plementing and how com-

prehensively they are. Inaddition, find out your shelter’s

funding sources, budget, and work-force. All of this information will helpyou figure out what needs to bechanged in your community, whatprograms need to be added, and

what barriers and obstacles youneed to overcome.

INFORMATION GATHERING

The No Kill Revolution Starts with YOU 6

STEP TWOPREPARE FOR BATTLE

Identify Your GoalsNow that you’ve done your homework, it’s timeto start building a No Kill campaign. The firstpart—identifying your goals—is an easy one.Your goals are:

• New Leadership. The single, most importantfactor that will determine a community’s successor failure is passionate, hard-working leader-ship that is not content to hide behind the “mythof pet overpopulation” or regurgitate tiredclichés about “public irresponsibility.” You wantand the animals deserve a shelter director whotakes responsibility, demands accountability,and gets the job done humanely.• Comprehensive implementation of each andevery program of the No Kill Equation.• Legislation. You want to codify animal pro-tection through passage of the Companion Ani-mal Protection Act.

Together, these three goals will allow you toachieve and sustain a No Kill community (acommunity which saves over 90% of all ani-mals).

Identify Your Audience As an animal advocate, you likely won’t haveunlimited resources. Many advocates have full-time jobs that don’t allow them to spend everyminute of every hour on No Kill efforts. That’swhy you have to target your efforts to be asefficient as possible with both your money andyour time. And part of that is targeting yourmessage to the right audience: you don’t have

to convince everybody; you just have to con-vince those who can make a difference for ani-mals in your community.

Your primary audience should be the personswho have the most direct ability to save lives:(1) the shelter director—who single-handedlyholds the keys to implementing lifesaving poli-cies and programs, and (2) the shelter’s gov-erning body (this could be either agovernmental body or a private board of di-rectors)—which holds the ability to hire, fire,and heavily influence your shelter director. Ifyour shelter is run directly by a municipal gov-ernment, then your shelter’s governing boardwill likely be a City Council or County Commis-sion. If your shelter is run by a non-profit entity,then the shelter’s governing board is the privateentity’s Board of Directors. Please note, how-ever, that if a private entity runs your shelterthrough a contract to perform the government’sanimal services, then the shelter remains ac-countable to the government—meaning thatyou can still effect policy change by directingefforts towards the municipality’s governingbody, in addition to the non-profit Board of Di-rectors.

Secondary audiences are those who can influ-ence the decisions of the primary audiences.Your secondary audiences should include thelocal press and the public. There will be timeswhen your direct efforts to influence the pri-mary audience are ineffective; you must alsotarget this secondary audience so they canpressure the first.

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Craft Your MessagePeople care about animals. But they do notspend their days and nights thinking aboutwhat happens to them in shelters. It is a clichébut it bears repeating: people live busy, hecticlives. This includes media representatives, politi-cians, and their staff. They will not read a 50-page treatise on everything that is wrong withthe shelter. They will not cull through a 10-pagepress release giving everyexample of whatthe shelter hasdone wrong overthe last year. Toooften, advocatesmake the mistakeof trying to beoverly comprehen-sive in their infor-mation, thinkingthat if officialslearn everythingthat is going on,they will supportshelter reform. Un-fortunately, thatmeans they willlearn nothing, be-cause they won’tread it. You haveto be parsimonious.

You must focus your message to be as powerful,precise, and as clear as possible. The basicrules for communicating a No Kill message are:(1) keep it simple; (2) use high-impact lan-guage; (3) target your message to yourgoals; and (4) repeat, repeat, repeat. Each ofthese communication goals requires prepara-tion. Plan your communication strategy and thenstick to your message.

Keep it simple by using high-impact language.Focus your message so succinctly that you could

tell a complete stranger everything they needto know in 60 seconds (this is sometimes re-ferred to as an “elevator speech”). It isn’t easy,but it’s necessary. For print media, you mighthave three to five minutes to communicate yourmessage. For television news media, you’ve gotabout five to seven seconds. For print ads, peo-ple might read one or two sentences beforeflipping the page. You’ve got to keep it verysimple. The message in Austin: “Under the cur-

rent shelter manager,Austin has killed over100,000 dogs andcats. That’s over tenthousand every year,thousands per month,hundreds per week,dozens per day, oneevery 12 minutes theshelter was open tothe public. It doesnot have to be thisway.”

Austin reformersfought an ASPCA-led effort to movethe shelter from itscentrally locateddowntown locationto an out-of-sight,

out-of-mind location in an industrial area on theedge of town. The message to keep the shelterin its current location was simple but powerful:“If the City moves the shelter, even more ani-mals will die.” About six months into the contro-versy, the press started using that theme astheir own, completely changing the debate.

Finally, repeat, repeat, repeat. Pick your mes-sage and stick to it. It takes a long time for amessage to stick, and you’ll need to stay fo-cused in order for your message to get throughthe noise of everyone else’s. One consistentmessage is key to getting noticed.

You have to be parsimonious.You must focus your messageto be as powerful, precise andas clear as possible.

The No Kill Revolution Starts with YOU 8

Be ProfessionalOne of the most impor-tant aspects of No Killadvocacy is to be pro-fessional at all times, in-cluding in yourappearance, prepara-tion, presentations, andcommunications.When you meetwith governmentofficials, wear asuit; look likeyou’ve beenthere before andyou’ll be thereagain. Comeprepared withmaterials when you speak to officials, leavingbehind professionally bound color copies.

To be effective, you’ll need officials to believethat you’re not going away—no matter howlong it takes or how hard the journey is. If youlose a battle, take it on the chin and move on.Live to fight another day. And remember: it’s amarathon, not a sprint. Be honest, be strong,and always tell the truth. If you lose your credi-bility, you may never get it back.

Build RelationshipsAdvocates on any issue can easily get caughtup in protests, marches, Facebook debates, e-mail exchanges, and public speeches—thingsthat are no doubt important in spreading your

message to your audi-ences. But politics isabout relationships. It isabout “shaking hands”and “kissing babies.” Ifyou truly want to effectchange, you’ll have todo it the old-fashionedway—by getting to

know the deci-sion-makers andthose who can in-fluence them in apersonal way.Protests andblogs have theirrole, but realchange happenswhen people

want to help you, not when they feel that youare forcing them to.

So what does this mean for you? It means thatinstead of firing off an angry e-mail or shout-ing at a public meeting, take a decision-makeror stakeholder to lunch. Meet them over a cupof coffee. Get to know them and, perhapsmore importantly, let them get to know you andsee you as a reasonable person with valid con-cerns. Real relationships are far more valuablethan anything else in politics.

Get SocialIn addition to building relationships with policy-makers and stakeholders, there are many otheradvocacy tools available to No Kill advocates.

STEP THREEFIGHT SMART

Politics is about relationships. Toeffect change, you’ll have to do itthe old-fashioned way—by gettingto know the decision-makers andthose who can influence them in apersonal way.

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The key is to use as many tools as possible toefficiently and effectively advocate for No Killreforms.

Online AdvocacyThe easiest advocacy tool accessible to everyanimal advocate is the internet, and your use ofthe internet will be at the center of your No Killcommunications campaign. First, you’ll need awebsite with your own domain name becausethis is where people will go to learn about you.As with all of your communications, make sureyour website is professional and easy to use.On your website, be sure to include an “aboutus” page that describes your mission, a “contactus” page for people to communicate with you,a frequently-asked questions page, a “how youcan help” page, and a place for people to signup for your e-mail list to keep themselves ad-vised of ongoing issues and events. To encour-age frequent visits, keep your “news” content ascurrent as possible.

Another powerful advocacy tool is a blog. Youcan create your own blog through any numberof free blog services, like Blogger.com andWordpress.org. These sites are designed forfrequent updating; so be sure to add timelycontent frequently. When you set up a blog, besure to add a spot on the main page of yourwebsite to link to your blog. Every time you up-date your blog, share it with your Facebookfans and Twitter followers.

These are just a start. Stay current and learnfrom others. New social media tools are becom-ing available all the time and each can helpyou broaden your message and expand yourreach.

Traditional MediaIn No Kill advocacy, the news media must beviewed both as an audience and as a potentialally in promoting your lifesaving message. Get-ting the press to publicize your viewpoint andtalking points will help you reach a far larger

audience than you would likely oth-erwise would. Look to televisionnews, newspapers and magazines,online media, and radio stations.

Focus first on members of the mediawho have already reported on ani-mal welfare as they are more likelyto help you than a reporter who hasnever shown interest in animal issues.This does not have to be a news re-porter— it could also be a public-interest or charity reporter, or evena sports reporter. Second, also addto your list the general “news tip” e-mail addresses of all of the localmedia outlets that you will also tar-get with your press releases; thesee-mail addresses are available ontheir websites.

The easiest advocacy tool accessible toevery animal advocate is the internet,and your use of the internet will be atthe center of your No Kill communica-tions campaign.

The No Kill Revolution Starts with YOU 10

A well-crafted press releaseis one of the most effectiveways to circulate your mes-sage to the media. Your one-to-two page press releasesshould look professional: in-clude your logo and ad-dress, a media contact, anattention-catching headline,and text with stakeholderquotations. Press releasesshould read like news stories,complete with quotationsand attributions; sometimesthey will even be printed—without changes—in localnewspapers or online. Takea look at other organiza-tions’ press releases forideas.

But like politics, it’s not justabout identifying potentiallyinterested and sympatheticmedia members; it’s alsoabout getting to know them,and getting them to knowyou. Meet them for coffee;take them to lunch. Invitethem to your group’s event,or offer to give them a tourof your shelter if you haveone. When you’ve developed a relationshipwith a media member, don’t necessarily expectthat a reporter will interview you for every ani-mal-welfare story; you can be equally—orperhaps even more—effective by being abackground resource for reporters every timethey want to report on animal-welfare issues.Gain their trust. Never oversell yourself or yourstory because you can lose your credibility withjust one mistake. Don’t be emotional or irra-tional; being effectively passionate meansbeing calm, informed, and helpful.

AdvertisingAlthough getting press through a press releaseis very cost-effective, you should also considerpurchasing advertisements in your local news-papers. Wait until you can afford a large adas small advertisements do not have a signifi-cant impact. Call your newspapers’ advertisingdepartments and ask for discounted non-profitand political rates. Use humor in your ads whenpossible. Advertisements can both make astatement of strength and professionalism, andspread your No Kill message.

A well-crafted press release is one of themost effective ways to circulate yourmessage to the media.

BE POLITICAL

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STEP FOUR

Using the media and spreading your mes-sage online are tools for political change.They are meant to expand your campaign.They are not the campaign itself. Ulti-mately, all of your advocacy efforts areintended to sway those decision-makerswho can actually implement or mandatethe implementation of lifesaving programsand policies. Spreading your messagefrom afar (through websites, advertise-ments, articles, etc.) helps, but nothing sub-stitutes for face-to-face politics. Call andask for a meeting with your City or Countyrepresentatives (you may have to meetwith a staff member first). Be prepared,be reasonable, be precise, make yourcase, and leave informative materials be-hind. Develop helpful and positive rela-tionships with government officials andtheir staff. And don’t leave without making“the ask.” Ask them if they will commit tohelping support your efforts to implementlifesaving reforms.

Part of your job as you develop relation-ships with government officials is to helpteach and inform them about lifesaving NoKill programs and policies, and to be a re-source for them as animal-welfare issuescome before them. One of your best op-portunities to develop such relationships iswhen a new candidate is building coali-tions and support for a first-time cam-paign. Call prospective candidates andask for meetings with them. Teach themabout No Kill successes and about the fail-ures in your community, and ask for their

Ask candidates to fill out No Killquestionnaires and rate their answers (and their record, ifany) in a full-page advertisementin the local newspaper.

The No Kill Revolution Starts with YOU 12

support. Ask them to committo supporting No Kill reforms,introduce them to potentialsupporters and stakeholders,and help draw attention totheir campaigns.

Finally, directly engage in thedemocratic process by openlysupporting candidates whocommit to implementing NoKill reforms—and by oppos-ing candidates who mind-lessly defend unnecessaryshelter killing. Ask candidatesto fill out No Kill question-naires and rate their answers(and their record, if any) in afull-page advertisement inthe local newspaper. There’snothing like a full-page ad to show candidates you are serious. Candi-dates who receive high animal-welfare ratings will often turn aroundand use those ratings in their campaigns—a win-win for all parties.(Please note that some non-profit organizations cannot engage in elec-tioneering.)

The Status QuoIn any public-interest arena, the status quo hasan inherent advantage, however unfair that is.Whatever is already occurring is the norm, andit is difficult to change. In the animal-shelteringarena, the status quo is comprised of sheltermanagement, the ASPCA and the Humane Soci-ety of the United States (HSUS), city and countyofficials, the current major animal-welfare

stakeholders (local SPCAs and humane soci-eties), and uninformed members of the press.

It is highly likely that these groups will opposeyour efforts. They will see you as a threat andan outsider with no right to question their au-thority. They will fight your efforts. And theywill give predictable excuses for killing andpredictable responses to your efforts.

STEP FIVEANTICIPATE THE OPPOSITION

Develop helpful and positive relation-ships with government officials andtheir staff. And don’t leave without making “theask.” Ask them ifthey will commit tosupporting your efforts to implement lifesaving reforms.

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Thankfully, the status quo is very predictableand generally comes up with the same pro-killing arguments all over the country. This willmake it easy for you to respond if you antici-pate and prepare for them. These argumentsinclude:

“It’s pet overpopulation.”Blaming shelter killingon “pet overpopula-tion” is how the statusquo primarily de-flects blame for theresults of their mis-management. Afterall, if there is “petoverpopulation,”there is nothing theycan do... right?

Wrong. There is nopeer-reviewed studydemonstrating “petoverpopulation,” andall recent analyses in-dicates that thereare, in fact, far morehomes for pets inAmerica than thereare animals enteringshelters. In fact, thereare over seven timesmore people acquiring pets every year thanthere are animals being killed in shelters for“lack of a home.” Even if most people get ananimal from somewhere other than a shelter, wecould still zero out the killing. It’s not about“overpopulation”; it’s about shelters competingin the market for shelter animals. When shelterscompete with commercial sources of animals,animals live.

“It’s the irresponsible public’s fault.”Shelters and politicians love to blame the publicfor shelter killing, even as they fail to make ani-mals available for adoption and rescue. Buthowever popular blaming the public is, it is justan excuse for killing; it is not a strategy for life-saving. That’s why it’s your job to offer an al-ternative to shelter killing in the form of the No

Kill Equation.

Second, remind youraudience that there isa “public” in commu-nities that stoppedshelter killing virtu-ally overnight. Thepublic didn’t changein that time; it wasthe shelters’ pro-grams and policiesthat changed. Andwhile people surren-der animals to theshelter, the shelter it-self is responsible forwhat happens to theanimals once they ar-rive there. Finally,turn this against them.Let the public knowhow much disdain thedirector and certain

politicians have for the people of their commu-nity, the people who pay their salaries.

“We don’t have the money.”Lack of financial resources is another tool todeflect blame—“If we only had more money,”they will argue, “we could be No Kill.” Whilemore resources is always preferable, a nationalstudy found that per capita spending on animalcontrol did not account for the difference be-

• Protect itself and consolidate power;• Deny any problem exists;• Attack you personally;• Blame the public for the killing;• Claim they are already doing what

you’re demanding, or claim it won’twork (or both);

• Use scare tactics;• Claim credit for successes and deflect

blame for failures;• Falsely claim reform and change;• Expect you to give up and go away.

THE STATUS QUO WILL:

Responding to Common Anti-Reform Arguments

The No Kill Revolution Starts with YOU 14

tween No Kill communities and those who killanimals at disturbingly high rates. In fact, thestudy concluded that there is no correlation be-tween the amount of money a shelter has andhow many lives it saves. The difference, instead,is leadership. When leaders reject excuses andembrace lifesaving reforms, more animalsleave shelters alive.

Moreover, remind your audience that many ofthe programs and policies of the No Kill Equa-tion are free, low-cost, or even revenue posi-tive. Permitting rescue groups to save animalssaves both money and lives. Volunteers can pro-vide much-needed support for free, and addi-tional adoptions can bring in additionalrevenue. Offsite adoptions (which can be runby volunteers) not only increase adoptions, butthey also increase shelter publicity and dona-tions.

Remember: the shelters that have rigorouslyembraced No Kill policies and practices did notdo so after they received a lot of money; thepublic in those communities responded withmore donations and volunteer time after theshelter demonstrated its commitment to lifesav-ing by embracing the No Kill philosophy andthe programs and services that make it possi-ble. And that makes sense: do good things foranimals, ask for the public’s help, and the publicwill support you.

“Our community is different; NoKill can’t work here.”The No Kill Equation has worked tocreate No Kill communities in all typesof communities—rich and poor, urbanand rural, northern and southern, po-litically liberal and politically conser-vative. Claiming that something won’twork when your shelter hasn’t tried itis not only irrationally pessimistic, it’smorally indefensible. And again,blaming the public is an excuse—not a strategy for success.

“How dare you criticize animal-shelteremployees, who work tirelessly every dayto save animals!”Focus on the shelter’s management and strate-gies rather than its employees (although incases of animal abuse by shelter employees,don’t be afraid to criticize them, too). Comparethe policies and the results of those policies (i.e.,killing rates) in your community with those ofmore successful ones. The facts will speak forthemselves. Although it will take many months (ifnot years) to change the press and politicians’instinctual bias in favor of the shelter, you cancut into that bias bypublicizing and doc-umenting instancesof abuse, neglect,and shelter mis-takes that led to un-necessary liveslost. Over time,things willchange.

Remind your audience that there is a“public” in communities that stoppedshelter killing virtually overnight. Thepublic didn’t change in that time; itwas the shelters’ programs andpolicies that changed.

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Even though the status quo is and will beagainst you, you are not remotely alone inwanting lifesaving shelter reform in your com-munity. In fact, when you start publicly voicingyour concerns, don’t be surprised if a number ofpeople reach out to join you in your efforts. Theanimal-loving public supports you, too. “No Kill”efforts may not be popular with shelter direc-tors and the status-quo animal-sheltering com-munity, but lifesaving reforms are very popularwith the public once you explain No Kill policiesand programs to them. It’s your job to helpthem understand and to get them to embraceyour efforts.

Realistically, however, a small group of you willdo most of the work and because of that, therewill be days when you might feel you arealone, but know that you aren’t. The public,

armed with the facts, will support you. And nomatter how hopeless things may look, theyaren’t. Your sustained, unrelenting advocacywill eventually wear down the opposition. Forc-ing regressive shelter leaders to publicly ac-count for harmful decisions that cause theneedless deaths of animals will eventually showthem for who andwhat they are. Ifyou run a smart, fo-cused campaign, ifyou harness the public’sinherent compassion,and if you projectstrength, profession-alism, and confi-dence, you willeventually succeed.

Get By With a Little Help From Your Friends

Ultimately, your job is to break into, reform,and become the status quo because you wantNo Kill reforms not only to be implemented, butto become the norm for your community. This isa long-term project, not a short-term battle. Dothis by getting involved with politics (donate tocampaigns, host events, get to know officials,politicians, and press members). Act like youbelong (dress professionally, communicate pro-fessionally, leave bound materials when meet-ing with officials). Stick around (it is those whoquit who fail; only those who persist will pre-vail). Build relationships (with stakeholders,press members, and decision-makers). Definethe debate (being against No Kill is being forshelter killing). And do not forget to seek laws

that mandate how the shelter must operate,even if you succeed at creating a No Kill com-munity without them. You want to codify yoursuccess into law so that things do not backslidewhen leadership changes again.

In Austin, the City Council passed a law makingit illegal for the shelter to kill savable animalswhen there are empty cages. It mandated afoster care program and offsite adoptions. Andit required the shelter to reach a 90% saverate. The impact was immediate.

Likewise, for No Kill success to be long lasting,you should focus on institutionalizing No Kill bygiving shelter animals the rights and protections

STEP SIXBECOME THE STATUS QUO

If you run a smart, focusedcampaign; if you harness thepublic’s inherent compassion;and if you project strength,professionalism, and confi-dence, you will eventually succeed.

afforded by law. We need to regulate sheltersin the same way we regulate hospitals andother agencies that hold the power over lifeand death. The answer lies in passing and en-forcing shelter reform legislation which man-dates how a shelter must operate. Laws thatmake it illegal for shelters to kill if there areempty cages, that require shelters to work withrescue groups, and that increase opportunitiesfor lifesaving and adoption save lives regard-less of who is running the shelter.

There will be a day when the systematic killingof animals in shelters is viewed as a cruel aber-ration of the past; a day when No Kill programsand policies are the norm rather than the ex-ception. Our job is to make that happen soonerrather later. And that won’t happen until some-one in your community steps up to the plate.That person is you.

It took Austin advocates five years to end theroutine killing. Others are having quicker suc-cess, but do not expect it to be easy. It is amarathon, not a sprint. Our entire system ofgovernment is designed to make dramaticchange difficult to effect. They expect you togive up and go home. Stay in the game for the

long haul and you’ll prevail. Think about it thisway: Killing is entrenched in this country. You willbe ignored, dismissed, ridiculed, and attacked.They may appear invincible, but they are not.Because you have the truth, you have compas-sion, you have something worth fighting for, andyou have the hearts and minds of the people.

If you work hard, fight smart, and never giveup, you will prevail. When you do, the animalsin your community will finally find in shelters anew beginning, instead of what they currentlyface—the end of the line. And they will find it,thanks to you. Advocates in Austin, Texas did it.Advocates in other places have, too. So can you.

STEP SEVENNEVER GIVE UP!

Additional The No Kill Advocacy Center and Rescue Five-0 offer additional resources that can be valuable tools in the fight for a No Kill community.

Adopting Your Way Out of Killing"You can't adopt your way out of killing." It is one of themost enduring dogmas of the animal shelter field. But itcould not be more wrong. You actually can adopt yourway out of killing. The data proves it. Experience provesit. And the No Kill Advocacy Center's 10-step guide willshow you how.

On LeadershipThe most important variable for success or failure in anycommunity is leadership. To save lives, shelters must be run by hard working, compassionatedirectors who are results oriented, passionate about saving lives, and offer solutions insteadof excuses.

To download the following guides, visit:

Rescue50.org

Resources

Free for download at:

nokilladvocacycenter.org

Two model shelter reform laws - The Com-panion Animal Protection Act and The AnimalRescue Act - as well as There Ought to Be aShelter Reform Law - a comprehensiveguide to passing humane legislation -offer every activist the tools and knowl-edge to pass shelter reform legislation atthe state, county or city level.

Reforming Our Nation’s Animal Shelters, State by State

Rescue Five­O is a nationwide campaign to reform U.S. animalshelters. Rescue Five­O is a joint project of the No Kill AdvocacyCenter and No Kill Nation.

For more information or to request assistance, visit

Rescue50.org

Reforming Our Nation’s Animal Shelters, State by State