Long-time reporter Dana Gentry of the Nevada Current has been following the trials and tribulations of the biggest animal shelter in Southern Nevada, The Animal Foundation (TAF), for some time. But in late December, some big news broke: The City Council voted for some major reforms, including opening up bids for TAF’s contract for the first time in 28 years.
What’s the biggest controversy facing the Animal Foundation right now?
For the last year and a half, the Animal Foundation (TAF) has refused to accept animals on demand and it is supposed to be functioning as an open shelter. What that means is if you own an animal and you're moving and for whatever reason you're not taking your animal along… the appointment is six months out. If you find an animal and you're trying to get it to the shelter so that they can find the owner, the wait can be a month or two months. And you know, as well as I do [that] even well-meaning people don't have the capacity to hold on to a stray animal for that long.
Can you just give us a quick overview of the animal rescue ecosystem that exists in the Las Vegas Valley?
There are basically three shelters. There's TAF, which covers most of the County. There's the Henderson Shelter. There's also a shelter in Boulder City. Then there are some major players such as Hearts Alive Village, which has a rescue and a non-profit, low-cost veterinary clinic. Then there's the NSPCA, the Nevada Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, and that is a no-kill shelter… Then there are hundreds of rescues run by individuals, who either have an army of volunteers or just kind of mom and pop organizations working with the shelters to get adoptable cats and dogs out of the shelter and get them into homes.
We don't require no-kill shelters in the Las Vegas Valley — is it possible in the future for the Las Vegas Valley?
I really don't know. It depends on who goes in if TAF leaves. You know, there's a lot of criticism of the no-kill philosophy from shelter operators. The NSPCA operates as a no-kill facility, so it's very possible that if NSPCA goes in there, it could become one. It's just a tough state, because we don't value animals to the degree that we value race events that promote the city and promote the gaming atmosphere.
Is this the end of the Animal Foundation? Listen to the full episode below.
