KAILUA-KONA — How to reduce the number of unwanted animals that are euthanized on the island?
That’s the question some animal advocate groups want to answer, and they attended a town hall meeting to tackle just that.
The county’s $1.9 million annual animal control contract with the Hawaii Island Humane Society, and how that document may reward the killing of animals by basing budget numbers on those kills was at the center of a panel discussion Friday evening in Kailau-Kona, attended by animal rescue organizations from around the island, county councilwomen Karen Eoff, Maile David and Margaret Wille and members of the public.
“We need to have a large, collective voice that we won’t stand for how the animals are treated anymore,” said Kailua-Kona resident Sarah Spitler.
Not at the meeting was its focal point — HIHS. But the organization’s numbers still took center stage.
In figures provided by the society, 2,380 treatable dogs and 955 unhealthy dogs were euthanized islandwide last year, out of 6,362 taken in. Another 1,982 were adopted out and 1,059 were redeemed.
Out of 6,568 cats, 3,842 feral animals were euthanized, along with 1,105 unhealthy cats and 413 treatable cats. Another 974 were adopted out.
The euthanization of 14,000 animals a year is listed under contract performance measures, along with receiving and assessing a set number of animals, and adoptions which are at the contractor’s discretion.
“What you measure is what you get,” said Maya Dolena, who operates a feral cat sanctuary in Puna. “If you measure euthanasia, that’s what you get. That’s the downfall of the contract.”
Participants called for more emphasis on spay and neuter programs. The organizations agreed to forge a model request for proposals to present to the Hawaii County Council so that contract language can be changed when the contract is up for renewal this summer.
Wille said the contract controls the humane society’s motivations.
“If the contract is incentivizing euthanasia, and incentivizing is how an organization survives, obviously we need to change the contract,” Wille said.
The humane society did not attend the meeting. In a written statement, HIHS Board President Adam Atwood said the society and its rescue partners have already eliminated euthanasia of nearly all healthy dogs and non-feral cats.
He said earlier in this week that HIHS reports to the County Council, and that holding the town hall under the guise of the County Council was misleading.
“HIHS is already governed by a 10-member all-volunteer board representing islandwide community interest,” Atwood said. “Further, HIHS already reports monthly to the Hawaii Police Department, mayor, county council, director of finance and legislative auditor. HIHS is an open and transparent organization with audited financials and other governance items available on its website. HIHS is the only open admission shelter on island, accepting all animals.”
The humane society has stated that reducing the euthanasia rate comes down to pet owners themselves being more responsible in spaying and neutering their animals. There are simply more unwanted animals on the island than there are homes, according to the society.