Lisa Gardner, Communications Director, Spokane City Council, lgardner@spokanecity.org
Thursday, September 21, 2023 at 10:49 a.m.
Spokane – Today, Council Members received information from animal welfare advocates that over a dozen dogs were euthanized on September 20, 2023. The confirmed report comes days after Council Members Michael Cathcart and Karen Stratton submitted a statement with concerns about the unethical treatment of animals at SCRAPS. Council President Lori Kinnear has invited SCRAPS leadership to attend the upcoming City Council Public Infrastructure, Environment, and Sustainability (PIES) Committee meeting on Monday, September 25th, to discuss practices under the interlocal agreement between the City and County for animal services.
“We had discussions with County Commissioners and SCRAPS staff regarding no-kill policies/practices,” said Council Member Karen Stratton. “So, I am very disappointed that we were not notified of these multiple euthanasias today. I think it is safe to say this has not been a transparent process. It’s time to reevaluate our contract with Spokane County and explore working with other organizations that will value, respect, and commit to ethical standards for treating animals.”
The City of Spokane currently contracts with SCRAPS to provide animal shelter services under an interlocal agreement signed in 2019. Council Member Cathcart championed an amendment to the interlocal agreement in 2020 which was approved unanimously by the City Council and Board of County Commissioners and sets specific, limited processes related to euthanasia. The practices at SCRAPS, especially relating to the destruction of animals, have come under fire recently from community groups and former volunteers.
“When I championed the amendment in 2020, my driving force was to keep SCRAPS operating as an ethical public agency,” said Council Member Michael Cathcart. “We envisioned setting exemplary animal control and protection standards, limiting situations where euthanasia was deemed necessary. For five months, I’ve dialogued with our concerned citizens, sought answers from SCRAPS, and pushed to amend the County’s code, erasing references to euthanasia at capacity. Yet, it’s heart-wrenching to discover that SCRAPS euthanized fourteen dogs today – information we gathered from our community and the media, not directly from the agency. Council Member Stratton and I have worked diligently to champion transparency and bolster accountability for SCRAPS. What’s profoundly disturbing is SCRAPS’s circumventing the Advisory Board process, which they called for to ensure transparency and oversight, even setting an October meeting date. Today, actions are egregious and more than a mere misstep – representing a significant loss of trust in SCRAPS.”
An ordinance relating to animal control regulations was reviewed by Council at the September 11th Urban Experience Committee meeting and Council will likely consider suspending the rules to consider an updated version of that emergency ordinance at their 6:00 p.m. Legislative Session on Monday September 25. The updated ordinance will look at amending the Spokane Municipal Code to align with the animal control and shelter practices that were intended to be implemented during previous negotiation of the interlocal agreement with SCRAPS ensuring the agreement implanted a safe and clear policy on euthanasia.
The Spokane County Code 5.06.060 (4) currently states “Notwithstanding the holding periods referenced in subsection (2) of this section, the director may, in accordance with policy established by SCRAPS, authorize any unlicensed impounded dog be humanely euthanized if the director determines the animal to be feral and/or dangerous to the safety of humans or other animals, or suffering from serious injury or disease; or the designated shelter area for dogs is at capacity.”
City Council received concerns from animal welfare advocates and constituents that the euthanasia happened due to lenient director discretion and capacity issues rather than justifiable health, behavioral, or animal endangerment issues. Those behavioral assessments are located on the Spokane County website.
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About the Spokane City Council
The City Council is the legislative body of the City of Spokane, which is home to more than 220,000 people and is located in the heart of the Inland Northwest. The City’s 2,000 employees strive to deliver efficient and effective services that facilitate economic opportunity and enhance the quality of life for all our citizens. For more information, visit SpokaneCity.org/CityCouncil/ and follow us @SpokaneCityCouncil on Facebook.
