Valley Residents Fight To Save West Valley Animal Shelter

CHATSWORTH, CA — Public outcry has followed a proposed reopening of the West Valley Animal Services Center in Chatsworth that would turn it into a community resource center partnering with private rescue organizations.

The shelter, along with the North Central Animal Service Center in Lincoln Heights, was temporarily closed April 13, and the animals were moved to the four city shelters that remained open. In a news release, Los Angeles Animal Services Director Brenda Barnette said that the move was because there was not enough staff to care for the animals at the shelter, and she feared the COVID-19 pandemic would exacerbate this.

On June 26, Barnette announced a proposalto turn the shelter into a Community Resource Center in partnership with New Hope Rescue Partners, a private organization that helps place shelter animals into homes. Ms. Barnette previously gave

Framing the reopening as a matter of “combat[ting] discrimination and inequality in animal service programs”, Barnette suggested creating a center that partners with rescue organizations, which would offer spay and neutering services, wellness exams, dog training, microchipping, and more at their own expense. One senior member of Animals Services staff would oversee operations.

Los Angeles District 12 Councilman John Lee posted on his Facebook page that, “As council member, I understand the important role that the West Valley Animal Shelter holds in our community and for our animals. I have met with the department to advocate on behalf of the community to ensure that all voices have a fair chance to be heard before any decision is made."

Critics have countered that these services are already offered at the shelter and cannot be entrusted to non-experts, the shelter’s budget crisis has been exaggerated, and that the shelter is badly needed in the community. An online petition called “Don’t Let the West Valley Animal Shelter Be Given Away” has garnered 8.426 signatures as of Wednesday, out of a goal of 10,000.

A post on the “Friends of the West Valley Animal Shelter” Facebook page pointed out that organizations like Rescue Train and Heaven on Earth already run similar programs in the shelter.

“The community and rescues have been doing LAAS jobs and it is unsustainable long term,” a post says. “The ramifications on the animals and community is profound.” Critics point out that the West Valley Shelter is the only city shelter with air conditioning in its kennels, and the only shelter with room for horses and large animals. Since the shelter also serves as an emergency evacuation shelter, critics worry the reopening plan does not make room for emergencies.

“We do occasionally pick up a horse in the field, and I do have to say that after this COVID I’m already receiving calls that people can no longer care for them,” said a former West Valley employee, who now works at the East Valley Animal Shelter in Van Nuys at a July 28 public meeting. After the outcry, the shelter hosted three meetings for the community, a meeting for volunteers, and two meetings for New Hope Partners.

“They need a place to surrender their horse, or they’ll just be abandoned, open the gates, let them go, one of our officers will pick up a horse in the field – where do we take them?”

Residents have also pointed out that the shelter services a large area. Another former employee said at the meeting that if the shelter closes, 875,000 people covering an area of 200 square miles will be left without adequate shelter services. Another employee gave a list of statistics demonstrating the need for a full-service shelter: 100 percent of the hoarder cases of over 50 animals were all in the west valley area in 2019; 45 percent of the barking dog cases filed for administrative hearing came from West Valley, 59 percent of the possible dangerous animal hearing were filed from West Valley, and 68 percent of all the administrative citations that were also written in the city, were written in the west valley area.

“We would like to know why the employees of the city of Los Angeles cannot staff the West Valley Shelter, and do the job that’s been given away to community organizations,” they continued.