Animal Shelter Advisory Committee delivers 2024 annual report; urges Westside shelter completion, microchip expansion and spay/neuter programs

The Animal Shelter Advisory Committee (ASAC) presented its 2024 annual report to the El Paso City Council on May 13, summarizing meetings, attendance and recommendations for city action.

Representative Canales, who chairs the committee, told council members the ASAC held 11 meetings during 2024, discussed 35 agenda items and maintained close to a 98% attendance rate among committee members. The committee highlighted its strategic goal to reach and sustain a 90% live-release rate for shelter animals by 2025 and said the city was close to that target.

The report listed primary topics addressed in 2024: Westside Adoption Center renovation and phased expansion; return-to-owner strategies including increased public access to microchip scanners; overcrowding, intake trends and euthanasia; adoption strategies and post-adoption support; spay/neuter capacity and veterinary staffing shortages; public education and potential city-ordinance clarifications; and trap-neuter-return (TNR) programs for community cats.

Key committee recommendations presented to council: - Continue progress on the Westside Adoption Center conversion and move promptly to the planned second construction phase once phase 1 is complete. - Expand the mobile microchip-scanner program: place scanners at libraries, community centers, veterinary clinics and other public locations and maintain an online directory of scanner locations. - Enhance public education and outreach on responsible pet ownership and clarify Title 7 city ordinances (multi-lingual workshops, school partnerships). - Develop and fund a comprehensive spay/neuter program, including mobile clinics and partnerships with local veterinarians to address staff shortages. - Implement a structured adoption follow-up program (the shelter has piloted an automated check-in system called Petzl) to reduce returns after adoption. - Support and strengthen the city's TNR program and expand access to humane trapping equipment and public education about TNR benefits.

Representative Rocha and other council members praised committee work and noted items that could be advanced through the budget process. The committee thanked shelter staff and volunteers and credited recent activities such as a large spayathon that performed surgeries on more than 400 animals.

The ASAC asked council to consider the committee's recommendations during budget deliberations and to support staff efforts to expand veterinary and medical capacity at shelter facilities. Council members indicated they would consider placing relevant items on future agendas and use the upcoming budget cycle to fund priority recommendations.