CITY OF DALLAS/DAS BUDGET SUMMARY

PREPARED BY REBECCA POLING, CITY OF DALLAS ANIMAL

SHELTER COMMISSION
JULY 17, 2015

DAS Live Release Rates & Lives Saved

2007 - 2014
DAS Live Release Rate
50.0%
45.0%
40.0%
35.0%
30.0%
25.0%
20.0%
15.0%
10.0%
5.0%
0.0%

8,693 more lives saved in

2014 than 2007

LRR increased 35% from

12.7% in 2007 to 47.7% in
2014
2007 - 2008 - 2009 - 2010 - 2011 - 2012 - 2013 - 2014 12.7% 18.0% 19.5% 24.7% 26.5% 38.3% 43.9% 47.7%

4,071 live outcomes in 2007 vs

12,764 live outcomes in 2014
DAS Intake & Euthanasia
40,000
35,000
30,000
25,000
20,000
15,000
10,000
5,000
0

In 2007, 28,095 pets were

euthanized. In 2014, that
number was down to 13,986

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

Intake
32,647 34,522 33,276 29,338 28,565 27,375 27,416 27,012
Euthanasia 28,095 27,578 26,332 21,763 20,050 16,681 15,067 13,986
Source: DAS 2013 Calendar Year Statistical Report (Dogs & Cats Only) and City of Dallas Animal Shelter Commission Annual Reports

In addition to increase in LRR

DAS Management implemented the following between 2011-2014:
All but 7 of the 250 recommendations in the 2010 HSUS report
were implemented. Many of these items were never addressed
after the 2001 audit.
Vaccination on intake was initiated
Public/private partnerships were launched to bring addl
resources to support shelter operations (Over $1 million
already)
A culture of transparency was implemented, monthly statistical
reports were created and disseminated
Field services was outfitted with microchip scanners, laptops
and cameras
Animal photographs are now captured on intake and
coordinated with hourly website updates making it easier for
residents to locate lost pets
Big Fix for Big D launched with DAS as a partner, impacting
services and live release rates, and providing over 20,000 free
surgeries to Dallas residents
The Dallas Companion Animal Project was formed and a
partnership created for DCAP to fill the role of a friends of
group for Dallas Animal Services.
HVAC issues plaguing department for years are finally being
addressed
The division's reputation in the community has been
significantly elevated
PetSmart Charities chose DAS to receive a $450,000 offsite
adoption center in Far North Dallas that has already saved
thousands of lives.
Veterinary coverage on weekends has been implemented,
facilitating more live releases and shortening animals length of
stay.

Outfitted field services with new mobile laptops and

updated technology for enhanced field operations.
Rabies pre-exposure vaccination series for staff have
been initiated
Wildlife Rehabilitation partnership was developed to
increase live releases and reduce associated costs for
existing wildlife issues
Reliable animal ID system was implemented for
sheltered animals to reduce City exposure and liability
Relationships have been built with more than 100 501c3
non-profit rescue partners
Relationship between City Public Information Officer
and Clear channel initiated resulting in a monthly
billboard + countless hours of free ad space for DAS
A grant was applied for by DAS and received from The
Moody Foundaiton for a digital x-ray machine.
Revised Facebook and social media presence was
established enhancing communication with the public
and increasing visibility
DAS was the first Animal Services agency in the country
to join NextDoor.com
DAS was the first in North Texas to partner with Finding
Rover to use facial recognition to reunite lost dogs.
Developed operator script matrix and call priority
structure for 311 to enhance communication
A grant was applied for by DAS and received from
Meadows Foundation to establish a volunteer program.

Source: City of Dallas Animal Shelter Commission Managers Reports

DAS Adoptions increased 449% from 2007 to 2014

Adoptions
The economic impact of the 8,247
adoptions in 2014 is over $ 7.7 million
annually.

9,000
8,000
7,000
6,000
5,000
4,000
3,000
2,000
1,000
0

That equates to more than $ 102 million in

economic impact over the lifetime of those
pets

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

Adoptions 1,500 2,234 2,627 2,816 3,090 5,399 6,866 8,247

8,693 more lives saved in 2014 than 2007

An APPA study estimates pet owners spend the following annually

on their pets:
$971 per Dog

$819 per Cat

Licensing,
$7.00
Boarding
/Pet
Sitting
$327.00

Grooming
$61.00

Licensing,
$7.00

Food
$231.00

Routine Toys
Vet Care $41.00
$239.00

Treats
$65.00

Boarding
/Pet
Sitting
$337.00

Food
$203.00

Treats
Toys $36.00
Routine $23.00
Grooming Vet Care
$193.00
$20.00

Dallas Animal Services Adopted Out 8,247 pets in 2014:

6,698 Dogs X $971 = $6,503,758
1,274 Cats X $819 = $1,268,631

Annual Economic Impact of

DAS Adoptions in 2014:
$7,772,389
Average Life Expectancy of a Dog: 12.8 years = $ 83,248,102
Average Life Expectancy of a Cat: 15 years = $ 19,029,465

Economic Impact of those

2014 adoptions over pets lifetime:
$102,277,567

Source: DAS 2014 Calendar Year Statistical Report and APPA

LRR increased 35% from 12.7% in 2007 to 47.7% in 2014

DAS budget increased only 26% from 2007 to 2014

$9,000,000.00
$8,000,000.00

Year
FY 07/08
FY 08/09
FY 09/10
FY 10/11
FY 11/12
FY 12/13
FY 13/14

$7,000,000.00
$6,000,000.00
$5,000,000.00
$4,000,000.00
$3,000,000.00

$2,000,000.00

$
$
$
$
$
$
$

Budget
7,030,726.00
7,314,843.00
7,229,841.00
6,609,654.00
6,287,550.00
7,156,514.00
8,874,330.00

$1,000,000.00
$FY
07/08

FY
08/09

FY
09/10

FY
10/11

FY
11/12

FY
12/13

FY
13/14

All pets adopted in 2013 and 2014 were spayed or neutered before leaving the shelter. That was not happening prior
to 2011, despite a City ordinance requiring it. The cost to spay/neuter and microchip those pets was over $831,200
and that does not include those spayed, neutered and chipped before being returned to their owners, or transferred to
rescue groups.
Source: DAS 2014 Calendar Year Statistical Report and City of Dallas Office of Financial Transparency

TalkDallas Public Survey, April 2015

A total of 1,509 people responded to the survey from June 8 through July 3; part of an ongoing effort to get residents
input into the Citys FY 2015-16 budget development process. Among the survey questions, citizens were asked to rank
City services from Most Important to Least Important. Here are the results: DallasCityNews.net

DAS provides citywide services to 1.257 million people and 645,000 animals and covers the same 342.5 square
miles as other departments, with a budget of 3/10th of 1% of the Citys general fund budget.
http://www.dallascitynews.net/survey-says-number-one-citizen-concern-is-street-and-alley-repair/

The current DAS budget is 3/10ths of 1% of the Citys general fund budget
Human resources/Civil Service
1%
City Auditor/Financial Services
1%
Other
1%
Building Services

23,895,817.00

City Attorney

15,146,796.00

City Auditor/Financial Services

12,906,396.00

City Controller/Procurement

8,457,716.00

City Manager/Secretary/Council

14,429,705.00

Code Compliance

26,508,275.00

Courts/Lew Sterret/Judiciary

23,880,172.00

Cultural Affairs

17,287,656.00

DAS

8,874,330.00

Fire

Housing/Community Service

11,498,828.00

Human resources/Civil Service

6,982,936.00

Library

26,143,630.00

Non-Departmental

49,341,874.00

Other

6,994,130.00

Parks & Rec

81,876,638.00

Police

Public works

6,861,155.00

Sanitation

75,693,850.00

Streets/Lighting

83,836,591.00

General Budget

228,008,576.00

438,059,929.00

1,166,685,000.00

City Controller/Procurement
City Manager/Secretary/Council
1%
1%
DAS
Public works
1%
1%

Housing/Community Service
1%
City Attorney
1%
Cultural Affairs
1%
Courts/Lew Sterret/Judiciary
2%
Building Services
2%
Library
2%

Police
38%

Code Compliance
2%
Non-Departmental
4%

Sanitation
6%

Fire
20%

Parks & Rec

7%

Streets/Lighting
7%

but Animal Services was ranked 7the most important service by residents
http://financialtransparency.dallascityhall.com/

2015. Dallas at a Crossroads

Community Outreach vs. Catch & Kill
CATCH & KILL

"Catch and Kill" doesn't work. Dallas has been

doing "Catch and Kill" for decades - rounding up
loose dogs, impounding them in a shelter that is
already full, and euthanizing them when their
owners don't come forward, or can't afford the
redemption fees.

It clears the streets temporarily, until those same

dog owners go out and get new dogs (unaltered
and unvaccinated), let them run loose (because
nothing has been done to change their attitudes
toward pets or educate them about the laws), and
they start to multiply again. There are
neighborhoods in South Dallas where round ups
have been done every six to twelve months for
decades, and at an astronomical cost to all Dallas
taxpayers. And it does no good.

Dallas has had a loose dog problem since 1871.

In the '60's, over 33,000 animals were impounded
every year by DAS. By 1988-1989 FY, that number
increased to nearly 40,000 animals. Since 2007
that number has begun to drop - to 28,300 in the
last fiscal year - mainly due to aggressive
spay/neuter programs. But it's still more than the
shelter and resources can handle, and Catch & Kill
isn't going to solve the problem. It serves no
purpose, is inhumane, and its expensive.

COMMUNITY OUTREACH

Outreach programs use innovative strategies and

fresh approaches to extend the reach of animal
services, providing resources and information to
under-served areas. These programs provide free
and low-cost spay/neuter, vaccinations, veterinary
care, behavior and training advice, as well as the
basics -shelters, enclosures, collars, and leashes,
and food. By comprehensively addressing the lack
of accessible, affordable pet care in under-served
communities, these programs keep pets in the
homes they already have, empowering the people
who care for them, improving their quality of life
and elevating the human-animal bond.

Community Outreach is a humane, long term

solution that addresses the root of the problem of
loose dogs. It's based on successful community
policing models, helps preserve the human/animal
bond, increases employee morale, has less
environmental impact than "catch and kill", and is
less expensive than "catch and kill.

Community Outreach programs are endorsed by

nationally recognized animal advocates and animal
control experts, they generate citizen support by
creating relationships with residents, they help
preserve existing private/public partnership and
encourage new ones, the appeal to private
funders, and ease the stress on local non-profits
and rescue groups that "catch and kill" causes.

VS

The Cost to Taxpayers: Catch & Kill vs. Community Outreach

DAS field surveys indicate that for every 7 loose dogs, 1 is a stray and 6 are owned, but
allowed to run loose.
Option #1. Catch & House - Just to catch and house seven those dogs (regardless of
outcome euthanasia, return to owner, etc. ) would be about $ 3,500.
[$500/dog includes the cost of intake (approx. $140/dog) and the cost of housing and care for the minimum 72
hour stray hold (approx. $360/dog).]

Option #2. Community Outreach - To intake one stray dog and provide outreach for six
others would be about $ 1340.
[Intake and care for 1 at $500/dog and spay/neuter + vaccinations + extras for 6 dogs ($140/dog).]

Outreach is cheaper
Helping people keep the dogs they have and care for them properly costs about
$140/dog, and that doesn't include the far-reaching benefit of having a community full
of spayed/neutered and vaccinated pets rather than unvaccinated, unaltered pets.
Catching and caring for a dog for the minimum 72 hour hold time, regardless of the
outcome, costs a minimum of $500/dog.

But we're not talking about just 7 dogs.

Example:
Zip Code 75216
Population 47031,
14.6 square miles
AVMA Est. 10,564 owned dogs
Est. loose dogs 50% or 4,998.
Community Outreach
4,284 dogs kept in homes
714 dogs impounded
$956,760 taxpayer dollars*
Catch & Kill
4,998 dogs impounded
$2,499,000 taxpayer dollars.
*Community

Outreach is popular with private funders and money could be available to

offset some of the cost. There is no private funding available for Catch & Kill. The
taxpayers bear 100% of that burden.

75216 is only one portion of the larger South Dallas/Grow South area

DAS Budget Line Items

Funded

Priority #1 - UNFUNDED
Funded by EOY Code surplus
Priority #2 50% FUNDED
Funded by EOY Code surplus

Please see CCS-001-B and CCS-001-D detail on following page

Source: Dallas City Managers Budget, and Dallas Animal Services . Orange boxes added for clarification.

CCS-001-B and CCS-001-D Detail

Priority #1 - Unfunded
CCS-001-B To be used to reclassify existing positions and align DAS managerial organizational
chart with industry best practices. In effort to enahnce efficienty in 14/15, DAS reclassified
positions to meet best practices. The associated costs need to be covered in the 15/16 fiscal year
to prevent budget shortfall and/or the need to cover this cost through vacancy savings.

Priority #2 Partially funded

CCS-001-D Necessary to address the loose dog issue in South Dallas/Grow South through
Community Outreach programs. Only 50% of the request for a full year funding is being
recommended, so hiring for the positions needed to address the issue cannot start until April of
2016. 50% funding fails to address the urgent need and ongoing problems in Southern Dallas,
and created an unfunded mandate for the next fiscal year.

Breakdown:
Staffing: $ 894,418
Contracted Vet Services: $ 91,000
Supplies & Materials: $ 26,200
Day Labor & Other Charges: $ 121,500
TOTAL $ 1,042,118

Source: Dallas Animal Services

Staffing Detail:
1 Manager
1 Southeast Coordinator
1 Southwest Coordinator
1 Media/Messaging Coordinator
2 Southeast Officers
2 Southwest Officers
1 Southeast Office Assistant
1 Southwest Office Assistant
1 Veterinarian
1 Veterinary Manager
2 Crew Leads
1 Animal Keeper