SONOMA COUNTY, CA: MAYDAY! ACC scheduled actions 9/20 to destroy disabled and hospice cats Sonoma Cty!

Subject: Re: ACC scheduled actions to destroy disabled and hospice cats

Please ALL of my Rescue Friends email these people!! This is not right when she providing great care to hospice cats. They should not kill cats that are well cared for because she is over the 4 cat rule!!!
URGENT!!

Sonoma County Animal Care and Control (ACC) inspected the property of Lynn Styles, director of "TaraSun Rescue and Refuge" in early March. The ACC officer found the care Lynn provides ...
to be excellent, without exception, but said Lynn was over the "four cat limit" allowed by the County, and she would have to reduce her number to four.

TaraSun is a 20 year old, nonprofit "sanctuary" for ...disabled and older cats, funded by Lynn and her husband John. Lynn, a nurse, provides specialized care for each cat, including hospice care. 95% of the cats are not adoptable and live with Lynn for the rest of their lives.

Lynn has met with her Supervisor Efren Carrillo and with Amy Cooper (director of ACC) and with the chief ACC Officer Crane, asking for an exception or variance. Their response: We must enforce the law. Period.

These cats are scheduled to be removed on Thursday, 9.20.12. Those who are not adoptable will be killed. Essentially, ACC will use scarce taxpayer resources to remove cats who are receiving excellent care (at no taxpayer expense) and kill them. There is no reason whatsoever this "four cat limit" should be applied to rescues/shelters/sanctuaries unless there is a finding of abuse, neglect or public nuisance (none the case with Lynn).

DRAFT EMAIL
Please send to supervisors and assistants:
District 1. [email protected] and [email protected]
District 2. [email protected] and [email protected]
District 3. [email protected] and [email protected]
District 4. [email protected] and [email protected]
District 5. [email protected] and [email protected]

Please copy Amy Cooper, Director of Animal Care and Control [email protected]
__________________________________________
Dear Supervisors:

As a constituent / concerned citizen, I strongly urge you to:

1. Halt the ACC action scheduled for 9.20.12 against TaraSun, a nonprofit sanctuary in Sebastopol. Do not use taxpayer money to destroy these disabled and hospice cats who, by the ACC's own determination, are receiving excellent care. Lynn Styles, a nurse and TaraSun director, is giving these animals specialized care, unavailable elsewhere, all at her own expense. ACC's only issue is that TaraSun exceeds the County's four cat limit.

2. Review County ordinances and recognize that nonprofit rescue/shelters/sanctuaries are and should be exempt from ordinance licensure requirements, including the four cat limit.

3. Completely eliminate the four cat limit in Sonoma County (for all residents). It is intrusive, unwarranted and counter-productive, and enforcement of said law is a waste of tax payers money.

4. ACC intervention should be limited to cases where cats are abused, neglected or where there are issues of nuisance.

Thank you,

Thank you,
Jennifer Sisson

Hello

I emailed these people today and launched a huge email campaign on Facebook and Care 2- and I just received this-

Hello:

Thank you for your message regarding TaraSun Rescue. Our office has received many e-mails and phone calls regarding our Animal Care and Control Department and their efforts to enforce a County Ordinance regarding limitations on the number of animals kept at residential properties.

TaraSun rescue was first notified that their operation was not in compliance with land use regulations over 6 months ago following a citizen complaint about conditions at the rescue. ACC staff worked with the rescue operator and gave repeated extensions of time to the shelter applicant, including the most recent and final extension of 90 days. Our office has worked with another humane organization, who attempted to assist TaraSun in placing some cats at their rescue in an attempt to reduce their number - which does exceed those allowed by our County ordinance. A local attorney also offered pro bono legal assistance to the shelter operator. Though assistance was offered, the operator did not accept assistance and asked that no one from the County contact her prior to the end of the 90 day extension granted to her.

I have received confirmation from ACC today that the operator of the rescue may be subject to civil sanctions under the ordinance if the cat population has not been reduced at the end of the 90 day period. At the current time, these sanctions will not involve seizure of the animals at the facility, but may involve a financial penalty if the facility has not been brought into compliance as required by current law. Further actions may result if additional complaints are received about the facility.

The County of Sonoma is committed to policy revision of ordinances involving pets, which have not been reviewed in the last decade. As part of the current work plan for the department, the standards relating to animal rescue groups - as a compliment to our animal shelter goals of finding good homes for adoptable animals - will be factored when we look at applicable ordinances as they apply to land use guidelines and rescue work.

Thank you for your concern for animal welfare, and your advocacy for a reasonable resolution to this situation.

Best regards,

Susan Upchurch
District Director for
Supervisor Efren Carrillo
Fifth District Representative
County of Sonoma
575 Administration Drive Room 100a
Santa Rosa, CA 95403

phone: 707-565-2241
fax: 707-565-3778
e-mail: [email protected]
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Thank you so much for all your work on this and for posting their response!

:love::love::love::love::love::love::love::love:

Cindy Richardson
3906 Ute Mountain Trail
Castle Rock, Co 80109
[email protected]

September 19, 2012


Dear Sir/Madam,
Destroying these animals is just deplorable, dispicable and inhumane!!! Please allow them to live their lives out in comfort and safety!! Do NOT DESTROY them. They have as much right to live as anyone or anyother soul has!!

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Best Regards,
Cindy Richardson

God bless you, Cindy.

:love::love::love::love::love::love::love::love: