There’s an agency in Seattle that can help with your animals if you’re in a crisis, will support you in an unsustainable situation with your pets, and offers resources and supplies to underserved communities.
It’s called Animal Control.
Seattle’s Animal Control is a world away from the stereotype of dogcatchers and “the pound.” They focus on outreach and safety, and work to keep families together.
“This role has evolved so much over the last decade and the decade before that and the decade before that. If you look at the horrible history of where this profession started and where we are now, it’s unrecognizable,” said Animal Control Officer Patrick Lynch. “The role is going to continue to change. That’s part of the reason we need to be innovative, to adapt in a way that’s helpful to the community. As the community needs change, we’re going to change as well.”
The approach to calls is always on finding positive outcomes.
“Our goal is always to keep pets and people together, and when that’s not possible we have services. We encourage people to come to us when they need help,”
Seattle Animal Shelter Deputy Director Jocelyn Bouchard.
The Seattle Animal Shelter Foundation’s biggest fundraiser, Furevermore, this year funded a new SAS initiative called “The Best Chance” program, which will support continued outreach to underserved communities through the sharing of care, information and resources with the goal of creating more open, trusting relationships – and keeping animals safe with their families.
“Our primary focus is animal welfare and public safety,” Officer Lynch said. “Those are the two most important things. There’s a lot of overlap between those two issues.”
Animal Control responds to calls about everything from a barking dog to alleged abuse cases. Officers talk to complainants and try to get clarification, “try to see what they are seeing,” he said.
A recent case Lynch handled involved a man who lived in an apartment with 10 dogs. His original pet was unspayed, and one litter led to another, which led to him struggling to take care of more dogs than he had the capacity to. Because of issues including barking, he was on the verge of getting evicted. He needed help but didn’t know where to turn.
“He’s been told no his whole life. Why would anyone say yes to taking care of his pets?” Lynch said.
It took a while to build trust but Lynch eventually was able to get the man to agree to surrender seven of the dogs and keep three, which were spayed, microchipped and vaccinated, and returned, and also got him sufficient supplies. The other seven dogs were adopted.
“At the end of the case, every single person said, ‘I never thought that this kind of outcome was a possibility.’ Even the apartment managers who were actively trying to evict this person. They weren’t going to call Animal Control because (they thought), ‘That’s going to be far worse than what I’m trying to do.’ ”
These kinds of cases and interactions have a deep impact on the wellness of the community.
“That man had an eviction hearing and didn’t get evicted. He was able to show he was capable of making these big changes. He understood that if something comes up he can rely on SAS to give him that compassionate outcome he would need,” Lynch said. “For other parties, they all now know moving forward that we can make a positive difference in a way that is beneficial to everybody. And hopefully as time goes on … when a person wants a dog, he’s not going to get an unfixed dog from the internet. He will adopt from us.”
In Officer Lynch’s mind, these small interactions are the foundational stepping stone toward bigger change.
“Something that I try to do, and I can only do it case by case, is change people’s minds as to what we are here to do and how we can help.”
The Seattle Animal Shelter Foundation funds programs and services that support animals in need like this throughout our community. To donate, click here.