A coalition of public and private animal shelters, rescues, veterinarians, businesses and individual animal lovers in Coachella Valley have united as NoKillCV to eliminate the euthanasia of healthy and adoptable dogs and cats in the community.
PRLog - Jul. 31, 2014 - PALM DESERT, Calif. -- Contact: David Kirk
Chairman, NoKillCV
NoKillCV@gmail.com
+1 (760) 834-7013
NoKill Coachella Valley (NoKillCV) is a coalition of public and private animal shelters, rescues, veterinarians, and community advocates dedicated to reducing the euthanasia of healthy and treatable pets in the Coachella Valley. The mission of NoKillCV is to bring together the animal welfare and animal lovers in Coachella Valley to:
(i) strive to end the euthanasia of healthy and treatable cats and dogs in Coachella Valley shelters, for other than compassionate or safety reasons ,
(ii) promote humane alternatives for community cats,
(iii) champion best practices and responsibility for the welfare of animals in the community of Coachella Valley.
“Over 5,000 dogs and cats are euthanized each year in shelters in our valley”, stated David Kirk, co-founder and Chairman of NoKillCV. “No animal lover wants unnecessary euthanasia in our shelters, and NoKillCV is delivering programs for the whole community to work together to save the lives of these animals. Collaboration across the whole community is increasing productivity and effectiveness for all of us, and the end result will be less euthanasia.”
One of the most effective programs for reducing euthanasia in shelters is getting lost pets returned to their owners. Micro-chipping a dog or a cat – implanting a very small chip under the skin of a pet – increases their chances of reunion by x2.5 for dogs and x20 for cats. NoKillCV member organizations will be providing free microchips, implantation and registration at upcoming Spay & Neuter clinics.
“No Kill” is a national tag for communities that achieve very high live release rates of animals from shelters. NoKillCV recently completed their Strategic Plan for Coachella Valley, and have launched the collective movement on Facebook @NoKillCoachellaValley.
Lindi Biggi, founder of Loving All Animals, in Palm Desert, expanded “It’s been my dream, and the mission of our rescue, to bring together the community and achieve NoKill. There will be challenges, but they are insignificant compared to the joy in saving so many more animals. And there are so many communities across the country that are working towards NoKill, that we have lots of help and role models.”
Riverside County Department of Animal Services (RCDAS) and Palm Springs Animal Shelter (PSAS), the public shelters serving the Coachella Valley, are also members.
“I’m thrilled to be working closely with the community to significantly reduce euthanasia in our shelters. NoKill is hard, but not as hard as our staff having to euthanize animals daily. NoKIll makes sense for animals, for the community and our staff” said Robert Miller, Director of Animal Services of Riverside County. “I want Coachella Valley to be recognized as a model for other communities and a new paradigm of animal services” he added.
Tamara Hedges, PSAS board member states, “We couldn’t be more pleased that the Coachella Valley animal community has come together on critical programs and initiatives that will save animals’ lives,” she said. "Working together, sharing knowledge and resources, we are creating a smart blueprint that will achieve our collective goal of saving healthy adoptable animals, and placing them in safe and loving homes. Other communities have done it and we can do it here".
Save A Pet Director, Ann Woods said, "We've been saving animals here for 30 years. Not only are we totally supportive of the NoKill philosophy, but are proud to have worked with many other organizations and helped shape the NoKill strategy for the whole of Coachella Valley."
"From our inception, Animal Samaritans has been a leading advocate and provider of low cost spay and neuter in support of NoKill” said Fred Saunders, Director. "We welcome the opportunity to share our experience and help the community achieve its goals."
Dr. Lori Kirshner, host of nationally syndicated radio show, Animals Today, observed, "Compared to many other communities, the Coachella Valley lags behind in its treatment of homeless dogs and cats. With NoKillCV we have reached critical mass for significant change."
NoKillCV is now working to create and launch specific programs for the remainder of 2014, including community foster, spay and neuter, microchipping, and education programs.
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Coachella Valley Is Becoming NoKill
July 31, 2014 at 09:00 AM EDT
