Thanks to all who wrote and called LOS ANGELES COUNTY officials
NOTE: Thanks to all who wrote and called LOS ANGELES COUNTY officials. . . from your letters I can see that the lies abound!
In one instance, Animal Control put out a “chart” full of lies. Our lawyer responded with a time line of actual events and demanded that the County cease its libel and slander against us.
Let me tell you a story . . . .
In 1983 when we got our first shelter in El Monte, the director of Animal Control, Brian Berger, and I met on a radio show. George Putnam’s Talk Back. We became fast friends and remained so until he left the area. Brian was also the boyhood friend of Supervisor Antonovich.
In 1984 during the Olympic Games which were held in Los Angeles, we teamed up with Animal Control to help visiting animals. We bought 10,000 temporary collars and tags which were given out FREE at all L.A. County Animal Shelters . . . for visitors who were staying in Los Angeles and who had pets who might get lost while they were here.
Over the next two decades, whenever Animal Control needed something for THEIR animals, they would call upon us for help. I would then call some of our donors and get the money we needed to buy whatever the pound animals needed. In one case it was chain link fence to cover all their dog runs in all their shelters . . .
. . . dogs were jumping over their fences and attacking other dogs. Supervisor Antonovich wanted to give me an award at a public hearing but I refused . . . I don’t do this for accolades, but for the animals. Over the years the Lancaster shelter manager asked for help numerous times and we provided it. Whatever they needed for the animals, we provided when times were tough for the County.
Eventually Brian Berger left Animal Control. The next director, Frank Andrews, met with us and gave us a permanent license in 1997.
Under Andrews, the Castaic shelter asked for horse corrals and shade covers. We provided them. By “provided” I mean we had them delivered the NEXT DAY and we paid the bill. Volunteers erected them.
The manager at Castaic wanted to build a large cattery like ours, where cats could roam freely. This enabled them to be adopted more easily, and allowed them a more positive atmosphere while in the pound. We provided the entire list of building materials for the volunteers to assemble.
Supervisor Antonovich opened the new cattery to much fanfare. It was in all the newspapers. What he didn’t mention — or perhaps didn’t even know — is that WE PAID FOR THAT CATTERY!
In 2003 Marcia Mayeda became the new and most controversial director of Animal Control. She was going to visit us and continue our relationship, but she changed her mind at the last minute.
The next year I exposed D&D Services for the rendering of dead pets and providing them as feed additives for animals WE EAT! Our suit against D&D was served and the very next day Mayeda said we needed a license again. She said she “was the new sheriff in town” and we had to get relicensed.
Because of the tremendous expense involved, as well as the retaliatory nature of her demands, we fought back in court. Eventually I dropped the suit with a promise from the County that we could have a license within 30 days. THAT was a lie! And the war is now escalating.
Rather than waste paper here, if you are interested, we can send you the letter we just sent to the Supervisors and Animal Control demanding that the lies stop. It contains the timeline of this controversy. Interestingly, we had a good relationship with the County before Mayeda and the rendering case. I will let you know what happens next.
Note to Mike Antonovich: if you really love animals as you say you do, then get rid of Mayeda (and her cohort Diane Regan) and let’s get back on sold ground! This is a giant waste of time and money. If you are going to remain in office for your term limit, we will have known each other for 32 years! Why spend the next six years at war? Come out and visit us, bring the kids, play with our animals, and end this thing. WE BOTH HAVE BETTER THINGS TO DO!
I sent an email to Antonovich and included my phone number. He called and said there are very simple things Leo has to do to comply and that it is only$250 to get the license. He suggested several times that Leo is “kind of crazy” and that people who like animals sometimes are like that, they don’t like people.
I didn’t nibble at any of that bait. I continued to press him that DELTA is the only organization doing what it does and Leo and the staff do an excellent job, whereas the county has not. He went on to tell me it’s hard to get good people for that pay and then he talked about the foster care system (?).
He said the county doesn’t want the land for the water and no one has broken into Leo’s house and Leo is just making things up to get sympathy from supporters. He said they have a big puppy mill problem and they are trying to stop it.
He said DELTA only has to register as an animal facility and that it wouldn’t be limited. I told him I am glad to hear they aren’t trying to shut down DELTA since no one else does this work and what would happen to all of those animals?! He assured me that is not what they are trying to do.
Then I got this email from his office. (I had talked to him in June.) I am bcc the reply to the email they sent me in another email. I will keep trying. Please hang in there.
God bless,
C.H.
And thank you for all your hard work against this evil!