Animal Welfare League

Local Deer Population on the Rise

By ARLnow.com

The Animal Welfare League of Arlington is warning that the local deer population appears to be on the rise.

The group says the number of calls they receive regarding deer has risen every year for the past six years. In 2005, for instance, there were 39 deer-related calls, compared to 79 such calls so far this year.

“Calls range from complaints about deer eating plants to injured deer to deer killed by cars,” AWLA employee Rita Naimoli said in an email. “We recently had two bucks crash through a resident’s window. Our officers see the evidence every day of the quickly growing deer population. Like other wild animals deer now thrive in some of the densest human settlements.”

Residents should avoid feeding deer, Naimoli said, to avoid situations like this.

“Although deer are beautiful creatures, feeding them destroys their natural fear of humans and can lead to aggression,” she wrote. “The League urges residents to enjoy wildlife from a distance and to avoid any interaction for their own safety and the well being of wildlife.”

Although it’s technically deer hunting season in Northern Virginia, Arlington County ordinances prohibit the use of bows and firearms for hunting in most circumstances.

Flickr pool photo by Mark C. White

Firefighters Rescue Kitten

By ARLnow.com

Arlington County firefighters rescued an intrepid stray kitten over the weekend.

Firefighters were on a call at S. Greenbrier Street and 8th Road S., in the Columbia Heights West neighborhood, when an orange tabby kitten ran under their fire truck and into the truck’s engine compartment. The kitten was covered in grease by the time firefighters were able to free him, according to the Animal Welfare League of Arlington.

The curious kitty, named “Axel” by his rescuers, was brought to the League’s shelter in Shirlington, where he was cleaned up and given a physical exam and vaccinations.

On Monday, vets gave Axel the all-clear to go to a foster home for a couple of weeks until he’s big enough to be put up for adoption, according to the AWLA.

Photo courtesy the Animal Welfare League of Arlington

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

More on Possible Shirlington Walmart — Three months after ARLnow.com reported exclusively that Walmart was eying a site for a possible store in Shirlington, County Board Chairman Chris Zimmerman is acknowledging that the county is aware of Walmart’s interest in Shirlington. This weekend the County Board is expected to discuss changing the zoning ordinance in order to prevent “big box” stores like Walmart from being constructed without Board approval. When the ordinance change was first advertised, the word “Walmart” was never mentioned. [WTOP]

Fire Station Open Houses This Weekend — Arlington’s 10 fire stations will each be conducting an open house between 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. on Saturday. The kid-friendly event is organized as part of Fire Prevention Week 2011. [Arlington County]

Turnaround at AWLA — There’s a turnaround underway at the Animal Welfare League of Arlington, which had been criticized for its relatively high euthanasia rate for dogs and cats. The shelter’s euthanasia rate during fiscal year 2011 was down 60 percent compared to the year before. The “positive outcome” rate for sheltered dogs rose to 91 percent from 80 percent one year prior. [Sun Gazette]

F.C., Arlington Police Investigate Burglaries — Arlington and Falls Church police are investigating a series of ten residential burglaries since the beginning of fall. The burglaries have occurred in the City of Falls Church and in Arlington’s East Falls Church neighborhood. Stolen items include laptops, iPods, guns, passports, bank checks and jewelry. [Falls Church News-Press]

Deer Struck on I-66 Ramp Left Dead in EFC Yard

By ARLnow.com

This morning, just before 8:30, a small deer was struck by a vehicle on a ramp from Sycamore Street to I-66, in East Falls Church. The gravely injured deer apparently stumbled down to the corner of Sycamore Street and 19th Street, where it collapsed and died in a grassy yard next to the southbound Sycamore Street sidewalk.

Three and a half hours later, the deer is still there and visible to passersby.

Arlington Police, called to the scene after the deer was struck, left shortly after confirming the deer was dead and placing a call to the county’s animal control contractor. But we hear that the Animal Welfare League of Arlington, which performs animal control and sheltering services to the county under a contract worth more than $1.2 million as of FY 2010, has told police that it may take a while to pick up the deer since there’s only one animal control officer working today.

ARLnow.com has been told in the past that animal control is often short-staffed in Arlington. A message on the League’s answering machine said its main offices were closed today.

Animal Welfare League Launches iPhone App

By ARLnow.com

The Animal Welfare League of Arlington says it’s the first humane society in the D.C. area to launch its own iPhone application.

AWLA’s new “Arlington Pets” app allows users to quickly browse photos and descriptions of the pets that are currently up for adoption at the shelter. The app sorts the adoption list by dogs, cats, and “others” (birds, bunnies, etc.). Once a potential adopter has found a pet they want, the app allows them to call or email the shelter.

“AWLA launched this  initiative as a way to help connect today’s technologically savvy society with animals in need,” the League said in a statement. “We are grateful to Ron Novak and his entire team at Segue Technologies, Inc., of Arlington for developing this unique application at no cost to AWLA.”

The app is free and available to iPhone and iPad users via the Apple App Store.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Panel Recommends Building New Schools — An Arlington Public Schools advisory council has come out with a report that recommends new construction to help ease the looming school capacity crisis. The panel recommends building one or two new elementary schools and adding capacity at two existing middle schools. In addition to the construction, they suggest adding as many as 40 classroom trailers. Questions linger as to whether the county has enough debt capacity to follow the building recommendations. [Sun Gazette]

Adopt-a-Cat Month at AWLA — The Animal Welfare League of Arlington (2650 South Arlington Mill Drive) has declared June to be Adopt-a-Cat Month. With the shelter — and other shelters like it —  inundated with homeless felines, AWLA is trying to find homes for its “Desperate Housecats” — cats that have been at the shelter more than four months. The adoption of such cats is free through the end of the month. [Animal Welfare League of Arlington]

‘Art Every Day’ at Artisphere — Artisphere (1101 Wilson Blvd) is unveiling two new murals to the public today. The words “Art Every Day” and “Live For Art,” designed by notable local artist Linda Hesh, will appear on two glass panes within Artisphere. The cultural center will also distribute “Art Every Day” decals to visitors, who are then in turn encouraged to photograph the decals in various locales and situations. “Art Every Day” will also appear on food court tabletops at the tourist-laden Pentagon City mall, which should give a boost to Artisphere’s promotional efforts. [TBD]

AWLA To Hold 16th Annual Walk for the Animals

By ARLnow.com

The Animal Welfare League of Arlington is gearing up for its 16th annual Walk for the Animals.

The dog-centric fundraiser will be held this Saturday, May 14th, at Bluemont Park (329 N. Manchester Street). The actual “walk” will start at 9:30 a.m. — participants will have a choice of a three-mile loop walk or a one mile stroll. There will also be entertainment, sponsor booths and demonstrations of doggie feats.

Organizers expect about 500 walkers and 300 dogs to participate this year. Last year’s event raised more than $100,000 for the AWLA and its work with homeless animals.

Registration for the walk is $25 online and includes a free t-shirt and bandana. On-site registration on the day of the event is $40. Organizers ask that participants keep their dogs on a flat leash and leave other pets at home.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

H-B Woodlawn Student Wins Arlington Idol — We have a new Arlington Idol. H-B Woodlawn junior Mary Shields (above) placed first at the annual singing competition Thursday night. Watch her winning performance here. Shields will now perform at a July 8 summer concert at Washington-Lee High School. [Arlington Public Schools]

Discussion of Pike/Glebe Development Tonight — Arlington’s site plan review commission will discuss early plans for a mixed used development at the Rosenthal auto dealership site at Columbia Pike and South Glebe Road tonight. The development plan calls for ground floor retail space, 259 residential units and 44 town homes. The meeting is open to the public. [Pike Wire]

Donations for Employee Injured in Brawl — The Hyatt Regency Crystal City hotel is accepting donations for an employee who was seriously injured during a brawl at the 2011 DMV Music Awards. Antonio Illanes was hit with a bottle and lost sight in his left eye. He has had to endure several operations since the March 6 incident. [TBD]

Dogs on Display at AWLA — The Animal Welfare League of Arlington has set up a small animal viewing area in its lobby to encourage the adoption of animals that have had a hard time finding a home. [Sun Gazette]

Screen capture via YouTube

February is Adopt-A-Rabbit Month at Arlington’s Animal Shelter

By ARLnow.com

The Animal Welfare League of Arlington wants you to find some bunny to love this month. February is Adopt-A-Rabbit Month, and the League is trying to find good homes for the 19 rabbits currently residing at the shelter.

Already have a rabbit? The AWLA, located at 2650 S. Arlington Mill Drive, wants you to get him or her a friend.

See the bunnies currently up for adoption here. An adoption representative can be reached at 703-931-9241 x200. The adoption fee for rabbits is $65, which includes the spay or neuter surgery and an appropriate cage

A press release from the AWLA and a Fox 5 Morning News segment featuring some of the League’s rabbits, after the jump.

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‘Cat Crisis’ at AWLA Prompts Free Adoption Offer

By ARLnow.com

The Animal Welfare League of Arlington is experiencing a cat crisis.

With nearly 60 cats and kittens awaiting adoption, the shelter has reached capacity. Yet for every cat that’s adopted, two more come in, according to a staffer. And other shelters in the area are at or near capacity as well.

To help spur more adoptions, the AWLA is waiving the adoption fees for all cats at least three years old through the end of the year. See the cats currently up for adoption here.

“It would be great some of these lovely animals out an into forever homes before the holidays,” said AWLA Executive Director Neil Trent. “If anybody is thinking of offering a home for an animal, please think about it sooner rather than later.”

Trent noted that the shelter has experienced an influx of kittens much later in the year than usual. Traditionally, most kittens are produced in the spring, Trent said, but for some reason the peak period for kitten litters seems to have been extended into the fall and winter months.

New Shelter Director Aims for More Collaboration, Fewer Euthanizations

By ARLnow.com

Among certain local animal welfare circles, the Animal Welfare League of Arlington has developed a bit of an unsavory reputation over the past couple of years.

Its high euthanization rate and its reluctance to cooperate with animal rescue groups prompted animal advocates to launch an anonymous blog last year called the AWLA Hawk.

Most recently, the AWLA Hawk published statistics showing that about 30 percent of all dogs and cats that entered the shelter in FY 2010 were euthanized.

Enter Neil Trent, who took over as the League’s executive director in September.

“Not on my watch,” he said, after being asked about the numbers.

Trent, who started his career in animal welfare more than 30 years ago as an animal cruelty law enforcement officer in the United Kingdom,  says that he is making collaboration a high priority in his effort to reduce the kill rate.

“Whatever we can do to try to get more animals turned around through the shelter process and out into foster homes or new homes as quickly as we can, that’s what our challenge is going to be,” he said. To that end, he’s pushing AWLA to be “more collaborative, to reach out more and engage more members of the community.”

Among the initiatives Trent has been undertaking is collaborating with animal rescue organizations — including breed-specific rescue organizations — to try to place more cats and dogs with adoptive families.

“We are starting to network more with local rescue groups,” he said. “They do great work in finding homes.”

Trent has also been trying to bolster the League’s volunteer corps, in an effort to make shelter animals more visible at events in the community.

“If we get more volunteers, we’ll have more opportunity… to get more of our adoptable animals out to these outdoor events,” he said.

“We’re talking about living animals here,” Trent added. “They’re not just commodities sitting in a parking lot with a for sale sign on them. They’re living breathing creatures, and our role is to ensure that these animals get every possible chance that they can to make a very short spell here at the shelter and back into a good forever home as quickly as possible.”

On Wednesday, AWLA will host a workshop about feral cats with the group Alley Cat Allies. At least 50 people are expected to attend the event, during which Trent will discuss the new Trap-Neuter-Return program that he’s helping to implement.

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