PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Frania Shelley-Grielen, Applied Animal Behaviorist, on Animal Behavior and Shelter Issues
6:35:31
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131 sec
Frania Shelley-Grielen, an applied animal behaviorist, discusses the challenges of animal behavior issues leading to shelter surrenders and abandonment. She emphasizes the need for neutering, behavior management, and humane education to address these problems.
- Highlights the dire consequences for house cats abandoned on the streets
- Mentions the importance of TNR organizations and rescues, but notes their efforts are insufficient
- Calls attention to New York State Education Law 809, which mandates humane education in elementary schools
- Stresses the moral, legal, and ethical obligation to implement humane education effectively
Frania Shelley-Grielen
6:35:31
My name is Frania Shelly Grillan.
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I'm an applied animal behaviorist residing morning side heights and working in New York City.
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Research and experience tell us that behavior concerns are among the top reasons for surrender to animal shelters and for consulting animal professionals.
6:35:48
But it is surrender to shelters that happens more frequently than addressing a behavior issue.
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And when surrender is not possible as in shelter capacity not allowing, we see what we are seeing now.
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More animals, mainly cats being dumped or turned out of homes onto public spaces.
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Former house cats are not socialized or equipped to the very hard life of living on the streets.
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Nor are the street cats equipped for the life they're born into.
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Most of them will not make it.
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And that journey towards death is fraught with illness, starvation, predation, and savagery.
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TNR organizations and rescues do tremendous heavy lifting in this city to ameliorate the onslaught, but it is simply not and never enough.
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Not enough people on the other end of rescue and forever homes may not be forever or no one would be getting surrendered or dumped in the first place.
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Neuturing companion animals and managing behavior are vital to ensuring permanence in homes.
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Neither can happen without support, cultural acceptance, and access to resources.
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There is a law in place that speaks directly to this.
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New York State Education Law 809 requires quote, instruction to be given in every elementary school in the humane treatment and protection of animals, as well as the necessity of controlling the proliferation of animals, which are subsequently abandoned and caused to suffer stream cruelty.
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Strong language, but we need to ask whether or not such a law is just on the books or is implemented in today's classrooms or yesterday's or tomorrow's.
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Research on students in classrooms where humane education was off effort showed it to be effective significantly.
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We are morally, legally, and ethic and ethically obligated to implement it.
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Let's