Archive: News

Last year the Tompkins County SPCA created a stir when they announced they would be doubling the dog control fee charged to municipalities.  After much hue and cry they backed off and only raised the fee by 50%, still the largest price rise in the known history of the contract.  This year they said they would be doubling the cost to bring it into line with their expenses for the service, and that has led Town of Lansing officials to look at alternatives for 2009.  "When something doubles in price it's hard to take," says Town Supervisor Scott Pinney.  "Everyone wants to see small increases so you're prepared for it and can budget for those things."

"We're seeing an increase starting in 2008 and hopefully we can get things stabilized in 2009 and move forward in a responsible manner," says TCSPCA Executive Director Abigail Smith.  "The truth of the matter is that the amount of money being paid for the contracted services that we provide a) isn't enough to actually deliver the services and b) have not been increased incrementally over the last decade and a half.  In the last ten to twelve years the Lansing contract increased a sum total of $1200.  Clearly costs have risen and the contracts haven't kept up with that."

TCSPCA has been negotiating with the Tompkins County Council of Governments (TCCOG) to provide a county-wide price for 2009.  But Pinney balked at the prices being negotiated there, and asked to negotiate one on one with Smith.  The two met about a week and a half ago to talk about alternatives that could bring Lansing's cost down.


Dog control is mandated by Article 7 of New York State Department of Agriculture & Markets law.  The law requires municipalities to have dog control officers that can respond to calls, issue tickets, pick up lost or stray animals, and provide care and housing for them for seven to ten days depending on the circumstance.  To provide this service the TCSPCA has two full time New York State Peace Officers plus additional people trained to cover 24 hour on-call service overnight.  Fees to municipalities also have to cover running two vans, the percentage of shelter used for the service, administrative costs, overhead, and veterinary care when needed.

Smith says that when she was hired in 2007 her first order of business was to understand the fiscal health of the organization.  She was alarmed to find that the SPCA was spending over $300,000 for dog control, but was getting about half that in revenue from the municipalities contracting for the service.  She says that once fees are in line with what it actually costs to provide the service that future rises will be much smaller.  "The national average is between $5 and $7 per capita for providing animal control," she notes.  "The SPCA is prepared to offer it for less than $3."

Lansing paid $12,409.00 for the contract in 2007.  In 2008 the cost went up to $18,613.50.  At that time the Town Board discussed switching to a private provider, but decided to stick with the SPCA for 2008.

Groton did jump ship, switching to Country Acres, a Homer-based provider and shelter.  The company provides 24 hour service with three full time animal control officers for the many communities they service.  Like the SPCA they issue tickets, deal with nuisance calls and sick or injured dogs, and other issues mandated by Ag and Markets law.  They also maintain an adoption shelter.  "We do this for a large number of towns, so there is a large number of animals that go through here," says owner and animal control officer Paul Burhans.  "A large number of animals that are available for adoption."

There are no reliable figures that tell how many animals live in the municipalities in the county, and Smith says that would be a valuable piece of the puzzle when determining rates.  But some statistics are available.  Dryden is the only municipality with more stray dog calls than Lansing, hovering around 100 in the three year period.  Lansing is the only municipality in Tompkins County that shows consistent growth in stray dogs that were impounded, going from 35 in 2005 to 48 in 2006 to 71 in 2007.  Some other communities have risen from last year, while others have seen a drop in calls over three years.  "I think it's fair to look at fact that Lansing is growing," Smith says.  "It follows that more people, more animals, more service."

Pinney says he has already received calls and letters from Lansing residents who are concerned about the Town turning its back on the SPCA.  But Smith says that the contract is strictly separate from the organization's shelter activities, except for the small portion of the shelter used for dog control services.  She says that municipalities pay only for services rendered. 

"The cost we are billing the towns for is the state mandated services only," she says.  "We are not asking towns to pay for our no-kill philosophy.  However, turn your back on the SPCA and choose a different provider and you are, in effect, signing up for the opposite of that.  It's the muscle behind the mission-based organization and the fund raising we can do that insures the lives of these animals once they do not get redeemed from the pound."

Country Acres' Burhans challenges that assertion.  "They want to wave the banner that they're a no-kill shelter, but I'm saying 'no-kill almost,'" he says.  "We're no different than they are.  I'm not going to indicate to you that it's a no-kill shelter.  I'm saying that as shelters go there is a much higher likelihood that a dog would get through this facility without being put down.  Is that 100%?  Absolutely not.  If a dog is sick or going to require a large investment in veterinary services to restore it to health, then it is going to be put down.  You've got to use common sense."

Last year town officials were proactive about budgeting prudently when they heard there might be a price rise.  "We provided for the additional 50% so we weren't left holding the bag and not being prepared for some additional amount," says Bookeeper/Personnel Officer Sharon Bowman.  "We almost doubled what we had budgeted in '07."  This year Lansing's budget process will begin after a contract is signed for 2009, so the cost will be built into the budget, whatever it is. 

Pinney says that he is pleased with the numbers that are coming in at this point, but that negotiations continue and as the bidders nail down the exact services that will be covered in the contract the numbers continue to be in flux.  For example, originally the SPCA contract included veterinary services.  But including them in the contract is a gamble for both the town and the provider because there is no way of estimating ahead of time how many dogs will need such care.  A pay-as-you-go approach can reduce the cost to the Town, and by capping the amount the Town is willing to spend per case Pinney can insure that animals that need care will get it, but that hopeless cases won't add expense. 

Smith says that contracting with the SPCA guarantees some value-added services, including responding to calls about cats, and insuring that dogs won't be killed.  "That's the choice you are making if you choose someone not only not in your community but not in your county," she says.  You are choosing somebody who won't respond to cats, who won't go the extra mile, who may or may not provide medical attention, as opposed to just euthanizing them on the spot."

"For as much as dog control is about the animals, it is really about the people," she says.  "While dogs that wander away might need help, we're really helping the person it's attached to.  Let's say you are a person who really doesn't care for animals at all.  Why should you even have to deal with this?  If you have a neighbor who has a dog that barks all night long, that's against your town ordinance.  Who are you going to call?  Our phone rings off the hook.  We get thousands of calls a year.  And you know what?  It's not dogs that are calling us.  It's people."

Pinney says that the Town's decision will not be based entirely on dollars and cents.  But he says that a big difference in price will be a significant factor.  "We want to make sure that we have good service and that we go with a reputable company," he says.  "Years ago we had a lady that provided dog control and it turned out to be a real disaster.  So we want to research that and make sure we have a good company to do this for us.  We're not necessarily going with the cheapest.  However if there is a large difference that would be a major factor."

Smith says that when all is said and done she thinks that the price difference will end up being less than $10,000.  "I urge the townspeople and board of Lansing to think very carefully about what they're giving up," she says.

Smith says she has determined a formula that is fair for all the municipalities, and determined a rate based on the full compliment of services that are currently contracted.  But she says that if Lansing does leave the fold it won't affect the shelter's ability to operate as a no-kill facility.  If more municipalities drop out it could mean an end to the SPCA providing animal control services, which she says are a mixed bag for the SPCA anyway.

"It is not ideal for a mission-based non-profit to also be law enforcement," she explains.  "It can be a challenging conflict.  Let's say I gave you a ticket and you get my fund raising solicitation in the mail the next day.  Are you going to send me $25 to help the animals?  No!  You're either going to pay your fee or rip them both up and be really mad at me.  If six out of ten contracts evaporate it doesn't make fiscal sense to hold the other four.  That's just bad business, and the SPCA will certainly take care of itself business-wise."

Meanwhile the Town continues to negotiate with bidders, and as of now the Town Board plans to deal with the issue at their August 20 meeting.

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