Animal shelters and animal control groups use body-worn cameras to increase staff safety, document field rescues, and provide clear evidence during disputes. While not yet universal, agencies adopt them for accountability much like police departments do. LOS ANGELES REFUSES.
Since SUFP has been blocked to tag Best Friends Animal Society and Julie Castle, their CEO please be sure to ask them why they haven’t implemented this in their “No Kill” shelters. They wield massive power and influence over their rescue “partners”, LAAS , LA city council and leaders in Los Angeles. Julie Castle has not responded to several requests by Rebecca Corry to meet face to face on camera for a candid conversation and walk through the shelters so please be sure to tag them for us.
The Stand Up For Pits Foundation has offered repeatedly to pay for all these cameras which would provide transparency and keep staff and volunteers safe.
THEY HAVE DECLINED OUR OFFERS.
•Plano’s animal services department acquired eight body cameras — enough for each patrol unit
•Friends of Felines Rescue Center (Defiance, OH): Features a continuous 24/7 stream of their cage-free cat facility.
•Ramapo-Bergen Animal Refuge (Oakland, NJ): Partners with EarthCam to provide live public views of interactions inside their northern New Jersey facility.
•Aspen Animal Shelter (Aspen, CO): Offers live feeds covering their cat room, doggy day care, and shelter play yards through the Aspen Animal Shelter Pet Cams page.
While cameras don’t “solve” the shelter crisis they most certainly help provide the transparency and accountability that has been missing for years. They would also provide an opportunity to catch the human garbage working in our shelters who abuse, mislabel, mishandle, spray with water, scream at… while showing us all who does right by the animals. As one of the richest economies in the world how has Los Angeles not been at the forefront of this?
If there is nothing to hide and cameras provide safety, transparency and educate the public — why have we been denied providing cameras?
