Austin's animal crisis is not one man's fault

Let's talk about the Animal Services Division. I've been meaning to address this for a while and an article in today's Monitor and a column by a former head of Animal Services reminded me to do so.

Don Bland, who led the division until last month, was placed on administrative leave in early March and retired at the end of the month. A person familiar with the situation said that City Manager T.C. Broadnax offered Bland the chance to retire or else be dismissed. Bland did not respond to emails seeking comment.

Broadnax named Rolando Fernandez to be the interim director. Fernandez is a 19-year city government veteran who's worked in a variety of roles, most recently as deputy director of the Convention Center.

As reported by other media outlets, it's true that Bland's leadership drew criticism from all quarters of the animal welfare debate in Austin. But what much of the coverage misses is that the problems that have festered at the animal shelter under Bland were authored by his most vociferous opponents.

The Austin Animal Center is currently overcrowded to the point that animals are living in crates in the hallway. For years the shelter has not accepted medium or large dogs except in "emergencies." So if you find a pit bull roaming the streets and take it to the shelter, they'll wish you good luck finding it a home.

If Bland failed in addressing the overcrowding, it's because he wasn't forceful enough in confronting Austin's delusional "no-kill" policy and the politically powerful fringe group that foisted it upon us: Austin Pets Alive!