Animal Council Still in Limbo: Will There Be an October Surprise?

October surprises could go either way. photo: AdobeStock

It’s that time of year again when shorter days and longer nights signal that winter will soon be here. And even though our winters in San Francisco are often warmer than our summers, I look forward to enjoying – or being happily annoyed by – the seasonal festivities of November and December.

It’s hard to believe that 2027 is just a few months away. But before we start creating New Year’s resolutions, let’s take a look at where the Animal Advisory Council is right now.

As of press time, the council still doesn’t have an appointment hearing scheduled for any upcoming Board of Supervisors’ Rules Committee meeting. This is important because  without an appointment hearing, we won’t be able to resume meetings due to a lack of quorum.

As I’ve explained in earlier columns, our council has seven voting seats, but right now there are only three seated members with current terms. The other four seats are considered vacant and because we need at least four seated members to reach a quorum, we are not allowed to hold meetings.

In order to hold our regularly scheduled October 8 meeting, the Animal Advisory Council would first need to have our appointment hearings before the Board of Supervisors’ Rules Committee. The committee would then need to offer recommendations about who should be appointed to the council. Finally, those recommended appointments would need to be voted on by the full Board of Supervisors at one of its weekly Tuesday meetings. That’s a lot to get done in a short amount of time, but it is doable if those bodies can actually add us to their meeting agendas.

So the question remains: will the Animal Advisory Council receive an October surprise from City Hall? In this trick-or-treat scenario, will we get the sweet candy that lets us meet again and resume our advisory work? Or will it be a razor-blade-in-an-apple trick that leaves us in limbo? Only time will tell.

In the Meantime…

Even though we haven’t been able to meet as a council, that doesn’t mean we’ve stopped doing things to help animals. In fact, serving on a city advisory body is just one of the ways our council members are involved with the community.

In recent weeks, we’ve participated in and helped organize protests and outreach around the heartbreaking case of Wang Wang, a little dog in China who was tortured and killed along with her puppies, with the abuse filmed and shared on social media. Wang Wang’s  story touched people all over the world, shining a spotlight on countries that lack legislation to protect animals, as well as those that have laws but choose not to enforce them.

A Marmot in the good hands of Yggdrasil Urban Wildlife Rescue. photo: YUWR

Council members have also regularly volunteered at local shelters and rescues, including Yggdrasil Urban Wildlife Rescue. As many know, Yggdrasil has been in the news lately with stories in People and Smithsonian magazines about an adorable marmot found in the Mission District last month. Thanks to the amazing work of Yggdrasil, the little marmot is now receiving the care he needs, and efforts are underway to figure out where he came from and get him safely back home.

Of course, we’ve also protested at Petco locations throughout the city to bring awareness to the cruelty and suffering small animals experience in these businesses. And we’ve continued to speak out about the animals at the San Francisco Zoo, including the lions.

All this serves as a reminder that helping animals doesn’t begin and end inside a City Hall hearing room. It’s true our council meetings provide an important public forum where the community can exchange information and recommend policy changes. But there are so many more ways to help beyond our Beaux-Arts rotunda.

Still, I miss our meetings.

One way or another, I’m optimistic that we’ll be back in Room 408 before too long. Even with the time crunch, it’s still technically possible that we’ll be able to meet this month. And if for some reason it doesn’t happen, there’s always November.

See you at City Hall?

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Please be aware that the views and opinions expressed in this column are those of Council Member Torres and do not necessarily reflect the official policies or positions of the Animal Advisory Council.

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Meetings of the Animal Advisory Council are held on the second Thursday of the month (except December) at 5:30 p.m. in Room 408 at City Hall, 1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place, San Francisco, CA 94102. The next council meeting will most likely be held on November 12. Information about remote access to meetings is available at animalcouncil. Meeting agendas are published 72 hours in advance.