Love and Logistics in the Time of Corona

I share life with two senior Chihuahuas who turn into frenzied puppies when they hear certain sounds. Jingling keys used to set them off, but these days, what excites them is the very subtle sound of me putting on my face mask. Seriously! When the mask comes out, they know it means business and that one of life’s most important matters - omigod, a walk! - is about to be addressed.

Can you believe it? Who’d have thought the almost non-existent sound of someone putting on a mask would do all that for them? It’s just another example of our dogs’ impressive abilities to recognize and adapt to new circumstances.

Adapting to new circumstances is something all of us on the San Francisco Commission of Animal Control and Welfare have had to do as well, although probably with slightly less excitement. When the shelter-in-place order was issued last March, all in-person public meetings were immediately suspended, including those of the city’s own commissions and advisory boards. That order came just days before the Animal Commission’s scheduled meeting, leading to the cancellation of both our March and April meetings.

However, we soon learned that city commissions would be allowed to meet remotely if they received permission from the mayor’s office. To get permission, we’d have to explain our reasons for wanting to meet (that part was easy) and confirm that we would be able to conduct our meetings remotely. Unfortunately, at that time, we didn’t have access to any online city resources and weren’t initially sure how to get them. But after some digging around in the civic bureaucracy, we eventually obtained all the necessary city accounts, training and support to conduct our meetings remotely (shout-out to the amazing team at SFGovTV, without whom we’d never have made it through this process). Finally, with all the technical logistics ironed out, we submitted our request for remote meetings and received the mayor’s approval just in time for our May meeting.

Our commission has now successfully held five remote meetings with no major problems and only a few connectivity issues. Like most of the world, we’ve learned a lot about holding meetings online, including some valuable personal lessons. For example, I learned – the hard and rather harsh way - the importance of having proper lighting when one is in front of an unforgiving camera (two words: ring light). But most important, we’ve been able to continue addressing crucial animal issues during the pandemic in a format that allows our meetings to be more accessible to more people.

During these last months, the commission has voted on a resolution to support the San Francisco Good Food Purchasing Program (requiring city departments to reach food purchasing goals by decreasing animal-based food purchases) and a recommendation supporting city compliance with California Proposition 12, the Prevention of Cruelty to Farm Animals Act, which was favored by almost 63% of statewide voters in 2018. At recent meetings, the commission has also discussed important issues such as live animal markets, San Francisco Animal Care and Control euthanasia protocols, and the feral cat program. We’ll continue to address these concerns at future meetings.

Commissioners have been involved in animal issues outside of the remote meeting room as well. Working with other community partners, we’ve helped provide veterinary services and coordinate resources and support for homeless youth and their companion animals at the Stanyan Street safe sleeping site. Commissioners also assisted with preparing and distributing pet food to clients at the Mission Food Hub. City department representatives on the commission have been incredibly busy, too, adjusting to new working conditions and engaging with organizations such as the California Animals Disaster Committee, which coordinates statewide responses for animals impacted by disasters, including the recent wildfires.  

While there are definitely some challenges to holding commission meetings remotely, there are benefits as well. The remote format allows more people to attend, and you don’t even have to leave home to participate. In fact, attending a commission meeting has never been easier.

So if you’ve ever been curious about what goes on in our meetings, now is a great time to check us out. There’s room for everyone and, unlike the commissioners, you won’t be on camera so your lighting won’t matter. You can even wear your jammies.

In short, it’s an easy way to stay plugged into SF’s animal issues. Hope to “see” you at our next meeting!

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The next meeting of the Commission of Animal Control and Welfare will be held at 5:30PM on Thursday, October 15th. The meeting can be viewed at https://bit.ly/2G0pigm. Members of the public who wish to provide comments during meetings can do so by calling (415) 655-0003 and entering access code: 133 865 4940, then #. When the public comment period is announced, callers should enter *3 to be added to the speakers’ queue.

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Please be aware that the views and opinions expressed in this column are those of Commissioner Torres and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the San Francisco Commission of Animal Control and Welfare.