Wrapping Up the Year - And A Look Ahead

The San Francisco Zoo has been a hot topic at the commissioners’ table.  photo: Michael Tipton, AdobeStock

It’s hard to believe the end of the year is almost here. Where does the time go? It seems like only yesterday I was making a list of all the tasks I hoped the commission would accomplish in 2024. Of course, we did complete some of those items but the list has only grown longer with new issues joining those that we haven’t yet been able to address.

Still, with 2025 just around the corner, it’s a great time to reflect on some of the commission’s more recent accomplishments and how they may impact what we hope to accomplish in the coming year.

Our most recent achievement, without a doubt, was the commission’s unanimous vote to support the San Francisco Zoo Recommendation Report that was created by the animal welfare advisors who serve on the Joint Zoo Committee. This action was taken at last month’s meeting on October 10. 

For those who aren’t aware of the Joint Zoo Committee, it’s a group that includes  three members of the City’s Recreation and Parks Commission and three members of the San Francisco Zoological Society. The committee was established to discuss and hear public testimony regarding major policies affecting the city’s zoo.

In addition to those six committee members, the group includes two people who serve as animal welfare advisors. These advisors are not allowed to vote on matters before the committee, but they are able to present information and comment on a limited basis during meetings. Jane Tobin, a member of our commission, currently serves in one of these advisory roles, with Dr. Joseph Spinelli, DVM, in the other. 

As you may recall, the San Francisco Chronicle published a series of in-depth articles by investigative reporter Tara Duggan beginning last April. Her reports detailed startling incidents that occurred at the zoo, which left many readers - including commission members - extremely concerned about the well-being of animals at that facility as well as the working conditions of zoo employees. 

As a result of concerns raised by this investigation, the animal welfare advisors of the Joint Zoo Committee decided to look further into the matter. Concentrating on issues involving the well-being and living conditions of animals housed there, the committee’s advisors were joined in their study by myself, as chair of the Animal Commission, and others who were even more knowledgeable about the zoo and its history, including Justin Barker with SF Zoo Watch, Taciana Santiago with Panda Voices, and Fleur Dawes and Brittany Michelson with In Defense of Animals.

Our research involved speaking with former and current zoo employees, visits to the zoo, and discussions with others who were familiar with zoo policies and operations. The hard work of all those involved in researching and drafting the committee’s report, especially that of Commissioner Tobin, was inspiring, and it was an honor to be part of it.

A draft of the report was distributed to members of the Animal Commission for discussion and a vote at our October meeting. Within a few hours of our unanimous vote in support of the report, the news of it went viral. As our meeting ended, we learned that both the Mayor’s Office and the zoo had already issued statements regarding the report, with other city officials also offering comments. 

One recommendation in the report asked for an audit of the zoo, and a number of supervisors voiced support for that action through their online comments. But there was more to come.

By the next morning, commission members had received multiple emails and voicemail messages from various media sources requesting comments and interviews. We tried our best to respond to all of them, and I believe we did a good job of it. 

The amount of media coverage we received was unbelievable. In addition to local news stations - ABC 7, CBS, NBC, and Chron4 - our report was also covered by many online news sites, including Axios, MSN, SFGATE, Yahoo Voices, and Sky News Australia. KQED presented it in an hour-long forum, and the commission was on the front page of the Saturday edition of the San Francisco Chronicle as its headline story.

So what kind of impact does all this have on the commission’s work in the new year, and how does the commission best embrace this opportunity to do more? 

There is still much work to do, and the zoo will definitely be a focus of our work going forward. Sadly, among the recent correspondence we’ve received are messages from more zoo employees - both current and former - regarding additional incidents that they say haven’t yet become known. It’s heartbreaking to know there are still more stories to investigate, and we hope to do what we can to allow these new concerns to be heard. There will also be larger discussions around the zoo as a whole and how the community feels about it in a future context. 

And, of course, there will be discussions about the giant pandas – not only about their anticipated arrival at the zoo – but also discussions about the ethics of breeding and panda factories, and ways that we can all bring about awareness of these issues to the community.

Our next commission meeting on November 14 will be our last one for 2024 (the commission doesn’t meet in December), and our first meeting of the new year will be held on January 9, 2025. As always, we look forward to hearing your thoughts and comments regarding the zoo and any other issues under our jurisdiction. For the animals - see you at City Hall!

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The next meeting of the Commission of Animal Control and Welfare will be held at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, November 14, 2024, in City Hall, Room 408, 1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place, San Francisco, CA 94102. Agendas are published 72 hours prior to the meeting. Information about remote access to meetings is available at sf.gov/animalcommission. 

The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of Commissioner Torres and do not necessarily reflect the official policies or positions of the Commission of Animal Control and Welfare.