Spring 2002 issue
Featured article:

Miami "No-Kill" Mission
By Brenda Beck - Founder / President PAW


Who says all public kill shelters do not care about saving healthy adoptable animals from needlessly being killed? Meet Florida's first public kill shelter that has taken on a new Miami Vice Mission to save healthy adoptable homeless pets from being needlessly killed as well as also offering FREE spay/neuter programs in their county. Yes, we said free spay/neutering! Last year, the Miami Dade Police Department took over full control of the badly run down disorganized Animal Care and Control Division of the public works department. The shelter has a new name - The Miami Dade Police Department (MDPD) Animal Services - and a brand new look. MDPD Director Carlos Alvarez picked and assigned Captain Mark Jeter to be put in charge of one of the most important lifesaving, marketing and educational animal welfare jobs in Dade County. Director Alvarez could not of picked a better animal loving person than Capt. Jeter for this monumental job that lay ahead of him.

Capt. Jeter went out of his way to do his pet homework to help improve the run down shelter facility and to find better creative marketing ways to save and adopt more homeless animals while providing pet educational awareness to the community through a free spay/neuter program.

Since last year the MDPD has been working hard to make better improvements and renovations at the 41 year old run down shelter facility. First impressions are very important, we cannot hope to adopt animals out if the public is afraid to come in to adopt a pet if they do not feel the shelter is clean, organized and professionally run. I admittedly knew little about running a shelter or animal health concerns. Jeter is doing more than that, says Jeter. He is turning the whole department inside and out. He's already put a whole new emphasis on pet adoptions and is working to improve medical conditions for the animals at the shelter compound. That's especially important since dogs and cats will be at the shelter longer, given Jeter's commitment to stop killing healthy adoptable animals and five them a better chance of being adopted. He believes there is never a reason to kill a healthy adoptable animal, he is seriously committed to finding alternative ways not to do it.

His goal is to significantly reduce euthanasia rates and increase pet adoptions through strong community relationships, corporate sponsorships, educational programs and better media marketing through TV, radio, newspapers and even animal rescue publications like the Save-A-Pet Adoption Guide.
One of the first things Capt. Jeter did was consult with his own veterinarian staff and doctors in South Florida. He also went and visited numerous shelters in other counties and quickly learned there was a better way to run his shelter. He put together a very smart pet adoption and free spay/neutering marketing and educational campaign for Dade Country residents, through all forms of community media/marketing relations that are handled through Sgt. Rudy Espinosa. If the Miami-Dade shelter can do this in less than a year, all public kill shelters in America need to take notice and follow in the same footsteps and marketing programs of Capt. Jeter to do the same for their shelters. Capt. Jeter likes the idea of "thinking outside the box". Before he took over, there were only a handful of adoptions every year. Jeter has ordered 2, 3 and 4 a month. Since he has taken over last June adoptions have doubled from about 15 a day to about 30-35 a day. And the shelter population recently hit an all time low: 273 in a facility that was often over 400.
Capt. Jeter's main primary focus is his FREE spay/neuter plan for Dade County pet owners which involves the Dade County Shelter, the Humane Society, veterinarians all over town, big local corporations and some national foundations.

"So who will be eligible for the free spay/neuter program?" Mr. Jeter was asked. "Any resident of Miami-Dade County, no restrictions at all." The only restriction they would have to call and make an appointment. "It doesn't have to be a needy person or a dog from a shelter?" You can drive up in your Mercedes Benz. We're doing it because it is the right thing to do to help bring down the euthanasia rate and pet overpopulation problem. For every baby born in Miami-Dade County, there are 45 cats and 15 dogs born exactly the same time. Miami-Dade County has 2.2 million residents and only about a third of them are re-newing their pet licenses. Capt. Jeter figures that just by inviting more Dade residents down to the shelter to get their pets fixed, they will cover the costs of the free spay/neuter through increase pet licenses and tags.

When I heard about this free spay/neuter program, I was overjoyed to hear that Capt. Jeter with no background in running a shelter had the common sense to figure out a better lifesaving solution to help save and adopt more homeless animals while at the same time preventing unwanted births. Sometimes, I wonder why we as tax paying citizens have unqualified overpaid shelter directors running our county public kill shelters, for what reason to kill more animals than trying to find better marketing solutions to help save and adopt them. It takes a special animal lover to try their best to prevent this from happening no matter what the costs are. I have always stated through better high visual market and advertising campaigns to the community of animal lovers you can get your message across faster just as I am writing this article for an unbelievable great job well done here and how the Pets and Animals in Distress supports the 180 degree turnaround that Capt. Jeter and the Miami-Dade shelter have done in less than a year. Kudos to you all! I challenge all other public kill shelters to get on the bandwagon and do the same as Miami Dade Shelter has done.

Miami-Dade has stepped up to the No-Kill plate, who will be the next public county kill shelter to make the same or better changes?
Iwant to congratulate Capt. Jeter, Director Alvarez, Sgt. Espinosa, and the Miami Dade Police Department staff for their contributions in changing their shelters kill policy deadlines into a no-kill no time limit for healthy adoptable homeless pets and for providing free spay/neuter services to their Dade County residents is nothing but a "Miami Miracle" and positive win/win/win for all, especially all the animals that are being saved. Keep up the great lifesaving work you do for the animals, that are fortunate to have a guardian pet angel like you that has taken the time to really care, and to be a voice for them, thanks Mark. And on a final positive note, Capt. Jeter adopted his own dog from the same shelter about a year ago before he even knew about the shelter job position that was waiting ahead for him. His dog's name is "Pogo". Maybe it's divine intervention that was just meant to be or maybe Pongo had something to do with it. Think about it!!

You can contact Cap. Mark Jeter with your comments, questions or if you would like to help support or sponsor the Miami-Dade Shelter.
305-885-0377
www.co.miami-dade.fl.us/animals
Miami-Dade Police Dept.
Animal Services Unit
305-884-1101
7401 NW 74 St.
Miami, Fl 33166

Adopt a variety of dogs, cats, puppies and kittens at the Miami-Dade Animal Services! Save a Life Today!

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