Norfolk, Va. - Jean Linman leads a city-appointed group of animal welfare experts. The Animal Advisory Board was created by City Council to guide the members and make recommendations. The board urged tougher laws on breeding, and an ordinance to prohibit dogs from being tied up and left alone. They weighed in on spaying and neutering and feral cat colonies.
The board also suggested changing the names of job titles and city buildings to make them sound more friendly. In the end, that's what ended up on the ordinance and ready for a council vote.
In fact, the board made its recommendations more than a year ago. They were largely ignored. Linman had to show up at recent a council meeting to ask, what gives?
At the same time, board member Rob Blizard wrote in the SPCA newsletter "These proposals, passed by the AAB, are going nowhere due to inaction."
So tomorrow, after all this work from some of the area's most involved animal-welfare experts, the ordinance in front of city council is mostly housekeeping. The proposals that Linman says would save lives are not in the document. So she will be there to remind the City Council this isn't the end of the work, just the beginning.
