DEPARTMENT: Animal Care Services
DEPARTMENT HEAD: Heber Lefgren
COUNCIL DISTRICTS IMPACTED: City Wide
SUBJECT:
A 10 year lease agreement with K9s For Warriors.
SUMMARY:
Ordinance authorizing a 10 year lease agreement (with two five-year renewal options and an option to purchase) with K9s For Warriors for them to utilize approximately 3.3 acres of undeveloped land located near 4710 State Highway 151 to rescue, house, and transport approximately 200 harder-to-place dogs from ACS's shelter.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
The FY 2019 budget approved establishing a pilot partnership with K9s For Warriors, a non-profit organization established in 2013. Under this pilot program, ACS would lease property to this organization and in exchange, K9s For Warriors would rescue 200 harder to place dogs.
In early 2018 ACS received an unsolicited proposal for a collaboration with K9s For Warriors. K9s For Warriors rescues dogs from city shelters and then spends 3 to 4 months training the dogs to be service animals for military veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress (PTS), traumatic brain injuries (TBI), and/or military sexual trauma (MST). Once trained, K9s For Warriors then spends 3 additional weeks with the selected military veterans to teach them how to utilize the service animals to help overcome PTS, TBI, and/or MST. K9s For Warriors is located near Jacksonville Florida and has assisted over 420 military veterans (approximately 150 to 200 annually), and placed over 850 dogs.
The services provided by K9s For Warriors are 100% free to participating military veterans and funded by local and national agencies. A few of the foundations/corporations that partners with K9s For Warriors includes: Petco Foundation, Combined Federal Campaign, Bayer, Merrick Pet Care, and the Gifford Foundation. This is in addition to the thousands of individual donations received each year. K9s For Warriors partnered with Purdue University to study the effects of thei...
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