What do you do if you have a complaint or comment about animals in Waco? Did you know that there is a city board responsible for hearing citizens’ issues about animals and to oversee what happens at the animal shelter? The Animal Welfare Board is an official city board that meets on the 4th Wednesday of every month at noon at 2032 Circle Rd, Waco, TX 76706. These board meetings are open to the public.
At these meetings, the chairperson will first call the meeting to order. He or she will then invite public comments on agenda items. Agendas for past and future meetings can be found on this website: https://wacocitytx.iqm2.com/Citizens/Default.aspx. On the left-hand side under “Meeting Group” select “Animal Welfare Board.” If you would like to speak, you must first state your address. You then get three minutes to talk. The Animal Welfare Board members are not allowed to talk while you are talking and they are not allowed to respond to anything you say. In meetings I have been to, the most impactful comments from the community were ones that were prepared in advance. This will ensure that you have a chance to say everything you would like to say in the three minute time limit. Example comments I have heard include concerns about dogs being labeled dangerous dogs, concerns about loose dogs in the city, and support for the Humane Society of Central Texas, to name a few.
After the public comments are over, the board will move on to agenda items. Typical agenda items include checking the status of any board subcommittees, getting updates from the shelter, The Humane Society of Central Texas, Animal Birth Control Clinic, and animal welfare groups in the community. At the end of the meeting the board will make suggestions for future agenda items and the chairperson will close the meeting.
The Waco Animal Welfare Board consists of eleven members. The board always has a licensed veterinarian, someone from the animal shelter, two people involved in local animal welfare, a city official, a board member from an organization contracting with the city animal shelter, a person from each council district, and a member of city council. In order for the meetings to happen, they must reach a quorum. There were several months last year where a quorum was not met and the meeting had to be cancelled.
The Waco Animal Welfare Board is both a great place for you to learn about animal welfare in our community and a place for you to have your voice heard about animal welfare topics. Hopefully I will see you at the next one.
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