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Editorial
Los Gatos decision makes it unique
The town of Los Gatos will soon have the dubious distinction of being the only city in the county that refuses to pay its fair share to care for the injured, sick and orphaned wildlife in its own community.
And that means when a Los Gatan takes an abandoned baby opossum or a mourning dove with a broken wing to the Humane Society, he or she will be informed that because Los Gatos does not participate in the Wildlife Center of Silicon Valley, volunteers from the center--regretfully--will be unable to pick the animals up and take them to the center for rehabilitation.
Debbie Champion, president of the WCSV board of directors calls the decision to refuse service to Los Gatos "the most gut-wrenching" the board has made in its five-year history.
When we reported on this situation last week, Los Gatos was joined by Sunnyvale and Milpitas in refusing to participate in the funding of the nonprofit center, but at press time this week, Sunnyvale had come on board, and according to Champion, talks with Milpitas city officials suggest an agreement with that city was very close.
The WCSV handles some 5,000 wild animals each year, and so far has done so with one paid staff member and a small army of volunteers. The organization needs more funding to continue, and approached the cities to come up with 60 percent of its $131,650 budget. Each city's "fair share" was based on the percentage of animals brought to the center from that city in the past.
The town's portion was $3,949.50. But unlike every other city in the county, the town didn't find the funding request "persuasive." What's more, the town says its policy is that problems with wild animals should be directed to the State Department of Fish and Game.
Although they don't find much reason to be amused about the situation, those who help rescue wildlife are getting a big chuckle over the idea that representatives from Fish and Game--located in Santa Cruz and San Francisco-- might actually nurse a baby mourning dove back to health.
Freddy Howell, who owns the Wild Bird Center in Los Gatos says Los Gatans call her frequently to find out what to do with injured wildlife. She doesn't know what she's going to tell them now.
We understand why the WCSV had to make this difficult decision. If the organization continues to provide service to Los Gatos, the other cities will wonder why they should continue paying.
What we don't understand is why the town is taking such a hard line. What the volunteers who run the WCSV hope is that when Los Gatans get turned away from the organization that cares for injured, sick and abandoned wildlife, that they understand why the decision had to be made.
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Los Gatos, California Since 1881
