SAN ANTONIO – Vanessa Acosta said she sees overpopulation as one of the main reasons San Antonio has an animal problem.
“We all feel overwhelmed,” Acosta said. “San Antonio is too overpopulated in our shelters. It’s too overpopulated on the streets. It’s too overpopulated in our homes.”
Acosta is a resident of Dignowity Hill and a neighborhood volunteer for San Antonio’s Animal Care Services.
KSAT first brought you her story and showed you inside Dignowity Hill’s stray animal situation in the Know My Neighborhood series.
Acosta said the city needs a long-term solution, and District 2 Councilmember Jalen McKee-Rodriguez is proposing a new plan.
“We have to remove barriers,” McKee-Rodriguez said. “We’ve created a barrier for pet ownership and adoption and fostering for more than half of our city residents.”
McKee-Rodriguez filed a Council Consideration Request (CCR) to create an income-based pet deposit assistance program.
The proposed program would help pay pet deposits for people who foster or adopt from San Antonio’s ACS or partnering shelters. McKee-Rodriguez hopes it will give shelters much-needed space.
“If we’re not getting animals out, then we’re not freeing up capacity,” McKee-Rodriguez said.
McKee-Rodriguez said he’s received supporting signatures from councilmembers Sukh Kaur, Adriana Rocha-Garcia, Teri Castillo and Melissa Cabello-Havrda.
But, Acosta said she has concerns that more accessibility will bring more problems to San Antonio.
“It’s all over,” Acosta said. “We have hoarders all over. We have serious animal cases all over.”
Acosta said she would rather see the city tackle the changing habits of citizens.
“Education and enforcement is 100% what we need,” Acosta said.
The request is still in its early stages. It next needs to go to the Governance Committee.