Rebecca Corry, after 16 years working with animals in Los Angeles, warns that the ongoing euthanasia of healthy, adoptable dogs is preventable and stems from failed leadership rather than lack of funding. She urges Mayor Karen Bass and the City Council to use their authority to install accountable leadership at LA Animal Services. Corry highlights deficits in spay-and-neuter access, weak enforcement, and a misleading "no kill" narrative, and notes her organization sued the city after being rebuffed when offering solutions.
LA Can Stop Shelter Killings — Leadership Must Act Now
Los Angeles, Calif., United States – July 14: Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass speaks at the NALEO 43rd Annual Conference at the Intercontinental Hotel DTLA on Tuesday, July 14, 2026...
After 16 years serving animals across the city and county of Los Angeles, I have seen a heartbreaking, avoidable pattern: healthy, adoptable dogs are being euthanized in city shelters. This is not a shortage-of-resources problem. It is a leadership and policy failure — and Los Angeles has the means to fix it.
Leadership, Not Money, Is the Core Issue
Los Angeles is one of the world’s largest cities and California has the fourth-largest economy on Earth, yet our civic institutions, many shelters, and some nonprofits are not protecting dogs as they should. At the center of the crisis is local leadership: the mayor and City Council set direction and accountability for LA Animal Services. Mayor Karen Bass has the authority to appoint or remove the general manager of LA Animal Services, and she must use that power to ensure humane, transparent, and effective leadership.
Mayor Bass has the power to appoint or remove the general manager of LA Animal Services. Carlin Stiehl for CA Post
How A Misleading "No Kill" Narrative Hurts Animals
The public has been told that shelters are "no kill," creating a dangerous misconception that surrendering an animal is always a safe choice. The truth is that animals are still euthanized in LA shelters. That false narrative, combined with weak enforcement of spay-and-neuter laws and limited access to affordable sterilization, fuels shelter overcrowding and preventable deaths.
What I Tried To Do — And Why I Sued
For three years my organization worked directly in crisis areas like Skid Row, offering resources, practical solutions, funding, and on-the-ground help. After repeated rebuffs from officials and agencies, we filed a lawsuit late last year naming the city, the mayor, City Council, LA Animal Services, and the LAPD. Instead of working together to save lives, taxpayer funds have been used to resist accountability: defendants have attempted to dismiss the case three times so far.
A husky mix dog in a cage in an animal shelter. X/@spencerpratt
Practical Steps That Save Lives
There is a clear, prevention-first path to reducing shelter killings:
- Expand affordable and accessible spay-and-neuter services so fewer unwanted litters are born.
- Enforce existing animal-health and sterilization laws to reduce repeat surrenders and irresponsible breeding.
- Offer public education and outreach that makes clear shelters are not an automatic safe haven and promotes alternatives to surrender.
- Change shelter leadership and culture so animals are treated as sentient beings, not statistics.
There is nothing "No Kill" about killing innocent, adoptable animals.
A Call For Accountability
Los Angeles has the financial resources and the community capacity to end this crisis. What is missing is the political will and accountability to prioritize prevention and real reform. Nonprofits, city agencies, and elected officials must put the animals first — even when solutions require changing funding models, admitting failures, or disrupting comfortable systems.
I am Rebecca Corry, founder and executive director of the Stand Up For Pits Foundation. We will continue fighting for transparent leadership, effective prevention programs, and humane treatment for all dogs in Los Angeles until real progress is made.
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