Comment on the Sweetheart Deal with Jones

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Comment on my Jones post below:

The City can't even hire vets for the shelters. How could they possibly recruit spayneuter vets? I believe they had hired a vet for the clinic a while back but he quit. Remember, they were going to open the SLA spayneuter clinic two years ago I think, but it never panned out.

Let's look at the math again. $320,000 for a vet and probably vet tech, receptionist to run the clinic. Vet $100,000, vet tech $48,000, receptionist $30,000. That's $180,000 just for salaries.
You still have to pay for supplies, phone, insurance... They could easily be at $250,000 for the Dept to run the clinic on their own. And what if the vet quits? The clinic shuts down. While I do think the vet is getting a great deal, this is probably the only way the dept can get the clinic up and running right now. Maybe in a few years they can renegotiate.
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What the commenter is not saying, is that the City does not even get ONE free spay/neuter out of this deal even after paying him a third of a million dollars a year. They have set Jones up in a private practice on City property and he charges the City like any other private client. Also, the contract says Jones can come or go any time he wants. There is nothing said about how many spay/neuters he is to do a year, either for the public or LAAS, or limitations placed on non-spay/neuter services.

THIS IS NOT A SITUATION THAT BENEFITS THE TAXPAYING PUBLIC OR LAAS IN ANY WAY OTHER THAT TO ALLOW BOKS TO SAY HE GOT A SPAY/NEUTER CLINIC RUNNING. THE ONLY BENEFIT LAAS GETS IS A 7% REDUCTION IN SPAY/NEUTER CHARGES, WHICH MAY BE ENOUGH TO PAY FOR AN EXTRA 400 SPAY/NEUTERS A YEAR AFTER PAYING FULL FEE ON 5,000. MAYBE. THIS IS PURE BOKS PR.

The $320,000 could buy 5,000 free surgeries for the public with $60 certificates; some vets take them as full fee (Noreda in Northridge and the Value Vets). As it is, Jones get the $320,000 and we, and the public, pay him almost full fee for spay neuters in addition. I wonder if Jones wants to go public; I'd like to buy stock in his government subsidized private practice.
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7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Let's give the money to vets so we can actually have some.

Does City Council read what they vote for?
We need smarter people running things, that's for sure.

Jeff de la Rosa said...

Seems like we're passing out Sweetheart deals all over.
Check the "news release" on Tia Torres' Pit Bull Training academy to be funded by , I assume, you and me.

Don't misunderstand, I think such a program is very necessary, but do we need it headed-up by Tia? Who else was able to bid on this?

And if Tia is so darn succesful, why did she spend absolutely no time with Stu, the evidence dog in the 4 months he was in her "care." He did gain 25% of his body weight making him obese.

And she did dump him back to the shelter to be killed. Did she fail, or just more spite in my direction?

Ask SEIU Local 721 how they feel about having parolees taking jobs that are legally under the Union's jurisdiction...and are you gonna take your son or daughter to hand out with convicted felons to work with your dog?

Anonymous said...

Tia Torres is a crook she is using our tax dollars and our donations to fund criminal activity. Her husband was arrested just last week for violating his parole http://www.dailynews.com/news/ci_6899984 and I also heard that 8 balloons of heroin were found on her property during this raid. Where is all of the tax dollars and donation money going? It sounds like more of it is going to illegal activity and drugs, than to actually rehabilitating pit bulls.

Unknown said...

Give me a break - I think the city of LA was lucky Tia even offered to help with a pit bull training academy. You numbnuts do realize the dogs are adopted out each and every day anyway - why on earth wouldn't you want them to spend 4-5-6 weeks in a real living situation where they can be trained, housebroken, and evaluated for their temperament BEFORE going home with their owner? This kind of service would be invaluable to the community, not to mention the adopter themself, as at least they would know what they were getting. So many times dogs will behave differently in a pound environment, even dog aggressive dogs can be docile in a kennel, and not show true colors until they are home.

As for unions wanting to work with the dogs, somehow, given how the media uses scare tactics and distortions to sell their stories, I doubt seriously there is a waiting list to handle "these dogs."

Stu, sadly, had no alternatives - you know he didn't just nip someone. I get that you loved him, but no one except the backyard breeder responsible for his genetic temperament is to blame for what happened.

And for the loser who thinks trying to slander maliciously with absolute false statements (heroine balloons...funny isn't that what was found at your residence!) isn't worth the effort to type this. Leave your sons alone, they are trying to escape your drug induced chaotic life and if Tia or anyone else for that matter is willing to stand by them while they do that, more power to them.

Villalobos provides an incredible service to the most abused and misunderstood dogs in our country and if something ever happens to make Tia give up her efforts, it will indeed be a dark dark day for the pit bull breed.

Anonymous said...

Becky, you are delusional. to think that tia is trying to help anyone but herself is ludicrous! it is a known fact in the field of dog training that Tia is a hack. which is one of the reasons that you have to make an appointment to even go up there! her website clearly states that anyone that goes up to the property will be met with vicious guard dogs! you have to love that from a person so bent on the fact that these dogs are safe!
i also love how you offer up slander as something that is even part of this astral plane! did tia tell you that she paid (i am sure using donations to her pit bull rescue) to have an admitted addict sprung from rehabilitation facility? or how with every new piece of proof that people there at the facility need drug rehab and intervention she continually denies any knowledge of goings on on her own property? only after this same employee was admitted to a hospital and in a meth induced coma as unresponsive for more than a week prior to tia admitting him the first place? i guess she was just too busy training dogs to notice that one of the employees was on her property overdosing for a week. sounds like an escape from a "chaotic life..." to me! by the way the balloons of HEROIN are a matter of public record, not opinion. tia torres can't continue to use the old "i guess love is blind..." excuse too much more.

Anonymous said...

Anonymous, get your info straight on tia. I have worked with her very closely for the past 7 years. Give me a break. What this woman does for pit bulls no one else would do. Yes she has parolees working on her property. Who else would give them a job? Who cares as long as there taking care of these dogs? Alot of them were actually doing time for being involved in dog fights so for them to be around these dogs personally is a giant step. All of her donations are going to dog food, gigantic vet bills, employees, dog beds, etc.. not drugs you idiot. Stop being such a dick.

Anonymous said...

The property up Tick Cyn just went into foreclossure