It's Petition Time! A United Coalition for Animal Welfare?

Delco Loves Animals — And Now We Need Your Voice

If you’ve been following Delco Loves Animals, you already know one thing: Delco shows up for animals. Today, we’re asking our community to do it again.

We now have two critical petitions underway. Both support the same mission: helping animals and the community. But each focuses on a different step in building the humane, sustainable, community-centered animal support system our county needs and deserves.

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Petition #1: A Building & Land at the Don Guanella Site

                                                                                                       Photo Credits: Lisa Small

Goal: 5,000 signatures

This is the BIG one — the opportunity to build something transformative and finally establish a permanent solution.

We are urging Delaware County to provide a building and a parcel of land at the Don Guanella site in Marple Township. This location offers the space and potential to create a comprehensive community animal welfare center—a place where rescue, animal surrender, adoption, rehabilitation, education, and community support programs can thrive under one roof. The site also allows room for future expansion and provides opportunities for other animal-focused nonprofits and businesses to operate alongside us, creating a hub for animal welfare in the county.

What this would allow us to create:

• A local and centralized community pet resource center
• Expanded foster, adoption, T-N-R (Trap-Neuter-Release), emergency care programs and much more!
• Training, education, and volunteer opportunities
• Pet food pantry support for rescues, shelter, pet owners and caretakers
• Space for future growth as community needs evolve
• And more!

For county and local officials to take this seriously, we must show overwhelming public support. Our goal is at least 5,000 signatures, and every one counts (must be a Delaware County resident to sign).

Please sign and share this important petition!

Petition: https://c.org/wHF6RsPRPC 

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Petition #2: A Statewide Spay & Neuter Voucher Program, Animal Welfare Laws

                                                                                                                          Photo Credits: Lisa Small

Goal: 1,000 signatures (we’re almost there but still collecting!)

Delaware County residents — like people across Pennsylvania — face rising costs in veterinary care and pet food and supplies. Spay and neuter surgeries can be financially out of reach for many families, and that creates a ripple effect: more litters, more stray animals, and more pressure on rescues and shelters.

We are advocating for a statewide spay and neuter voucher program that would allow qualifying residents to receive reduced-cost or free services. This program would help to:

• Reduce animal homelessness
• Ease the burden on shelters and low cost clinics (so they can spend the funds on other necessary needs)
• Support residents during tough times
• Improve animal welfare across the state

In addition, animal cruelty continues to be a large concern in Delaware County. Due to reduced staffing, law enforcement must prioritize major crimes, leaving many cruelty cases uninvestigated. Consequently, the District Attorney’s office cannot prosecute them. This lack of enforcement sends the wrong message: animal abusers can act without fear of consequences.

You may have also heard that some colony feeders have been threatened with fines of up to $1,000 for feeding stray cats. If you care for a colony, please check with the municipality where you feed to ensure you're not violating any local ordinances. One simple way to prevent complaints is to clean up plates, bowls, and food remnants so residents don’t see a mess.

But even with these challenges, we cannot allow stray and feral cats to go hungry. Many of these cats and kittens were dumped or abandoned when families moved away. It’s heartbreaking, and no one should feel comfortable treating animals this way. We need stronger laws to hold people accountable and to deter this kind of neglect.

We also want landlords to understand that this is happening. Abandoning pets doesn’t just harm the cats—it harms the very communities they operate in. Responsible policies and awareness can make a real difference.

We’re pushing to get these petitions in front of our legislators — but we need at least 1,000 signatures (we're almost there) to demonstrate public demand. Every signature strengthens our voice.

If you haven’t signed yet, please take a moment. It’s quick, easy, and truly meaningful.

Petition site: https://c.org/GPSnTYLHg6 

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Why Two Petitions? Because We’re Building Something Bigger

Spay-neuter access/animal law enforcement and a dedicated community space are not separate issues — they’re two halves of the same effort:
to reduce suffering, to increase support, and to build a humane Delco that works for everyone. Remember, the goal is to become a truly NO-KILL community.

When you sign, share, and speak up, you’re helping create lasting change for animals and the people who care about them.

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How You Can Help (It’s Easy!)

1. Sign both petitions
2. Share them with friends, neighbors, family, coworkers, and on social media (must live in Delaware County, PA)
3. Encourage others to get involved — every signature pushes us forward

Together, we can do this.
Together, we can show Delco — and the whole state — what a community united for animals can achieve. We CAN do this! And we WILL do this...together!

~ Rich & Lisa

Watch This Video! Redemption: The No Kill Revolution in America

Redemption: The No Kill Revolution in America

We encourage everyone to take time to watch the video below. If you’re involved in animal rescue—or care about ending the needless killing of pets—this is a must-watch. It’s eye-opening, inspiring, and a reminder that real change is possible. We’ve been deeply encouraged by it and reminded how much there still is to learn as we work toward a better future for animals and our community. 🐾 👉 We’d love to hear from you! Whether you’d like to share your thoughts after the video or be added to our DLA Newsletter list, just email us at delcolovesanimals@gmail.com.

Credit/Source: https://nokilladvocacycenter.org/ and Nathan Winograd

Dear Senator Kearney, Congresswoman Scanlon, and Representatives Boyd and Curry,

 

Below is an letter that will be emailed on July 31, 2025. This is just the beginning! 

Dear Senator Kearney, Congresswoman Scanlon, and Representatives Boyd and Curry,

Thank you for taking the time to hold a community meeting and listen directly to the concerns of local residents. Your willingness to engage with the public is deeply appreciated.

I’m following up on my remarks at the July 25th community meeting at Beverly Hills Middle School, where I spoke on behalf of Delco Loves Animals about the growing crisis of stray and abandoned animals—particularly cats—across Delaware County. At the request of Bernadetta, a dedicated animal rescue and TNR advocate, we launched a petition titled Protect the Paws: Change the Law on Change.org. As of this writing, we have gathered 496 signatures toward our goal of 1,000. We would greatly appreciate your help in spreading the word to reach more supporters.

This crisis is not the fault of the animals or those trying to help. It stems from irresponsible pet ownership, including abandonment, neglect, failure to spay or neuter, and allowing pets to roam the streets. Many of these cats are former house pets—not feral animals—who are unequipped to survive on their own. Left to fend for themselves, they face starvation, disease, injury, abuse, and death.

Despite this, residents who step up to feed and care for these animals are being threatened with $1,000 fines in some municipalities. This is especially troubling considering that many towns in Delaware County have both a “no roaming” and a “no feeding” ordinance, yet only the feeding ban is being actively enforced—with no regard for how these animals ended up on the streets.

The people being penalized are not the ones causing the problem. Instead, enforcement should focus on those who: 

• Abandon pets when they move,
• Allow unaltered cats (and dogs) to roam freely,
• Shut cats out of their homes permanently,
• Or dump animals intentionally far from their own neighborhoods.

Enforcing only the no-feeding ordinance does not solve the problem—it enables animal cruelty. Starving animals suffer or die, often being hit by cars, attacked, or deliberately harmed.

In one personal experience as real estate agents, my husband and I were putting up a "For Sale" sign when we were surrounded by over ten stray cats, one in extremely poor condition. A young girl told us that a boy on her street had killed one of that cat’s kittens. This is not just heartbreaking—it’s alarming and unacceptable.

My husband and I have met with members of the District Attorney’s Office, and I had the opportunity to briefly speak with District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer at a political event—where I happened to be standing right beside him (to me that was nothing short of Divine Providence, as he’d been unable to attend our meeting earlier that day). During both conversations, we were informed that while the DA’s office is committed to prosecuting cases of animal cruelty, they can only do so when law enforcement makes an arrest.

Unfortunately, what we often hear is that many local police departments in Delaware County are understaffed and under-resourced, and as a result, animal cruelty cases are not prioritized. The perception—whether accurate or not—is that these offenses are rarely investigated or enforced. And when people believe there will be no consequences, they feel emboldened to treat animals inhumanely, knowing there's little chance of being held accountable.

We recognize that this is an issue that must also be addressed at the municipal and local law enforcement levels, and we are committed to working on that front as well. If there is any support or guidance you can offer in helping move this forward, we would greatly appreciate it.

Beyond compassion, this issue has real economic consequences. Stray animal overpopulation leads to noise disturbances (fighting, females in heat), property damage, and unsanitary conditions. These factors lower property values and discourage potential buyers from settling in affected neighborhoods. A visible stray population is a signal of neglect and a community in decline—something that directly impacts the reputation and desirability of our towns.

 Meanwhile, the people and organizations trying to address this crisis are stretched to their limits. Nonprofits and rescue groups are working hard—often independently—but the problem is growing. Volunteers are emotionally, physically, and financially exhausted. Shelters are overwhelmed, and healthy, young adoptable animals—including kittens and puppies—are being euthanized due to lack of space. Spay-and-abort procedures are being performed on pregnant cats and dogs up to birth. This is a tragic and unsustainable situation and should be seen as a wake-up call to all of us.

That’s why we’re calling on your leadership to help implement a comprehensive, humane, and coordinated solution for Delaware County, including:

A county-wide Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) program, properly funded and adopted across municipalities,

• An end to spay-and-abort procedures and the euthanasia of healthy, adoptable animals,
• Public education campaigns about responsible pet ownership and abandonment,
• A re-examination of ordinances to ensure they protect animals and the people helping them,
• And support for local rescue groups and advocates working on the front lines.

We are not asking you to solve this alone or secure all the funding—there is a dedicated network of advocates, residents, and organizations ready to help, and we will actively pursue fundraising once our nonprofit is established and we receive our 501(c)(3) status. We urge you to look at Delaware’s statewide spay and neuter voucher program as a model and consider implementing something similar here in Pennsylvania to address this crisis at its root.

Delco Loves Animals, along with many community members, is eager to work with your offices toward a permanent, compassionate, and effective policy. We hope you will stand with us—and with the animals—by supporting practical, humane reforms. My husband and I have no doubt that together we truly can make the difference that needs to be made.

Please note: I’ve cc’d Kristen Tullo, Pennsylvania State Director, State Affairs at Humane World for Animals, as well as the Delaware County District Attorney’s Office.

 With kind regard,

 Lisa Small (on behalf of myself and my husband, Rich Small)

    

 The righteous care for the needs of their animals… - Proverbs 12:10