Jane Hoffman—president and co-founder of the Mayor’s Alliance of NYC’s Animals, a coalition of more than 150 animal shelters and rescue groups—provides a wide-ranging assessment of the Alliance as it marks its 10th anniversary. 
She discusses its history, mission and the evolution of the organization, noting that when she and 
others launched the Alliance, the New York City Animal Care & Control was seeing a very low adoption rate and, not coincidentally, was forced to euthanize about 70% of the animals. Propelled both by a desire to drastically alter those numbers and a significant grant from Maddie’s Fund (a family foundation funded by internet mogul Dave Duffield), the Alliance set about turning around that situation. Hoffman describes the Herculean task involved, from bringing those shelters and groups on board—using various incentives and other means—to lining up further underwriting; over the years, Maddie’s Fund has poured some $30 million in grants. The arduous effort has paid off, handsomely, to the extent where those initial numbers have practically reversed: the save, or live release rate at NYC’s Animal Care & Control has reached 74%, and is rising, and nearly a quarter of a million animals have been saved—and NYC now boasts the lowest per capita rate of any major U.S. metropolis. Among the Alliance’s accomplishments: co-piloting a program by which a NYC domestic violence shelter allows victims to bring their pets. (www.animalalliancenyc.org, www.facebook.com/mayorsalliancenyc)
COMEDY CORNER: Brian Regan’s “Spider Web & Bees” (http://brianregan.com)
MUSIC: Rebekah Pulley’s “Talking Animals Theme,” Brett Dennen’s “Comeback Kid (That’s My Dog),” Lauris Vidal’s version of “Queen Bee,” Split Lip Rayfield’s “Blue Tick Hound,” instrumentals
NAME THAT ANIMAL TUNE: Bent Fabric’s “Alley Cat”
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