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Compassion for Camden is successful model for urban animal advocacy

December 21, 7:37 PMPhiladelphia Animal Advocate ExaminerMegan Drake

  Sarah when rescued from life on Camden streets

Anyone involved in animal advocacy answers the call in different ways. Some are on the front lines caring for homeless animals in shelters or rescue groups. Some put their talents to fundraising; others give a voice to the voiceless through writing. And then there are those like Marion Churchill, the founder of Compassion for Camden.

In 1992 Churchill and her husband volunteered for the New Jersey Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (NJSPCA) in the capacity of law enforcement agents sent into Camden. Witnessing firsthand the atrocities perpetrated on animals in Camden Churchill became the impetus for getting laws written and passed by local government.

Spurred on by the experience of rescuing Sarah, a Camden dog and the suffering she witnessed along with the indifference of some towards "wild dogs from Camden", Churchill created Compassion for Camden. Sarah, her inspiration has since crossed the Rainbow Bridge but her spirit lives on in Churchill and continues to encourage her tireless work on behalf of Camden's animals.

  Sarah, happy and healthy and living with Churchill

Churchill envisioned her mission to work with local government by helping draft new laws.  "Without laws" Churchill says "there is nothing much you can do… if there is no law, it [animal abuse/neglect] just goes on."

At that time, Camden was considered the proverbial step-child of New Jersey on many levels, animal welfare included. The first law addressed was spay/neuter. Churchill wrote the proposed legislation based on Denver's spay/neuter law and submitted it to then Mayor Milton Milan. It was passed into law in 1996. Now every pet owner in Camden is required to show proof of spay/neuter surgery and are subject to fines for non-compliance. Churchill worked with AWA in Voorhees to establish the spay/neuter van for Camden residents.

In 2001 Churchill worked with Camden politicians and again wrote a proposed law for anti-tethering. It passed. She also was able to prevent Philadelphia's horse drawn carriage trade from opening in Camden by successfully initiating a ban on the practice.

Continued dedicated work came to fruition in 2005 when Camden placed into law the first cross reporting ordinance on the East Coast. The ordinence is dubbed "Sarah's Law" in honor of Churchill's dog, Sarah, the mange ridden dog she rescued from an abandoned Camden house in 1992. The cross reporting ordinance requires the city’s Police Department to report signs of animal neglect or abuse to the city’s Animal Care & Control Department and for animal control to report signs of human abuse to police.

Getting laws on the books is the first step. Enforcing the laws is an entirely different effort. Churchill was instrumental in the establishment in Camden of an Animal Officer Control force. Since 2004 the three man department has seen a significant improvement in the number of stray dogs and cats in the city and report the incidence of dogs strangling on tethers are down from about two per week to less than one every few months and credits the change due to their ability to provide humane education to Camden residents. 

Along the way Churchill established a Humane Education Outreach Program. She and her staff have a van they take to Camden neighborhoods during the summer and teach children the proper way to care and provide for pets, why it is wrong to abuse animals and how to prevent and report abuse. Churchill wrote an inspiring report on one of those visits.

Compassion for Camden website has clear and explicit instructions on how to get township ordinances passed. Government works in the state of inertia and Churchill offers a clear cut seven step template for lobbying politicians about animal welfare issues. Have a read and take the lead in your community… Compassion for Camden works!

To see a video on Camden Animal Control by NJ Network Television and Radio, click here.