Homeless animals impacting Houston public safety

elected officials, nonprofits and advocates are coming together to address the state of animal welfare in Harris County. Randy Wallace joining us live from the southwest side with some details on that. What's up, Randy? Yeah, Anthony. Now it's estimated that about a million stray animals are roaming the streets here in Harris County, and that, of course, is causing a public health issue and a public safety issue. Get this. Last year alone, Harris County reported 2500 bike cases. Texas ranks among the highest in the nation, with more than 6000 postal workers attacked every year by dogs. For more than a decade now, pet set has been sounding the alarm about Houston's animal overpopulation crisis. There's nothing more of an issue in Harris County than this animal control issue, and anybody that would minimize that clearly does not understand what significant it is. Animal welfare and the way we treat animals is important part of the community, and that's why they're here. Our mayor knows that it's important. Our district attorney knows that it's important. It affects public health, public safety, quality of life, and that's why everybody's here today, because no matter who you are, our straight animal crisis impacts everybody. This is such a critical component to public safety as a whole. Just just recognizing and educating the public in mass about animal dumping the animal homeless problem. It's something that really builds on just like illegal dumping of trash does. Getting the communities to be able to feel safe going outside is something that's critically important to everything. The mayor announced a new bark adoption center will break ground in November, paid for by bond issue that public approved several years ago, but it's stalled out. It's gonna be state of the art. It'll be a complex that you'll want to visit not only to see the animals that are up for adoption, but it'll be a recreation facility. It'll be a retail facility. It'll bring people to the animals and animal welfare. So it's gonna be something to get excited about. Do you think this problem can be solved someday? Absolutely. Other cities have done it. There's no doubt in my mind this can be. This can be done. We can all help out by adopting or fostering reporting live in the southwest side. Randy Wallace Fox 26 years.