Subject: Kathy Barton

• New Health Department HQ Delayed

  October 17, 2008

• Much-Loved Veterinarian Fired by BARC

  Photo by Daniel KramerGil Costas, a part-time veterinarian at Houston's Bureau of Animal Regulation and Care, was fired today for lack of state-mandated certification, Houston Health and Human Services Spokeswoman Kathy Barton told Hair Balls. The news was originally broken by Nicole Sica, editor of the animal-welfare blog Poocini and a writer for the Houston Animal News Examiner. "The official reason is that his services were no longer needed," Barton told Hair Balls, "but...we also determi

  February 3, 2009

• BARC's Firing Of Vet Doesn't Add Up

  On Tuesday, Bureau of Animal Regulation and Care veterinarian Gil Costas was fired for what Health and Human Services Department spokeswoman Kathy Barton said was not having proper state certification.Barton said Costas did not have "site-specific" Texas Department of Public Safety controlled-substances registration. But Jane Ray, of DPS's controlled-substances division, told Hair Balls this morning that the "site-specific" factor only applies to where vets store narcotics -- not to where th

  February 4, 2009

• Letters

  May 29, 1997

• Letters

  June 19, 1997

• BARC Down To Its Last Vet

  Photo by Daniel KramerVeterinarian David Rundell resigned today from the Bureau of Animal Regulation and Care, spokeswoman Kathy Barton confirmed. Nicole Sica at the Houston Examiner was the first on the story.  Rundell was suspended with pay three weeks ago for allegedly treating a sick dog with Valium he brought into facility. Rundell, who animal welfare activists have complained about for years, operated without proper state registration for most of his time at BARC."We have posted

  February 25, 2009

• Frontline Firing

  July 30, 1998

• Mission Impossible

  July 30, 1998

• Downtown Dumping, Dog-Style

  November 5, 1998

• Grinding It Out

  December 3, 1998

• Then There Were None

  December 24, 1998

• BARC Sucks

  January 29, 2009

• There's a Morning-After Drug to Prevent HIV Infection

  The treatment is called post-exposure prophylaxis. So why do so few medical groups in Houston know about it?

  June 5, 2008

• Smoked Out

  Will "self-enforcement" be enough for Houston's expanded smoking ban to work?

  August 30, 2007

• They Walk Among Us

  A closer look at a spiffy downtown park reveals it's crawling with rats

  August 4, 2005

• Jailhouse Crock

  UTMB's controversial proposed deal with the city dies

  June 30, 2005

• The Fido Solution

  The ultimate answer to too many strays, cash-strapped budgets, animal shelter abuses and starving people

  February 3, 2005

• Catch of the Day

  Annabelle's Diner says a neighbor keeps using the city to lay siege to the cafe

  July 29, 2004

• Side Order of Worms?

  You like fresh salmon? So do marine parasites.

  March 29, 2001

• Hot Shots

  There's a bull market on the meningitis vaccine. Are some doctors cashing in?

  February 8, 2001

• Take a Number

  Does the health department's grading system ensure safe restaurants? Or is it just fuzzy math?

  January 25, 2001

• Going to the Dogs

  Advocates are working to unleash a plan for a public park where pooches can play

  June 22, 2000

• Like a Dog in the Dirt

  A jury helps a whistle-blower in his battle against city animal control unit abuses

  February 17, 2000

• Pushed Around

  For City Hall, one downtown cart vendor may be too many

  April 1, 1999

• No Vets At BARC, And A Struggle To Get The Story Straight

  Photo by bf_photosGetting a veterinarian to work weekends at the animal control facility for the nation's fourth-largest city is a real pain.Take Saturday. No vet showed up, even though, according to Health & Human spokesperson Kathy Barton, the city had arranged for a relief vet through a temp agency called RSVP. (Although Ben Hernandez at HHS previously told Hair Balls that he was assuming Barton's duties, it turns out that was not the case. But you know how dang confused they get over the

  April 27, 2009

• "Yappy Hour" Taken By Dad To Go Live On Farm Somewhere; City Promises We Can Visit When We're Older

  No Dogs Allowed. So said the city health department last week when pets and their owners were turned away from a planned "Yappy Hour" at Beaver's on Decatur. The bar and restaurant had done a considerable amount of promoting for the new event, even sending out packets of dog biscuits to the media. There would be "Poodle Coladas" and "Terrier-tinis". Members of the local pet aristocracy were in attendance. But it wasn't to be. Beaver's manager Thaddeus Turany, who was on hand

  April 28, 2009

• Revenge Of The Swine (And The Obsessive Hand-Washers)

  A swine flu pandemic isn't a "foregone conclusion," according to the new alert level issued yesterday by the World Health Organization. But things are starting to get a little scary. Cue the travel warnings. The United States said not to head south of the border. The European Union said stay away from the United States. Anyone flying from North America to Hong Kong will have his temperature taken upon arrival. While the death toll in Mexico is up to 152, nobody has yet died stateside.

  April 28, 2009

• Yappy Hour at Beaver's Put Down

  Photo courtesy of finnadat NO SOUP FOR YOU!No Dogs Allowed. So said the city health department last week when pets and their owners were turned away from a planned "Yappy Hour" at Beaver's on Decatur. The bar and restaurant had done a considerable amount of promoting for the new event, even sending out packets of dog biscuits to the media. There would be "Poodle Coladas" and "Terrier-tinis". Members of the local pet aristocracy were in attendance. But it wasn't to be. 

  April 28, 2009

• Swine Flu Death In Mystery Hospital

  Photo by The Pug FatherThe first case of a death from swine flu has been reported -- and it's here in Houston.Of course, it's not exactly a Houstonian who, say, was attending an elementary school in HISD. It was an infant, born in Mexico, who got sick in Brownsville and was transported to Houston and died in a hospital here. Very, very sad, and thoughts go out to the family.Which hospital did this happen in? Kathy Barton, spokesperson of the city's Health and Human Services department, isn't say

  April 29, 2009

• Here's The Latest On School Closings Due To The "Don't Call It Swine" Flu

  Hamilton Middle School, which was closed Thursday and Friday over swine flu concerns, has reopened, HISD and city officials said.Hamilton had been closed because an individual "had exposure to a known case" of the flu, Health and Human Services spokeswoman Kathy Barton tells Hair Balls. "And subsequently, we have received some testing that says they are good to go, and they've not had anybody develop [the] disease."The district is sending out automated phone messages to parents and staff at Hami

  May 4, 2009

• Bring Back the Babes and Bitches

  May 7, 2009

• More (Somewhat Meandering, But Nevertheless Entertaining) Tales Of BARC Incompetence

  Photo by Daniel KramerWe're pretty sure the dude who coined that phrase about a hard task being akin to "nailing jelly to a wall" wasn't referring to getting news out of BARC, but he could've been.For one thing, Health and Human Services did not tell the media when BARC hired its new chief, Ray Sim. Of course, this information had been known by local animal activists for weeks. And of course, Sim's hiring actually doesn't matter yet, as BARC has had problems with or without a chief. For example,

  May 12, 2009

• Swine Flu Is A Pandemic Now!!! Panic!! Or, In Houston, Don't

  The World Health Organization has declared swine flu to be a pandemic, the first in over 40 years.It's doing it mostly on the basis of a sharp growth in cases in Australia, Japan and Chile, but just about every story on the subject -- at least in America -- mentions Houston.We were, of course, the first American city to have a swine-flu death; we also had Travis Elementary close after a bunch of kids came down with stuff, some of which included swine flu.But all that seems to have calmed down la

  June 11, 2009

• BARC, Showing Its (In)Competence Once Again

  Photo by Martin EveringtonThe captured dog, waiting for BARC, is at least in the shade now.Meet the latest dog who will likely wind up on one of those BARC meatwagons Hair Balls discussed Wednesday.The pictures come from a friend of Jerry Heinemeier, who owns a produce business by Old Spanish Trail and Spur 5. Heinemeier says he notified BARC a few days ago about three sick stray dogs who were wandering around his business. He says an animal control officer set a live trap yesterday, and this mo

  June 11, 2009

• BARC Comes Up With Some Answers, Of A Sort

  Photo by R'eyesWe've got updates on last week's BARC stories; the delays of which could have easily been avoided by proactive public relations, which is apparently anathema to the animal control department of the nation's fourth-largest city.Last week's photo of exposed canine cadavers in the back of a city truck raised a few eyebrows. The photo was taken in February, and Hair Balls wanted to know if this was standard operating procedure, and if there were any health implications. (The pro

  June 15, 2009

• The Chronicle's Columnist, Buying BARC's Spin

  Photo by elvissaToday's Chron column by Lisa Falkenberg, headlined "Finally, a bit of good news out of BARC," might have been more accurately titled "When Public Relations Attacks!" What the column lacks in actual news value and insight, it makes up for by highlighting what might be one of BARC's thorniest, yet largely unacknowledged, problems: God-awful public relations. That's because the article refers to an "estimate" by Bureau Chief Ray Sim that, "as of Wednesday," the percentage of dogs va

  June 25, 2009

• A Q&A With The Man Who Oversees BARC Leaves More Q's Than A's

  Photo by mary_thompsonWhen it comes to the Bureau of Animal Regulation and Care, Stephen Williams is a man who does not like to dwell on the past. As the director of Houston's Department of Health and Human Services, he said in an interview Monday that while he was aware of years of criticism of BARC, the thing to really focus on are the recent and ongoing improvements. Chief among these is the new policy of vaccinating animals in the field, before they are even brought to the shelter. Williams

  June 30, 2009

• Getting the Spin from BARC: Things are just rosy at the pound, according to the Chronicle

  July 2, 2009

• BARC Chief Is Fired, With Little In The Way Of Explanation

  BARC Bureau Chief Ray Sim was fired today, spokeswoman Kathy Barton confirmed. She would not give specific reasons, saying only "I think it was just an issue of timing...[it was] not the right time for this guy." Sim began his job in May, after the Department of Health and Human Services conducted a seven-month nationwide search to replace the previous chief, Kent Robertson. Barton said that since the "incident command team" will be in charge for the time being, "There will not be a lack of lea

  July 7, 2009

• For BARC, A Change (Agent) Is Gonna Come

  Photo by bf_photos BARC has inked a six-month contract with Houston consultant Gerry Fusco to address physical, financial and operational procedures at the troubled animal-control facility. Houston Health and Human Services spokeswoman Kathy Barton told Hair Balls that Fusco will be paid approximately $200,000 and is slated to begin Thursday. Barton said Fusco is expected to address "process improvement, which includes developing and staffing an effective organization; workflow

  July 21, 2009

• BARC Puppy Literally Washed Down The Drain

  ​A stray puppy at BARC was placed in the wrong cage and washed down the drain last Thursday night, Health and Human Services Spokeswoman Kathy Barton confirmed today. She would not give the name or position of the person who placed the puppy in the cage, but said the person has been suspended for a week without pay. The incident also prompted the transfer of 68 puppies from BARC to the Houston Humane Society the following day, to allow for reconfiguration of adequate cages for nursin

  July 27, 2009

• Yet Another Twisted Tale From BARC

  Photo by bf_photos​When BARC volunteer Nela Brown accused a kennel attendant with a long criminal history of punching a puppy June 9, she assumed the matter would be investigated and the man would be dealt with accordingly.  After all, when another volunteer, Shelby Kibodeaux, simply said he heard what sounded like animal abuse at the facility in January, BARC promptly punted the complaint to the Houston Police Department's Office of Inspector General. And in that case

  July 31, 2009

• A Three-Hour Council Meeting On BARC Achieves...About What You'd Expect, Unfortunately

  Photo by dunkv​The biggest surprise during yesterday's City Council Committee on Human Services and Technology meeting on BARC was not that it was three hours of meaningless bureaucratic babble -- Hair Balls had $50 on that -- but that the ghost of Dante Alighieri showed up. "Abandon all hope, ye who enter here!" he shouted over and over, before being escorted from chambers by security on grounds of possessing too much common sense. The meeting -- which was also attended by mo

  August 4, 2009

• BARC's Alleged Dog-Puncher Is Out Of A Job

  Murray Bailey, the BARC kennel attendant accused of punching a puppy in the head in June, is no longer working at the facility, Health and Human Services Spokeswoman Kathy Barton tells Hair Balls. We're waiting to hear if there's an official explanation, but Barton said Bailey was still on his probationary period and was therefore subject to at-will termination. A long-time BARC volunteer had accused Bailey, who spent much of the last 13 years in prison on aggravated assault convictions,&nb

  August 5, 2009

• A Shake-Up At BARC, For Better Or Worse

  ​BARC went through some housecleaning yesterday -- in a big way.In addition to the firing of veterinarian Eunice Ohashiegbula-Iwunze, other BARC personnel issues Wednesday included the resignation of Administrative Supervisor Dorian Strickland and a "disciplinary procedure in process" for vet tech Abiga Arredondo. Ohashiegbula-Iwunze had recently been demoted from the chief veterinarian position. She was fined $500 by the Texas Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners in June for violating U

  August 6, 2009

• BARC Whistleblower's Case To Continue

  Photo by Craig MalisowShelby Kibodeaux, outside the courthouse​A Harris County Court judge found probable cause this morning in the case of a BARC volunteer accused of filing a false police report; the next court date is scheduled for August 28. With all the change-agentization taking place at BARC, Hair Balls was surprised that no one from BARC called the prosecutor and asked for the charges to be dropped. But apparently, there's only so much "change" to go around. "I want to go home and cry,

  August 10, 2009

• An Interview With BARC's Change Agent

  Photo by allygirl520​BARC could install a 3,000-square-foot building to house cats within a month, interim chief Gerry Fusco and Health and Human Services Spokeswoman Kathy Barton told Hair Balls Wednesday. It was a bit of welcome concrete information, something that's been scarce since Fusco was brought on board two weeks ago. During that time, Fusco said, he's been helping in the search for a bureau chief and chief veterinarian, slots he hopes will be filled within the next three mont

  August 13, 2009

• Council Hears About More BARC Stuff, This Time Some Nasty Divorce Allegations

  ​It seems a day can't go by without some drama regarding the Bureau of Animal Regulation and Care. Today's edition involves a 2006 allegation of abuse against BARC Interim Bureau Chief Gerry Fusco made by his then-wife. The Harris County Sheriff's Office report was posted on an online animal-advocacy forum and e-mailed to council members this morning. The report states that a sheriff's deputy was dispatched to the home of Gerry and Jennifer Fusco in August 2006, whereupon Jennifer stated

  August 24, 2009

• Former BARC Vet Sues City Over His Firing

  ​Veterinarian Gil Costas, fired from the Bureau of Animal Regulation and Care last February for an alleged registration violation, has sued the City under the Texas Whistleblower Act.Filed today, the suit accuses the city of "trying to hurriedly squelch Dr. Costas and discredit him" after Costas accused fellow BARC vet David Rundell of operating without a controlled-substances registration. Costas also complained that Rundell's superior, former Chief Veterinarian Eunice Ohashiegbula-Iwunze,

  August 31, 2009

• Vote Delayed, Entertainingly, On BARC Chief's Contract

  Photo by abcrumley​City Council once again delayed the vote on extending BARC Interim Chief Gerry Fusco's contract today, possibly killing any chance to revive the vote in the future. Fusco's initial agreement with the city, made possible via a $49,500 purchase order, expires Friday.Health and Human Services spokeswoman Kathy Barton, who was at the meeting, said she's not sure yet what effect the delay will have on retaining Fusco's services. After weeks of delays, Council was expected t

  September 2, 2009