October 2023
This month’s Data Bites is a lesson in dealing with data coming from Public Disclosure Requests (PDRs). A PDR is a request made by an individual or organization for copies of public government records for review. Such public records include documents in all formats, whether electronic or paper, that relate to government operations or conduct. All government documents are considered public records, and are subject to public review, unless a law specifically exempts certain information from disclosure.
PDRs give citizens the power to request information, documents and other data to create transparency and allow us to engage with our government on important local issues. PDRs can particularly benefit animal welfare activists as so many decisions are made without public outreach or engagement. In addition, activists often deal with a disinterested media that either does not pursue animal welfare as a serious topic or provides only cursory reporting.
To learn more about PDRs, see our PDR FAQ.
In August 2023, Seattle Animal Watch submitted a public disclosure request asking for:
“For 2016 to 2022, by year, please provide the following records: 1. Intake numbers by species and surrender reason.”
Declining Shelter Intake Numbers
The most interesting thing that stood out in this data set is the sharp decline in animal surrenders in 2020 and beyond. This data raised a lot more questions for us than it answered. While the first year of the Covid-19 pandemic may explain the drop in 2020 due to lockdowns and increased adoptions with work from home mandates, why didn’t shelter intakes increase once life started to return to normal after 2020? Are less people looking to give up their animals? Are there more private shelters taking Seattle’s animals in? Are different animal services being offered which allow pets to stay in their homes? Is the Seattle Animal Shelter limiting intake numbers and perhaps holding a longer waiting list?
Where are the West Seattle Animals?
Another thing that stood out to us about this data is that it appeared incomplete. We were expecting to receive all animal intake numbers, regardless of situation/reason, but quickly noticed a glaring discrepancy. We know that 222 guinea pigs and rabbits were seized in October 2020 in a West Seattle hoarding case, many of which were later transferred to other shelters or adopted out. However, this data lists only 27 total guinea pigs and rabbits with intake dates in 2020. So…where are the West Seattle Animals? Time to revise that PDR to make it more clear what we were looking for.
Lessons Learned
Verbiage is Important - The verbiage and terminology used in a PDR can be critically important to ensuring you receive a comprehensive set of data back. Some jurisdictions will only provide the minimum data possible by adhering exactly to the letter of the request. In this case, we asked specifically for “Shelter Intakes” and “Surrender Reasons,” assuming that would be comprehensive of all animals entering the shelter system with or without a surrender reason. However, we learned that the City interpreted this as only those intakes that had surrender reasons. Therefore, our shelter intake data only included owner surrenders and did not include strays, seizures, wildlife intakes, abandonments, etc. We also only received field data for owner surrenders only when a great deal of their work involves strays and seizures. Thus, we were inadvertently asking for only a subset of the data when we needed to see the whole picture.
Critical Thinking is Necessary - It is important to not take data at face value and ensure that you’re putting it into appropriate context. Are there anecdotal or other data points that corroborate what you are seeing? Are there discrepancies? If things don’t add up, even if it’s just a hunch, it’s important to apply critical thinking skills and dig in more before making assumptions or assertions. In this case, we knew from previous research that over 150 guinea pigs were taken into the shelter system in 2020, after the West Seattle Hoarding Investigation took place.
Follow Up with Additional Requests - Don’t worry if you don’t get the perfect data set with the first request you submit. You can always submit another request for clarifications or additional information.