City Animal Control Head Will Resign

Robert Rush, general manager of the troubled Los Angeles Department of Animal Regulation, on Wednesday announced he is retiring for medical reasons.

“I can’t take it anymore. The stress is wiping me out,” Rush, 61, told The Times. “I’ll be putting off hospitalization until I retire.”

Rush, who has headed the department for 22 years, said his decision to retire May 5 was motivated by doctor’s orders related to what he called “pretty bad heart problems.”

His announcement comes as the department faces significant cuts in staffing, charges that its six shelters are deathtraps for strays and a call by the Los Angeles City Council for a grand jury audit.

News of his impending departure spread rapidly among animal welfare organizations, many of which contend that Rush has mismanaged the department and lost his influence with the City Council.

“New management could come up with new ideas and forge new ties with animal welfare groups,” said Lois Newman, a spokeswoman for the Cat and Dog Rescue Assn. “Then maybe we can help the department instead of fight it.”

But Lynne Exe, spokeswoman for an animal welfare group called Mercy Crusade, said, “I believe the city has lost a good friend to animals.

“Those who bad-mouthed Robert Rush will find that out only when he’s gone,” she said. “He’s been very innovative with very little support from the City Council.”

Rush, who earns $96,000 a year, said the city’s Personnel Department will launch a nationwide search for a new general manager in April. The department’s assistant general manager, Elsa Lee, will take over May 5 pending selection of his replacement.

Some of the harshest criticism of Rush and his administration has come from Councilwoman Ruth Galanter, who has faulted the department for not doing enough to improve crowded and poorly maintained animal care facilities and to reduce the number of impounded animals it euthanizes each year.

The agency killed more than 67% of the 73,263 dogs and cats it impounded last year.

“We need to find a way to reduce the workload on the department and give a higher priority to spay and neuter and recovery and adoption programs as soon as possible,” Galanter said. “We also need somebody who can look creatively beyond the city’s general fund for money such as private donations.”

Rush said his budget--$7.3 million this fiscal year--has increased insufficiently over the last five years.

Its budget went up 14.4% during the period, while all other city departments combined increased 40%, according to the city administrative office.

“I stayed a year longer than I should have,” Rush said Wednesday. “But I love the department. It will be hard to leave.”