New Ally Against Animal Cruelty
Jan 19 2006
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Mark Kumpf, Superintendent of Animal Services for Newport News, Virginia was recently elected to the board of directors of San Diego based Pet-Abuse.Com.

"Mark brings 17 years of animal care and control experience to the table," says Pet-Abuse.Com founder and president Alison Gianotto.  "His proactive approach to problem solving and education will be a tremendous asset to the organization."

Gianotto explains that Kumpf's extensive resume is a perfect compliment to Pet-Abuse.Com.  "Animal control officers are so important to our communities.  They have long-suffered the label of being merely 'dog catchers', but an effective animal control department works to educate the public and protect both animals and people."

Pet-Abuse.Com works with law enforcement agencies across the country to provide information about criminal animal cruelty on national, state and local levels.

"With Mark as an official part of the team, we are better equipped to continue to serve animal control agencies as well as the public, " Gianotto says.

Currently, Kumpf serves as President of the Virginia Animal Control Association (VACA) and Secretary / Treasurer for the National Animal Control Association (NACA). Locally, he is a board member for Tidewater Humane Inc., a spay / neuter assistance group serving the Tidewater region of Virginia. He has served on numerous state taskforces and committees dedicated to improving the laws regarding the care of animals and the professional standards for animal control officers.

In 1995, Kumpf was recognized as the Virginia Animal Control Officer of the Year by the Virginia Federation of Humane Societies, and in 2001 was awarded the title of Millennium International Animal Control Officer of the Year by the Western Australian Rangers Association, part of Compassionate Animal Control International.

Kumpf is involved in national training through the NACA Training Academy and has been a featured speaker at many state animal control association conferences, the annual NACA conference and the CHAMPS conference.

No stranger to Pet-Abuse.Com, Kumpf has served in an advisory capacity for several years on a variety of animal care and control issues. Recently, Kumpf and Gianotto successfully re-launched the ACOFunStop.com website - the largest online community of animal care and control professionals nationwide.

Edited: Jan 19 2006 at 11:14 pm