OUR SHELTERS

I haven't been writing much lately. I don't like to write just for the sake of writing. I reserve it for when I actually have something I want to share. I would like to take a few minutes of your time to express how much our animal shelters need your help.

Where I live we are fortunate to have no-kill shelters.

This was where I found JoJo. I am ever so grateful for the care they gave him before I arrived. He was a case where the prior owners dumped him at the shelter in the middle of the night. With their cameras they were able to locate them and find out why they got rid of him. The man said that he bit him when he was disciplining him and showed them a small scratch. The first time I gave JoJo the sit command he did it but without eye contact and obvious fear. He certainly wasn't expecting the praise I gave him.

 Our store does a donation drive every year for this shelter which is located nearby. They have a capture/spay/release program for stray cats and sometimes bring animals up from high-kill shelters to find homes for those at high risk of euthanasia through no fault of their own.

 Most shelters don't have that luxury. There is only so much space to house all of the animals that come through their doors.

Some were found as strays. Some are lost pets whose owners need to be found (if possible). Some are owner surrenders. "I can't take care of him anymore." "I'm relocating due to work and can't find housing that allows pets." "This cat keeps escaping and coming back pregnant."

Some come from puppy mills. Some come from dogfighting situations.

Once in the shelter, they all are scanned for a microchip. If one exists, the hope is that it has been registered and updated. If an owner can be located, they are not always willing to pay the fee and collect their pet. If there is no owner looking for the animal they need to be checked by a vet to see if they have any communicable diseases. After they are determined to be adoptable, the wait for a forever home begins.

The kennel environment itself proves too much for many animals who either shutdown or become aggressive. This makes their odds even lower.

I once went to the shelter to adopt a cat. This was before it became a no kill shelter. I told them that I wanted the cat that was highest on the list for euthanasia. Muffy was a seven year old cat with 24 toes, six on each paw. She had 24 claws that had grown so long that they had curved back into her own paws. She was terribly matted. The vet told me that they could put her under and shave her if I wanted. I said no and took her home. I worked on those mats with my fingers and with scissors and my ex bathed her to loosen the ones that had formed around her feces. We clipped her claws and gently pulled the ends from her feet. The next challenge was teaching her to be a cat. I sat in the doorway until she got comfortable with that. Next was the sidewalk, and finally the yard. She was very cautious and concerned at the feel of grass. Eventually, her days consisted of laying in the yard and soaking up the heat of the sun. I am convinced that she had lived in a cage her entire life up until the day I adopted her. As she was, her odds were pretty poor. I am so glad that the second half of her life was a good one.

In the book. "ONE at a Time" the authors spent one week at a typical city shelter. This book was published in 2003 but the statistics overall still hold true. In just that one shelter, in that one city, in one week:

363 animals passed through the shelter

240 were brought in lost or stray

14 were brought in for euthanasia due to illness or old age

3 were taken in under protective custody

15 were found and claimed by their families

6 were dead on arrival

6 died after arriving

2 were stolen

2 were transferred to other shelters

215 were adopted to new homes

117 were euthanized

How to help

Volunteer (walk the dogs, give them a break from kennel time, give them human contact)

Donate (vets, food, running spay/ neuter programs are only some of the expenses)

Adopt (make room in the shelter for yet another animal, don't support the continued breeding for profit that exists everywhere.

Be a responsible pet owner. Spay or neuter your pet. License and microchip your pet. Provide vet care, love, training and commitment to your pet. You'll be well rewarded.

If you have rental property, agree to rent to responsible pet owners.

PLEASE, consider the shelter worker who chose this life because of their love for animals. They are forced to choose between this animal and that one, who lives and who dies. Instead of saving them all, they hold them and speak softly as they put them down to make room for the endless stream. It is heartbreaking beyond words. HELP THEM!!