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My Blog Entry
Kill Vs. No Kill Shelters...
This is a serious blog entry and its one of those touchy subjects for pet lovers so please bare with me and try to read the whole thing with an open mind. Many dont really understand why there is a need for kill shelters and to be honest no one wants to have them around but as long as there are so many homeless/unwanted pets there will always be a need for them. As a Veterinary Tech. I have worked for a few animal hospitals and then later on down the line decided to work in a shelter environment. First was the North Shore Animal League*no kill* and last was the NYC ACC aka the city pound*kill*. Now at first when i came to the ACC it was very hard to see so many unwanted or unadoptable pets being put to sleep, even worse was that the Techs were responsible for this job and we had to take a course to be certified to humanely euthanize animals. The first day was the hardest for me but after awhile you start to see the big picture. Most of these animals would have been thrown on the street to be hit by a car, starved from neglect, set on fire or abused in some way, used as bait or fought on the regular, chained up in someones backyard, thrown out of cars or windows...you name it, ive seen it all and to be honest id rather see them go humanely than to be suffering in any way. Now dont get me wrong, if someone can find a home for their pet that they can no longer care for then please do so but it takes a really strong person to know when they dont have the time, money or other resources to care for ther pets. Some people prolong trying to find their pets a home for selfish reasons and some are just too afraid of what may happen to their pet if they take them to the shelter. At least at the shelter they have the chance to be seen by the public and hopefully adopted. Now no kill shelters are wonderful and most of them are no kill these days however have you seen what happens to an animal when they are caged for a couple months or even years, they actually start to go mad. Lets say that one no kill shelter can house 300 animals, by the way almost all no kill shelters have no room for anymore animals and this is why...those 300 animals are holding up all those cages usually for the rest of their lives. Plus it costs a lot of money to run these shelters, think about all costs for food, meds, employees to care for the pets and so they rely on public donations to help. At a kill shelter which is usually given a set budget by the city they may have to put to sleep many animals but they are saving so many more lives because they are giving many animals a chance to be adopted. When people hear kill they already dont want to help, donate or support in any way but these are the animals that need our help the most. This is why me and Bella choose to donate to our local kill shelter specifically. No one knows more than myself how painful it is to look into two sad, neglected and unloved eyes, to hold them and reasure them that everything will be okay while putting them to sleep. By the way, if done correctly there is no pain, its just like an overdose of anesthesia and the injection puts them to sleep before the heart actually stops. To this day i still carry their pain but you know what? Like i said before there were so many more lives that were saved and those are the memories that i dwell on. Even by myself i know i did a lot, all those lunch hours spent with those animals even if i knew some wouldnt be adopted, all the phone calls i made to family/friends/media to see if they wanted a dog/cat, all the money i spent on treats and toys just for them to be able to feel somewhat normal. All of that helped and this is why we chose to do everything in our power to help out those animals in the kill shelter because they need it more than any shelter pet in my eyes. Thanks for reading my thoughts.
Blog Barks
I have always meant to comment on this blog. I think it is perfectly worded and sums up the kill and no kill shelter situation perfectly. I used to work as a manager at Mass General Hospital ER as well as the Children's Hospital ER here in Boston, MA. I saw a lot of tragedy and a lot of death. I also saw a lot of happy endings.
I just started working for the MSPCA and I figured, "well I am used to all of this happening to humans, animals shouldn't be any different". I can only think this is harder work for the shelter workers. The human ERs were there to heal. Many shelter workers are there to euthanize. An angel of mercy you are ... and as for educating the kids, I am a Mom ,and my husband Jim and I have 4 kids between us. I plan on somehow doing a presentation at the school to educate about prevention of cruelty to animals as well as do a fundraiser at the school. Parents are weary from being hit up to donate cash, there have been so many drives for many causes, I am going to instead try to have people donate blankets, gently used toys, food, etc. the list goes on. Thanks ... and I think it is time for ME to blog on my new rescue efforts ...
Sharon & Kitsu
172 days ago by Kitsune
Great post. We also have a thread in forum http://www.mydogspace.com/forums/8/topics/240
199 days ago by TinaValant
Your thoughts are so true...while no-kills are good in theory, in many cases it just doesn't work. Like you said, the dogs can sit for years....is that a good thing? Is being alive the same as living? A shelter is a short term stop but when the dog is left for days, weeks, and years it's not fair. It's not living.
Don't get me wrong....there are some that give individual care and socialization, but the majority (at least locally here) are a shelter....kennels with dogs who get the minimum of care...food, water, and little interraction with humans. It's a difficult lesson, but sometimes euthanization is for the best. It's a bitter pill to swallow for each of us, but until everyone realizes that having pets is a lifetime committment the battle will go on.
The concept of no kill can be deceiving too. Our Humane Society recently went to no-kill status and everyoen thinks it's wonderful. Well, it's wonderful for their reputation because the general public isn't aware of the entire story. yes, they are no-kill, but the truth is that now 1000's more go to Animal Care and Control where they are euthanized. Those animals do not disappear....they are just killed at a different location.
And yes....we absolutely need to help at kill shelters!!! the workers there have so much stress...one of the vets that worked there actually had to quit because he was having heart trouble because of the sheer volume of dogs and what he had to do. Educating the public is so key....and since so-called adults are not listening, we need to get out there and educate the kids.
199 days ago by aussie6pk
it is a very sad place but if people would be more responsible then there would be no need for such a shelter i agree with naturebydawn we have 6 dogs 4 cats 1 horse and everybody is fixed even the horse. There is nothing sadder then driving and seeing a animal that was hit. So it sucks that there has to be shelters like that but there does...
200 days ago by grammyof4by4
I too have worked at a kill-shelter. It was in Austin, Texas about 10 years ago. It was a very difficult job but it was unfortunately a harsh reality. We had anywhere between 50-100 animals come in per day whether by animal control, owner-release, or as a lost dog from a concerned citizen. Of these 50-100 animals, only 5-10 would have their owners reclaim them and only 10-20 per day would be adopted. That's 35-70 animals with no place to go. And most of these left-over animals were already either very sick and unhealthy due to neglect and mistreatment or they were unadoptable due to aggressive behavior.
It is all very sad. Needless to say, I ended up with six dogs and four cats by the time I quit working there. I could tell you stories about them that would make you cry at their not-so-happy beginnings and their very happy endings.
I learned a lot working at the shelter. All my pets are fixed. All animals that are not intended for breeding should be fixed and no one should be breeding dogs unless they are professional breeders. Dogs were not put on this earth to make money. They are here to help us live longer, happier, healthier lives.
200 days ago by naturebydawn
Hopefully i didnt come across as giving no kill shelters a thumbs down because its great that there are so many animal lovers out there willing to donate their money, time and patience to help out and its wonderful that you guys are able to socialize your animals daily but im sure you know that all shelters are not as blessed. We just dont want people to have these horrible thoughts of city shelters that are FORCED to euthanize animals on a daily basis because where else can these poor animals go??? Thankfully i no longer have that tough responsiblity and dont work for them anymore but i still try to get the word out about this common misunderstanding how kill shelters just putting down every animal that walks in the door, which of course isnt true at all.
200 days ago by nyvettechdog...
Your blog is hard to read but we know it is the sad reality. As long as there are uneducated and careless people who do not have pets spayed or nutered or just plain have no business having a pet there will be a need for shelters. What you said about the no kill shelters, even though I work at a very small one, when we have dogs that are not adopted for quiet some time they do change. It takes a while for the true personality to come out and when it does they really want to be out. Fortunetly we have enough workers and volunteers that they are walked or played with in the bonding room several times a day. You are doing something that I know mentally I could never do. Thankfully there are caring people who do have the strength. I just wish there was no need for any of this.
201 days ago by sanchodixie
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