# Letter from a Shelter Manager



## caligirl07 (Sep 21, 2007)

I just got this email from my friend, I have to ask her where did she get it. 

*Letter from a Shelter Manager:*

I think our society needs a huge "Wake-up" call. As a shelter manager, I am going to share a little insight with you all...a view from the inside if you will. 


First off, all of you breeders/sellers should be made to work in the "back" of an animal shelter for just one day. Maybe if you saw the life drain from a few sad, lost, confused eyes, you would change your mind about breeding and selling to people you don't even know. 


That puppy you just sold will most likely end up in my shelter when it's not a cute little puppy anymore. So how would you feel if you knew that there's about a 90% chance that dog will never walk out of the shelter it is going to be dumped at? Purebred or not! About 50% of all of the dogs that are "owner surrenders" or "strays", that come into my shelter are purebred dogs. 


The most common excuses I hear are; "We are moving and we can't take our dog (or cat)." Really? Where are you moving too that doesn't allow pets? Or they say "The dog got bigger than we thought it would". How big did you think a German Shepherd would get? "We don't have time for her". Really? I work a 10-12 hour day and still have time for my 6 dogs! "She's tearing up our yard". How about making her a part of your family? They always tell me "We just don't want to have to stress about finding a place for her we know she'll get adopted, she's a good dog". 


Odds are your pet won't get adopted & how stressful do you think being in a shelter is? Well, let me tell you, your pet has 72 hours to find a new family from the moment you drop it off. Sometimes a little longer if the shelter isn't full and your dog manages to stay completely healthy. If it sniffles, it dies. Your pet will be confined to a small run/kennel in a room with about 25 other barking or crying animals. It will have to relieve itself where it eats and sleeps. It will be depressed and it will cry constantly for the family that abandoned it. If your pet is lucky, I will have enough volunteers in that day to take him/her for a walk. If I don't, your pet won't get any attention besides having a bowl of food slid under the kennel door and the waste sprayed out of its pen with a high-powered hose. If your dog is big, black or any of the "Bully" breeds (pit bull, rottie, mastiff, etc) it was pretty much dead when you walked it through the front door. 


Those dogs just don't get adopted. It doesn't matter how 'sweet' or 'well behaved' they are. 


If your dog doesn't get adopted within its 72 hours and the shelter is full, it will be destroyed. If the shelter isn't full and your dog is good enough, and of a desirable enough breed it may get a stay of execution, but not for long . Most dogs get very kennel protective after about a week and are destroyed for showing aggression. Even the sweetest dogs will turn in this environment. If your pet makes it over all of those hurdles chances are it will get kennel cough or an upper respiratory infection and will be destroyed because shelters just don't have the funds to pay for even a $100 treatment. 


Here's a little euthanasia 101 for those of you that have never witnessed a perfectly healthy, scared animal being "put-down". 


First, your pet will be taken from its kennel on a leash. They always look like they think they are going for a walk happy, wagging their tails. Until they get to "The Room", every one of them freaks out and puts on the brakes when we get to the door. It must smell like death or they can feel the sad souls that are left in there, it's strange, but it happens with every one of them. Your dog or cat will be restrained, held down by 1 or 2 vet techs depending on the size and how freaked out they are. Then a euthanasia tech or a vet will start the process. They will find a vein in the front leg and inject a lethal dose of the "pink stuff". Hopefully your pet doesn't panic from being restrained and jerk. I've seen the needles tear out of a leg and been covered with the resulting blood and been deafened by the yelps and screams. They all don't just "go to sleep", sometimes they spasm for a while, gasp for air and defecate on themselves. 


When it all ends, your pets corpse will be stacked like firewood in a large freezer in the back with all of the other animals that were killed waiting to be picked up like garbage. What happens next? Cremated? Taken to the dump? Rendered into pet food? You'll never know and it probably won't even cross your mind. It was just an animal and you can always buy another one, right? 


I hope that those of you that have read this are bawling your eyes out and can't get the pictures out of your head I deal with everyday on the way home from work. 


I hate my job, I hate that it exists & I hate that it will always be there unless you people make some changes and realize that the lives you are affecting go much farther than the pets you dump at a shelter. 


Between 9 and 11 MILLION animals die every year in shelters and only you can stop it. I do my best to save every life I can but rescues are always full, and there are more animals coming in everyday than there are homes. 


My point to all of this DON'T BREED OR BUY WHILE SHELTER PETS DIE! 


Hate me if you want to. The truth hurts and reality is what it is. I just hope I maybe changed one persons mind about breeding their dog, taking their loving pet to a shelter, or buying a dog. I hope that someone will walk into my shelter and say "I saw this and it made me want to adopt". THAT WOULD MAKE IT WORTH IT


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## Daisy1986 (Jul 9, 2008)

I got this in an E-mail about a month ago. Very powerful. Stuck with me. I forwarded it. 

Even though I know there are good breeders out there and on here. 

I just never see them.


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## pupresq (Dec 2, 2005)

I know there are good breeders out there, but I support the larger point of her letter which is right on the money - too few people really think about what can and does happen. How many times do we see people post on the urgent board to say "how on earth did a dog this pretty/sweet/well trained/well bred etc. end up in a shelter?" And all I can say is that it happens ALL the time. 

"Oh, he's so pretty/sweet/well trained/well bred I'm SURE he will get a home." Really? I'm not. Shelters around here have 80-100% kill rates. And that's not because 90% of the dogs were sick or bad tempered. 

When I worked at a shelter I heard over and over and over again the same litany of excuses and lies people told themselves to make what they were doing okay. I still see it in rescue. People have no clue. Try euthanizing a litter of healthy puppies while they're jumping up to lick your face. Try being the one selected to lead the shy dog to the euth room because you're the one she trusts. That stuff will stay with you for life. And it should. 

THE thing that I wish people would get from these kinds of letters is that shelters across the country are FULL of wonderful dogs and cats of every size, breed, and description, and they will most likely die there until people wake up and start making some changes.


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## new_wind (Oct 24, 2008)

this make me roll some tears...
Sad but very true.


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## Teufelhund (Jul 16, 2007)

I posted it on my Facebook in the hopes some people will start thinking. What more can I say...


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## Tetley's Mom (Dec 1, 2008)

I feel sick. I felt the need to respond so you knew it was read by somebody else, but there is nothing I can say... other than I want to go take every dog home at my local shelter... which I cannot do.


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## elly1210 (Jan 4, 2009)

I have seen this before and everytime I read it makes me cry and I think in my head thank goodness I was never one of those owners.


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## Timber1 (May 19, 2007)

Linda,

I simply want to keep your post alive for a bit, but if the kill rate is so high in your part of the country --- time to shut up.


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## caligirl07 (Sep 21, 2007)

I know how you feel, I feel the same. I wish we could do something more to help. I will print this out and stick it to our board in a dog park.


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## caligirl07 (Sep 21, 2007)

I think this email is old, my friend said he got it from someone too. Lots of people read it already.


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## caligirl07 (Sep 21, 2007)

I do't know what you mean by this.


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## Daisy1986 (Jul 9, 2008)

I added it to my FB page in my notes....


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## Timber1 (May 19, 2007)

I appreciate your comments, but do not fully undertsand the high kill rate in certain parts of the country, as you describe it. 

My daughter works for the Milwaukee Humane Society, and they put to death less then 5 percent of the dogs they take per year. You may have seen this on Oprah, but they took 1,600 dogs about six months ago from a puppy mill, and aside from severe sickness, almost all have already been placed. And the Shepherds go quick.

The rescue group I work with has not put to death a dog in over two years.

I suspect the folks in San Francisco have a few more dollars then those of us in Wisconsin, so why are so many dogs killed visa-via so other states.

OK, one more thought. Can't you solicit enough contributions to expand the shelter. Start with TV and Radio, for example Fox News has been very good to us and a bit of publicity goes a long way toward additional dollars.


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## Timber1 (May 19, 2007)

I appreciate your comments, but do not fully undertsand the high kill rate in certain parts of the country, as you describe it. 

My daughter works for the Milwaukee Humane Society, and they put to death less then 5 percent of the dogs they take per year. You may have seen this on Oprah, but they took 1,600 dogs about six months ago from a puppy mill, and aside from severe sickness, almost all have already been placed. And the Shepherds go quick.

The rescue group I work with has not put to death a dog in over two years.

I suspect the folks in San Francisco have a few more dollars then those of us in Wisconsin, so why are so many dogs killed visa-via so other states.

OK, one more thought. Can't you solicit enough contributions to expand the shelter. Start with TV and Radio, for example Fox News has been very good to us and a bit of publicity goes a long way toward additional dollars.


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## Kayla's Dad (Jul 2, 2007)

Timber, your response sounds like you are attributing the contents of the e-mail Linda posted to a Shelter Manager here in the Bay Area. I though it was a general comment to anyone posting with a high kill rate in their geograhic area.

The e-mail has been circulated through many forums - one of which attributed it in Dec. to a shelter manager in Texas:
Best of Craigslist 

Who knows if that if the true origin and in all reality who cares? It can be attributed to too many shelters throughout the country and that is the sad reality of the situation. I would take your comments and, instead of applying them to San Fransico, shotgun them in any direction from where you sit and you will probably hit a bulls-eye somewhere before that shot hits the coast. And that is truly the sad reality.


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## Jazy's mom (Jan 5, 2004)

Timber, first of all this is a letter from a shelter worker not from the OP and it was received in an email that has been forwarded around and not a letter that was received directly from the person that wrote it. 

Second, this letter was written by someone that works in a kill shelter that is most likely a city or county run shelter, not a Human Society or non-profit rescue. Two totally different stories.

Please don't take this the wrong way Timber, but I am going to guess that you have never been to a shelter in the south. It is a completely different world down here. We do not have any spay/neuter laws and many people here do not view pets as family members. Within a one mile radius of my home, I could probaby find 30 dogs that are either chained or live outside in a fenced in yard and are never allowed in the house. I know for a fact that there are two chows on my street that have probably never been inside except for when they went to the vets for shots and my guess is that they have not been to the vet in several years. 

The county run shelters (that is if the county even has a shelter) operate on very low budgets and most politicians don't want to spend money on animal shelters when we don't even have enough money to build new schools or repair our roads and bridges.

To put this in perspective her are some statistics from my county and some of the surrounding counties. 

Knox Co (my county) - total incoming animals = 17213, adopted / rescued / reclaimed = 4430 (27%), Euthanized = 12261 (73%)

Sevier Co - total incoming animals = 4809, adopted / rescued / reclaimed = 1102 (22%), Euthanized = 3826 (78%)

Loudon Co - total incoming animals = 3603, adopted / rescued / reclaimed = 1136 (32%), Euthanized = 2467 (68%)

Anderson Co - total incoming animals = 3576, adopted / rescued / reclaimed = 1114 (29%), Euthanized = 2742 (71%)

You will notice that the incoming animals for Knox Co is much larger than the other counties. This is for several reasons. The Knox Co shelter is one of the newest and is probably the largest. It also has a surgical room where the animals can be treated in house. Because of this people think the animals are treated better at this shelter and have a better chance of being adopted, so they drive from the surrounding counties to bring there animals here. Also, two of the counties that touch Knox Co do not even have shelters so many of the strays that are found are brought to Knox Co.


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## pupresq (Dec 2, 2005)

Amy - right on! My experiences are similar to yours. The shelters my rescue group assists had near 100% euthanasia rates before they start working with rescue to export dogs out of the local area. The rates are still around 50% for dogs and much worse for cats. Harlan, the shelter I personally coordinate for gets in about 200 dogs a month and around 70 cats. In the year (YEAR!) 2008, I think they did about 12 adoptions. There were even fewer reclaims. So... pretty much any animal that doesn't make it into rescue dies there. There are so many animals per person that there isn't an adopter base for the rest. Even the dogs that are owned, nearly all live outside and are unaltered.

These sad stats aren't because the shelter staff don't care or because we don't try hard enough. And it's not a problem that can be solved by a nicer shelter lobby or flowers out front (as some of the no kill lit seems to suggest). It's the reality of communities with NO spay/neuter both because of lack of access as well as community-wide poverty. We work with the shelters and with another KY-wide nonprofit to schedule spay/neuter events. We pour our personal time and money into organizing and driving transports to reputable rescues in other areas. But it's an uphill battle against absolutely staggering odds. 

When I lived in NC I worked at a shelter very similar to the one the letter writer describes. That shelter was actually in a far more affluent community than the ones I now work in but we still had just over 70% euthanasia rate. 

My group partners with a lot of rescue folks and no-kill shelters in other communities where we send our dogs. Many of them have traveled down here to assist with transports and just see first hand the communities they are helping. Most of them are absolutely blown away and have to adjust a lot of preconceived ideas, but they leave with a renewed sense of purpose and understanding of how desperately their help is needed. 

There are no easy solutions, only blood sweat and tears. But we're making progress. However, we'll never really win the war until more people go to these shelters and see all the wonderful animals dying there.


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## caligirl07 (Sep 21, 2007)

Actually, I don't know which shelter manager wrote that email, I got it from friend and he got it from someone too...it is just forwarded I guess. So I don't really know which shelter that is. 

I just wish, I have a big house and can take all those animals in.


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## Timber1 (May 19, 2007)

I have never been to a shelter in the south, but our rescue has adopted some dogs from the southern states regardless of age. I appreciate the comments from everyone tht have posted subsequent to mine.

The one question I raised, which no one has responded to, relates to fund raising. Althought times are tough, there has to be a way to save more dogs, and it relates to getting more dollars into shelters and the good humane societies.


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## weber1b (Nov 30, 2008)

Th problem will not go away as long as people refuse to spay and neuter. And the folks who have a litter just to let the kids experience birth...........well anough said on that. And it is not just in the south where the animals being kept outside are common. This is also common in rural midwest and I'm sure out west too. And all it takes is a few of these unaltered animals to roam around.......and we know where that leads. Change will only come with information and proper effective regulation of breeding. Unfortunately the worst breeders are working outside the law already so they won't be affected. Just like in so many areas, it is not the lack of laws, it is the lack of an ability to enforce that which is already in place.

In the meantime, all we can do is save as many as we can and keep spreading the word to everyone we know. Let people be aware that shelters and rescues are where they can get good pets instead of the pet stores etc etc. Good breeders have their place, it's the accidentals and the mills that produce the real excess.


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## Jazy's mom (Jan 5, 2004)

Timber, the reason Knox Co has a fairly new and large shelter is the direct result of grants and donations. There is no way this shelter would have been built if all of the money came from the state/county. This shelter does hold fundraising events through out the year, but one of the big problems with city/county run shelters is that they are usually kill shelters and most people do not want ot donate their money to animal facility that euthanizes animals.


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## pupresq (Dec 2, 2005)

We fundraise constantly and people have been great but our cost to transport dogs out of _one_ shelter easily exceeds $600 a month, and that's just transport. The shelters we work with are in economically depressed areas. There is no local funding base and faced with a tiny budget and the choice to feed kids or feed dogs, the local govt makes the reasonable decision to feed the kids. Unfortunately that leaves the dogs and cats out of luck. One of our greatest funding needs is $ to supply the shelters with vaccines so we can cut down on the # of puppies that contract parvo. It's a tough situation and when you are surrounded by other shelters in exactly the same boat, you can only hit the same donors so many times.


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## Timber1 (May 19, 2007)

Amy,

if you send me a personal note I would be happy to contribute to your shelter if it is a NPO. 

As for the subsequent poster, we now pay only 24 cents per mile for transport which means your dogs, for $600, must travel 2,500 miles to be placed. Even airfares are cheaper.

Send us $400, and I suspect we would gladly take one of your dogs and arrange for transport. Again, via personal E Mail. 

Credentials, read the comments about Bella on the urgent rescue and follow up section. 

Sorry, just to much rationalization and excuses by some. As my old boss told me, just shut up and get the job done. 

In our case it is saving dogs, not rationalizing because they are killed.


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## Papanapa (Mar 1, 2008)

This post made me so sad. It is such a shame that people just take their dogs and dump them. Our local pound in Trumbull County has a 86% kill rate.


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## pupresq (Dec 2, 2005)

Timber that money pays to transport a minimum of 40 dogs per transport, and at least 2 transports per month. We have to pay rental on a cargo van, vetting for health certificates, and then gas to the shelter and then to the destination. I actually think getting the dogs to good rescues hundreds of miles away for less than $10 a head is pretty darned good. Show me how we can save more dogs more efficiently, and I'd be happy to try it. I am not making rationalizations or excuses. I live this stuff all day every day and pour my energy and money into this effort. You have never even BEEN to one of these shelters. It would be nice if you could at least give us the benefit of the doubt that we have given this some thought. 



> Quote:As my old boss told me, just shut up and get the job done.


Please. Come here. Show me how we can do more and how we can do better. This is unbelievably offensive.


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## Jazy's mom (Jan 5, 2004)

Please understand that some of these shelters that Hannah pulls from are in some of the poorest areas of the country (yes country not the state). These are coal mining areas, were almost every person is on some type of government program (food stamps, welfare, etc.) I tell you this not as an excuse, but to put it in perspective. The people in these areas barely have enough to feed their kids, so animals are not a priority. Because of this, the animals that sit in the shelters in this area do not stand a chance at survival unless they are pulled by rescues and transported out of that area. This is what Hannah does by the van load twice a month. If it was not for Hannah and other volunteers like her, all of these dogs would be dead. If you want to read about someone getting the job done just read this thread - http://www.germanshepherds.com/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=950274&page=1&gonew=1#UNREAD

You might want to rethink your above statement. Like Hannah said, you simply can not understand until you come down here and see if for yourself.

As far as contributing to my shelter. I assume NPO stands for Non Profit Organization. The Knox Co shelter (aka Young Williams Animal Center) is a county run shelter. 

If you are talking about my rescue, I do plan to apply for my non-profit status, but honestly I have not had the time to file the paperwork, because I am too busy getting the job done as you say. I am a tax accountant and this is my busiest time of the year. Also, due to several medical bills for some of my current fosters, I do not have the funds to file the paper work at this time. I plan on doing a fundraiser this summer and hope to use that money to file all the paperwork with the state and federal government.


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## pupresq (Dec 2, 2005)

Thanks Amy! 

Timber- I have had a little more sleep and am not quite as cranky as I was last night but am still very troubled by your comments. I think you probably have good intentions but that perhaps these comments are coming from ignorance about how all this actually works. I know you are fairly new to rescue and should not be expected to understand how it all happens in other areas of the country, but please, know what you do not know and try to be open to learning more before condemning the people doing this work for not trying hard enough. 

As I said, the $600 pays for 80-100 dogs to get out of the shelter and to approved rescues. Dog by dog, that's a pretty good price. The money of course does not begin to take into account the volunteer hours that must be spent booking dogs with receiving rescues, planning logistics, and driving the transports - which often involve being on the road for at least 24 hours. Like me, most of the people working on this effort are also running rescue groups, fostering, doing adoptions, and all the planning and organizing that goes into _those_ efforts. At any given time, I have 4-5 foster dogs that are part of my rescue group, this is in addition to all the shelter coordination stuff. A lot of the shelters we work with don't even have computers and when that's the case, it's our members who travel to the shelters, take all the pictures, write up all the Petfinder listings, and answer all the email inquiries. Through these efforts, we save several thousand dogs a year. Just like you, we are all volunteers with jobs, families, and other commitments. I'm not saying all this to toot our horns or try to prove we're special - we're not, we're just like hundreds of other rescuers and shelter workers who are all engaged in the same effort. But given how much time, energy, and money we put into this, and constant brain power and fine tuning to get things as efficient as we can, to lay in place the ground work that will help the shelter begin to get on it's feet, to involve the county and community, to provide people with access to spay/neuter programs... to be told that we're making excuses and not doing enough is quite a slap in the face.


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## weber1b (Nov 30, 2008)

Walk a mile in another man's mocassins..........

Sometimes it is hard to understand another's plight unless you see it with your own eyes. I think anybody who works in or around animal shelters is an amazing person. I don't know that I could do it day in and day out.


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## RebelGSD (Mar 20, 2008)

There is a huge difference between fostering for a relatively well-funded rescue (that takes care of transportation, vet bills and training expenses) or being an employee of a well funded Humane Society in the North and being one of a handful of volunteers supporting several poor, rural shelters in the South.

Timber1, it is wonderful that you fostered 10-15 dogs for a large rescue. Having done that is far from knowing everything, or knowing everything better. Hannah, whose efforts you put down, has rescued hundreds and she takes responsibility for running a rescue, coordinating rescues and transports for several area shelters and raising funds for those efforts day in day out - in addition to fostering dogs in her home like you. So maybe, instead of the patronizing comments from your high horse, you should walk in her shoes for a day. I do challenge you to rescue a couple of dogs from the shelters Hannah is working with (I did when nobody else offered help) instead of bragging. There are plenty of rescuers out there who are no non-profit, because the money it costs to file the paperwork they will spend on saving 3-4 lives. 

Timber1, I suggest that you get into a car, drive through the South and visit several of these shelters and work with the volunteers. You will learn something about this country and it will be an eyeopening experience.


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## Timber1 (May 19, 2007)

OK, so many inaccurate statements. I do not work with a large rescue but we keep growing, in part because we have a wonderful fund raiser, and like everyone that responded are very committed to saving dogs. Nonetheless, we are not that well funded, and although my reascue does reimburse, some of us fosters have never asked for a penney. Like most, there are times when the cash flow is a bit negative. Although I have not visited the southern shelters, Ihave driven south to pick up dogs from those states.

Let me respond to your comments about patronizing comments from my high horse. I tend to think actions are louder then words, and did offer to help place a dog.

Beyond that, I mentioned that I would be willing to contribute $$$ toward Hannah's efforts, despite fostering for another group. So, if you or any else are willing to match my contribution, or can contribute something let me know via personal message. 

If not, it is clear words are more important tosome then actions, and I find that very disturbing.


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## Timber1 (May 19, 2007)

Are you Hannah. If so as promised I will forward a personal contribution. Just send me the name of the shelter and mailing address. 

I do get frustrated because most respondents feel sorry for these dogs, but neither foster or provide financial support. Just opinions and criticism, why never doing anything helpful.

Then when you ask them for help, they back away. 

If I offended you, I apologize.


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## pupresq (Dec 2, 2005)

Timber - you seem to be assuming that people aren't doing anything until proven otherwise but most of the people who are posting in this section do a TON. RebelGSD IS walking the walk, she runs a rescue group, she fosters multiple dogs, places them and all that that entails. Not only that but she is a huge advocate for the problem dogs, the dogs with behavioral issues that scare a lot of people off. She gives those dogs the benefit of the doubt and a chance to show what they can be out of the shelter and with a little love and understanding. Not once, but over and over and over again.

You offered to take one dog from the shelter I work with if I sent you $400. That's not really an offer I can do anything with because money is pretty thin on the ground here and used more efficiently could save an entire cargo van load of dogs. And even if you weren't asking for money, it's _one_ dog. That is a wonderful thing for that one dog but there are 199 other ones that will come in this month that I also have to figure something out for. I don't think you're fully appreciating the scale of what we're up against here. And we're NOT using that scale to throw up our hands and do nothing, we're doing a lot, but no matter how much we do, it's not enough to save many of the dogs from the fate that the original letter describes. And frankly, her shelter sounds better funded and staffed that 99% of what we've got going around here. 

Meeting a transport with some southern dogs is great. Fostering is great. But neither of these things will give you any information on what it's like to work closely with, much less IN, one of these shelters.


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## RebelGSD (Mar 20, 2008)

Timber1, if you mean that I don't foster or make donations, I have to tell you that I single handedly rescued, fostered and placed over 120 dogs and paid fully for their care out of pocket with the money I make at my full time job. I don't have the need to go around bragging about being the big rescuer it in every post I make, like some people here. I just do it. I rescued several dogs from Hannah's shelters, paid for their care etc. 
I cannot believe that you asked for $400 to take in a dog from the shelter. What is wrong with you?


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

Other than the letter, I am sorry but I didn't read all the posts. I forwarded this moving letter to the local SPCA head and he was in complete agreement and will be adding it to the newsletter. I thank all for what you do in rescue and the bickering should stop. We all do what we do in our lay of the land and thank God there is passion, but place it positively!! Please re-read the OP's letter and put your perspective back where it should be. I foster, ask for nothing in return and hope my foster will find a great forever home. I volunteer in weekly adoption events and there are a min of 10 dogs placed every week. These are dogs w/ no future otherwise, most aren't beautiful, or have baggage and we show their best sides. Luckily in my area, we have a loving dog community,many volunteers, and adopters as well along w/ economic hardship-but the priorities are in place. Last year the local spca adopted out as many as they pulled so it was a good year. The fees charged are way over what many rescues are, but it pays for vetting and kennel help, so in the long run breaks even.

One other thing: Many won't even come into the local spca adoption events as they describe it as very sad and disturbing. It could be much worse if they could only see how bad some shelters are...


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

> Originally Posted By: onyx'girl Last year the local spca adopted out as many as they pulled so it was a good year.


From the President of the local SPCA:
Amazingly, we finished 2008 with the exact same number of rescues and adoptions: 1,035. These numbers represent a small decline from 2007 rescue and adoption figures, as provided below. Home for the Holidays saved us from a much more serious decline in adoption numbers.
Dogs and Puppies Rescued in 2008: 1,035
Dogs Returned in 2008 from previous years: 46
Dogs and Puppies Rescued in 2007: 1,132
Percentage Change 2008 versus 2007: -8.5%
Dogs and Puppies Adopted in 2008: 1,035
Dogs and Puppies Adopted in 2007: 1,059
Percentage Change 2008 versus 2007: -2.2
Rescued Dogs and Puppies that Died in SPCA Care in 2008: 45, or 4% of all rescued dogs and puppies
Causes of Death:
Parvo in Puppies: 23 fatalities, or 2.2% of all dogs and puppies rescued
Euthanized as Unadoptable: 10 cases, or 1.0% of all dogs and puppies rescued
Unviable Puppies that Died At or Shortly After Birth: 8 fatalities, or 0.8% of rescued pets
Puppies that Died During Sterilization Surgery: 2 cases
Dogs that were Mercifully Released from Incurable, Painful Disease: 2 cases


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## pupresq (Dec 2, 2005)

Perhaps one of the sources of confusion for many people is all the different types of rescue operations and shelters. A few quick definitions:

*Rescue groups *- can be breed specific or all breed. Selects animals for inclusion into their program. Typically foster based. Vets animals and treats most problems. Euthanizes only in cases of severe medical or behavioral issues. 

*No kill shelter and low kill shelters *- these are shelter-like facilities where animals are kenneled but which normally have a good staff and volunteer base to assist with animal care. These groups often pull large numbers of dogs from kill shelters either in their area or elsewhere. They select animals for acceptance based on their adoptability. Euth rates are typically slightly higher than rescue groups because they deal with finances on a larger scale so are unlikely to spend thousands treating a single animal, but again, only euthanize because of behavioral or medical problems. 

*Humane Society *- this is a tricky one. Some of these are no kill shelters as described above, some of these are open admission animal shelters as described below. The term is not consistent. When they're an animal shelter, they're usually a little larger and better funded than their counterparts described below, making them most likely to be low kill shelters. Euth rates vary by locale. 

*Animal shelter, Animal control *- these are _open admission _facilities. This means that they must accept any animal that anyone brings them regardless of adoptability, age, behavior, or medical conditions. They must also accept any animal brought to them no matter how full they are. These are facilities funded by the county as basically a part of waste management to deal with the county's surplus animals. Sometimes the county contracts out with a group to run the shelter, more often they are run by the county itself.

THESE animal control facilities are the facilities the original letter is talking about. When you have a finite amount of space and more animals come in than are adopted out or rescued, the excess animals must be euthanized to clear space for the new ones. Euth rates vary widely by location. Funding, adopter base, access all vary widely too. These facilities can range from large organizations with a big staff, on site vet, and multi-million dollar budget, to a small barn where people can throw their dog or cat over a fence and surplus animals are shot or eaten by other resident animals. So... quite a range. 

So the biggest things to consider when assessing a shelter are as follows:
*Geography *- where is it located, who and how many people live there?
*Funding *- does it have a large staff or is it one guy who comes in once a day and dumps a bag of kibble on the ground? 
*Admission policy *- does the group get to decide what animals it takes on or does it have to take anything anyone brings them? Clearly it's easier to have better adoption rates and lower kill rates if you have some control over what you take in.

Also, a quick word about euthanasia statistics - Many no kill facilities and rescue groups have a very low euth rate. This is to be expected because they have discretion about what animals they bring in and can focus on those they think have some chance of being adoptable as well as cap intake if they become full or run out of money. Fine. Many county run facilities have extremely high euth rates because they have very limited space and no control over admissions. Okay. 

The groups in the middle sometimes need a little scrutiny in terms of how they calculate their numbers. Sometimes they are very straightforward and entirely legit. If you look at absolute numbers - x number of animals in, x number adopted, x number reclaimed, x number put down, you can get a good sense of what's going on there. However there's been a disturbing trend in recent years for some shelters to report their percentages in terms of "adoptable" animals saved versus euth'd. The problem is that what constitutes "adoptable" is highly subjective. IMO, "adoptable" should mean any animal that is basically healthy and not obviously aggressive. However a lot of shelter are artificially deflating their euth rates by deciding that most of the animals that come in are "not adoptable" based on breed, age, or excessively rigorous temperament tests. So you can have a shelter that euthanizes half the animals that come in but claims a very low euth rate of "adoptable" animals, which IMO is deliberately misleading the public. 

Anyway, just thought I'd put all that out there. All these different kinds of groups and facilities have a lot of range within their category, but when you look at them across categories, they are hugely different in both structure and function so it's impossible (and wildly misleading) to compare them to one another.


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## Daisy1986 (Jul 9, 2008)

To address the shelter manager letter. Solutions are the order of the thread. Suggestions. This MGR is crying out of help. This has to stop. 

This last Saturday I volunteered for a local spay and neuter clinic. We were handing out info. and trying to educate the public and letting them know about the clinic. 

It was mostly positive. One man said he had a pure bred dog and he wanted it to get laid at least once. That was the dumbest thing I heard all day. 

We have lots of ideas of what to say...we tried to change his mind. Who knows if it worked. 

What are your ideas of what to say? I am going again Saturday.


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## Daisy1986 (Jul 9, 2008)

Here is another idea to run by everyone. Also a question. 

Is there a list of approved breeders? I understand that there may be one for AKC or something like that. But is there not debate over it being to easy to get AKC approved? Everyone in the paper always advertises pups that are AKC. 

I am asking because I know 2 relatives of mine that have wanted pups, picked up a paper, called and met a breeder at a rest stop on the hwy. This makes me CRAZY. When someone insists on a pup, they want it now. They do not do research or anything. They do not want to fill out paper work. 

So my DH's idea was if someone did not want to go to a rescue could'nt rescues keep a list of breeders they have personaly checked out that do health checks, accept returns, etc. Does it all right (even though I understand the point is to NOT breed). 

Is there lists or programs like this?? 

Maybe it would put the bad ones out of business. Do the wk for the lazy people that want, what they want, NOW. 

I understand that you may think that people like that would not be good pet owners anyway. But the 2 relatives I spoke of before are huge DOG people. They give dogs wonderful homes and have rescued too, quite a bit. They just wanted a certain breed of puppy and did not know any better and got lazy, because I did tell one of them that rescues had puppies, she said the paper wk was TO MUCH.









OK, just venting. If people can bicker I can vent on this thread too.


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## caligirl07 (Sep 21, 2007)

I tried to donate some money for Humane Society every month but I understand it is very tough for lots of people now, so not everybody can afford it.


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## Timber1 (May 19, 2007)

Of course, every person's financial affairs are different. What amazes me, for all the things I have been called, including being on a high horse, all I said was I would contribute toward Hannah's efforts.

So far, not a single response or where to send the contribute. 

Hyprocites, a plenty. Or lord knows, the person that said I was on a high horse should crawl back into his/her cage unless they are willing to contribute.

I am.


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

This all seems to have gotten terribly out of hand. The letter, from a shelter manager, has made the rounds in emails. Is it really from a shelter manager? Who knows. Is it important? Not really. The main point of that email is to make people THINK before they buy from a back yard breeder. And to THINK before they dump their dog at the pound.

I know exactly why my Jax was dumped. She knew NOTHING. She was peeing in the house and chewing on every person she could. Whoever dumped her lied about her age and her breed. A visit to the vet to clear up a UTI and a visit to the trainer to train ME on how to teach my dog it wasn't ok to put her teeth on anyone solved both issues.


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## pupresq (Dec 2, 2005)

Hi Timber,

You had originally said you would contribute to _Amy's_ efforts. In reference to my post that we spend about $600 a month to do transports, you said if I sent you $400 you thought your group could rescue a dog from the shelter I represent. 

Here is the quote:


> Quote:Amy,
> 
> if you send me a personal note I would be happy to contribute to your shelter if it is a NPO.
> 
> ...


Now that the way the $600 is spent and the number of dogs it helps has been clarified, if you would like to donate to my group's efforts we would be thrilled to have your support. KY is an incredibly difficult place to be a dog and every contribution is enormously helpful and appreciated. There is a PayPal link on our home page. Thanks!!!


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## Jazy's mom (Jan 5, 2004)

As I explained, I am not a NPO because I have not had the funds to file the paperwork. The money has been spent on vet bills and dog food instead. If you still would like to contribute to my cause you can contact me at [email protected]. I will say that some of the rescues in KY are in great need at this time due to almost 300 dogs and cats being pulled from a hoarder just in the last 48 hours in Columbia KY.


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## pupresq (Dec 2, 2005)

Great suggestion!


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## RebelGSD (Mar 20, 2008)

> Originally Posted By: Timber1
> 
> Hyprocites, a plenty. Or lord knows, the person that said I was on a high horse should crawl back into his/her cage unless they are willing to contribute.
> 
> I am.


I guess I am the one who is supposed to crawl back into my cage.
My contribution to Hannah's rescue efforts is named Boone and he is in my guest room right now. He will stay with me until I find him a home. I paid for his veterinary care and boarding, picked him up from Hannah's husband and have been caring for him for weeks now. I must have done that from the hypocrisy of my cage that I am supposed to be crawling in for Timber1.


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## pupresq (Dec 2, 2005)

Your contributions also go by the names Thunder, and Max, and...


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## Timber1 (May 19, 2007)

If Hannah, whomever that is would send me a personal E Mail with a name and mailing adress, I would be happy to contribute to his/her efforts.

I also work for a rescue group and perhaps we are a tad more fortunate. 

This has gotten a bit out of hand, thanks in part to me. But if I can help financially, fine.


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## LadyHawk (Jan 19, 2005)

> Originally Posted By: TeufelhundI posted it on my Facebook in the hopes some people will start thinking. What more can I say...


There's nothiing more that needs be said than that. 
I give "whomever wrote it" credit for writing that. It takes brass to stand up and tell the truth about a subject no one wants to deal with.


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