Animal Shelter Truths ** Graphic * *

[chevysoldier]

** Graphic read and picture **

I felt this needed to be reposted on here.

This was on Tri-Cities Craigslist. I wish I knew who the shelter manger was who posted this, this is the most commendable thing I have ever witnessed and this person is amazing. When you surrender your best friend to the shelter go ahead and think it won't happen to them. But now you know better. And don't go out and get another one, if you cared so little to do it once you will do it again.

Please Please Read This

BEFORE you breed dogs in your back yard!

BEFORE you take them to the POUND (USA)

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 people who have ever surrendered a pet to a shelter or humane society 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 stop flagging the ads on Craigslist and help these animals find homes. That puppy you just bought will most likely end up in my shelter when it's not a cute little puppy anymore. Just so you know there's a 90% chance that dog will never walk out of the shelter it's dumped at? Purebred or not! About 25% of all of the dogs that are "owner surrenders" or "strays", that come into a shelter are purebred dogs.

The most common excuses: "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 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 in most cases, 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 the shelter gets paid a fee to euthanize each animal, and making money is better than spending money to take this animal to the vet.

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.

When it all ends, your pet's 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? Or used for the schools to dissect and experiment on? 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 who still have a beating heart and have read this are bawling your eyes out and can't get the pictures out of your head, I deal with this everyday.

I hate my job, I hate that it exists & I hate that it will always be there unless you people make some changes and start educating the public.

Do research, do your homework, and know exactly what you are getting into before getting a pet.

These shelters and humane societies exist because people just do not care about animals anymore. Animals were not intended to be disposable but somehow that is what they are these days.

Animal shelters are an easy way out when you get tired of your dog (or cat), and breeders are the ones blamed for this. Animal shelters and rescue organizations are making a hefty profit by keeping this misconception going.

Between 9 and 11 MILLION animals die every year in shelters (Humane Society of the United States estimates 3-4 million) and only you - as a pet owner can stop it. I just hope I maybe changed one persons mind about taking their dog to a shelter, a humane society, or buying a dog without researching. For those of you that care--- please re-post this to at least one other Craigslist in another city/state. Let's see if we can get this all around the US and have an impact.

THINK before your selfishness begins to take over.

[BDBGoalie]

The problem of irresponsible owners is a major issue. People just don't care about their responsibilities and are willing to toss the animal as soon as it inconviences them.

 

And the next time your buddy says he wants "x" but works 8 hours a day, remind him that "x" will require care and attention every few hours. It is not fair to a dog to take him out once in the morning and once in the evening and expect him to be satisfied.

Hell, if you want a pet but your busy with work/life, get a snake/reptile. They are still fun to play with and only require 2 hours of care a week (Although more interaction is always better).

 

You want a shepard (Or any high energy animal)? Be prepared to run 5 miles with the dog a day in addition to playing/walking him or he's going to be bored and eat your stuff because you're not taking care of him properly.

 

 

Guess what? Dogs and cats live for a long time (10-15 years). Think that over and realize that getting that animal means caring for it until it dies.

 

Guess what? They're expensive too. Like $1000's of dollars a year in feeding and proper vet care.

 

Guess what? Animals get big. Research it before you buy it. If your puppy gets big and isn't cute anymore, that's not a good reason to abandon your care obligations.

 

Train the animal. Spay/neuter the animal. Don't be that jackass with your dog off leash laughing as it harasses other dogs.

 

 

If you do have to get rid of the animal, at least try and adopt it out first. A .22LR to the head may be more humane than a few days in the shelter. At least you're being a man and taking the responsibility instead of thinking happy thoughts about Fido when you drop him off so someone else can do your dirty work.

 

 

 

Not to mention the people that breed endlessly for a source of income are flooding the market with animals that will mostly not be cared for properly, or eventually abandoned when they inconvience/anger the owner.

So next time your buddy says he wants to breed "x" to make a few bucks, slap him upside the head. They're animals, not products.

 

 

 

Long story short, don't buy a fucking animal unless you understand completely what is required to care for it. Including how long it will live and what it will cost.

Edited August 30, 2013 by BDBGoalie

[fox_racing_guy]

People are shit. 

 

http://vimeo.com/13622935

 

[Kritz]

That pic is very sobering............

[nautical1]

That is why each of our dogs are rescue dogs and I won't even consider going anywhere else. We got our first dog (shepherd/boxer mix) when he was only 3 months old because someone bred the dogs and didn't want the responsibility and just dumped the litter. Our second dog doesn't really have a story she just showed up one day. We assume whoever had her first saw that she was getting too big (shepherd/shar pei mix) and didn't want to deal with it. We also have a  cat that we rescued because the owner simply didn't want her and was going to just toss her on the street. I just can't understand how people can abandon an animal, to me our pets are like our kids and how can you one day just decide you don't want them anymore? It irritates me even more when people make bullshit excuses for not being able to take care of an animal but Ben covered that pretty spot on.

 

Here's my dogs. They're spoiled like crazy.

 

 

Edited August 25, 2013 by nautical1

[Beegreenstrings]

Holy F^ck I cried a little bit...

I'm not a huge cat fan at all! But damn people.

[baptizo]

Damn, that's sobering and truly sad.  

[Medina]

I do like the idea that if you're one of those fucks who drop off an animal at a "shelter" you MUST pay a fee, and donate three hours working there.

Sadly the asshats who would drop off an animal like a used appliance are not the ones reading this. It should be posted at pet shops, breeders should be licensed and inspected

[Scruit]

I had to pay a $25 surrender fee for the day-old kitten I found abandoned in my garden.  If I had to do 3 hours work there for free then I'd have left it where I found it.

 

Not everyone who surrenders an animal is an arsehole.  Some of us a just trying to save a life.  

[Steve Butters]

Yep I've dropped strays at shelters before... If I had to pay and put in time there, I would leave them out on the street where they were

[Scruit]

I don't believe that pic is from the US.  There are rules in the US dealing with how to euthanise animals and how to dispose of them afterwards.   Since when does any ONE shelter euthanise hundreds of animals in a day? 

 

That looks more like a still from one of those videos about the dog/cat fur trade in the far east, or cleanup of dead pets after a natural disaster.

[Kent2406]

That is a shame! Koreans would pay top dollar for that meat!!!!!!

[Steve Butters]

That is a shame! Koreans would pay top dollar for that meat!!!!!!

Just pm Koreo, his family will use this in their restaurant