Far too often rescue and shelter dogs and animals get a bad rap. People think because these animals were turned in to shelters there must be something wrong with them but what they don’t realize is that most often the ’something wrong’ was with the previous owner of the pet. Too often people get pets for the wrong reasons or maybe they’ve become ill or passed away, or have to move and cannot find adequate housing which will allow pets. The reasons are numerous and oft times have little to do with the pet.

Here’s a great article from Pet-Abuse.com dispelling some of the myths of adopting a shelter animal for a pet.

There are many misconceptions about the quality of animals found in rescue shelters. The stigma that shelter pets have been stuck with for many years is that they are “damaged goods”.

Myth: Shelter pets are obviously not good pets, or else their original owners wouldn’t have gotten rid of them

If the main reason why a pet gets brought to rescue shelters was because they were a *bad* pet, there would be thousands of empty shelters across the country. Animals are brought to shelters for a large variety of reasons, some of which are…

Read more »

They’re in every shelter across the country, the big black dogs, the pitbulls, the seniors, the ‘ugly’ dogs, the ’special needs’ dogs; the underdogs. Hundreds of thousands of them every year, killed, because no one wants them, people look past them, don’t see them.

Oh the little dogs, the ‘purse’ dogs, the puppies, the ‘designer dogs,’ usually find new homes pretty quickly and easily, not always, not every where, but they have much more of a chance.

So, whose going to love the underdogs? Whose going to rescue them from death or a sad existence of a life in a shelter, day after day, week after week, month after month? You can see the life drain from them, the hope in their once bright eyes dim as they no longer even move forward when people walk through. It’s happened so many times, they’re passed by and passed over. They lack the energy anymore to even try.

Read more »

Dear Mr. and Mrs. Average Pet Owner:

Thank you for contacting us animal rescuers, shelter volunteers, and foster-homes about your inability to keep your pet. We receive an extremely high volume of inquiries and requests to accept surrendered animals (and none of us is getting paid, OK?). To help us expedite your problem as quickly as possible, please observe the following guidelines:

1. Do not say that you are “CONSIDERING finding a good home” for your pet, or that you, “feel you MIGHT be forced to,” or that you “really THINK it would be better if” you unloaded the poor beast. Ninety-five percent of you have already got your minds stone-cold made up that the animal WILL be out of your life by the weekend at the latest. Say so. If you don’t, I’m going to waste a lot of time giving you common-sense, easy solutions for very fixable problems, and you’re going to waste a lot of time coming up with fanciful reasons why the solution couldn’t possibly work for you. For instance, you say the cat claws the furniture, and I tell you about nail-clipping and scratching posts and aversion training, and then you go into a long harangue about how your husband won’t let you put a scratching post in the family room, and your ADHD daughter cries if you use a squirt bottle on the cat, and your congenital thumb abnormalities prevent you from using nail scissors and etc., etc. Just say you’re getting rid of the cat.

Read more »

Dear Shelter Dog,I wanted to address this letter to you by name-but sadly, you do not have one.

First and foremost I want you to know that you are loved. You are thought of and prayed for each and every day by many kind people. I want you to know that you did nothing wrong: you simply couldn’t, for wrongdoing is not in your nature.

I don’t know what cruel twist of fate brought you to this place, but I do know that you do not deserve to be here.

I don’t know it if was decided that you were too large or too small, if you barked too much or too little, if someone became allergic to you or if it was simply decided one day that you were an inconvenience.

I don’t know if the children that you were given to lost interest in you when you were not a puppy anymore and no longer considered cute or fun.

I don’t know if you became too old or too sick or if your medical problems became too expensive.

I don’t know if you simply lost your way one day. I am not sure if you were thrown from a car or dropped off by the side of a road, left behind-you may have waited patiently, bewildered, wondering why those you loved never came back. I don’t know if your family moved away and decided not to take you.

I don’t know if you were tortured-taught to fight against your will, and when you loyally obeyed you were punished further by being brought here. I don’t know if your owner died not wanting to leave you behind.

What I do know is this: you are important and you are loved. I do know that I want to hold you and take away your pain.

Read more »

This is from an animal shelter manager, an inside look at what really happens. Take the time to read it and share it. It is definitely time for people to wake up and see, really see!!

I am writing this because 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.

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 to that doesn’t allow pets?

• 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 bringing her inside, 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, and how stressful do you think being in a shelter is?

Read more »

I want to pass this along in case someone case provide help of assistance which is needed ASAP! If you can help in any way or know of a rescue who can, please contact Joanne or get the information out!

Good morning, I am Joanne Halvorson, the Georgia Coordinator for the Cocker Spaniel Adoption Center (based out of Maryland). We are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and are licensed with the State of Georgia Department of Agriculture.

Wednesday night our group here in Georgia (4 of the 5 foster homes we currently have) participated in a two-hour conference call with the board of directors to determine the direction in which the Georgia arm will be heading, or whether it is necessary at this point in time to disband the group and pull rescue out of Georgia altogether.

After rescuing cockers for 6 years now, I believe it’s time for me to call it quits. My own personal dogs have taken a backseat to the rescues, and I think it’s high-time I spend the quality time with them that they deserve. Besides rescue, I am heavily involved in pet therapy and agility training, and my job has gotten to where the demands are a lot greater on my time, not to mention I have a 46-mile drive one way to work, so the gas prices are eating me alive.

Read more »

By definition an animal shelter is an organization which cares for strays and other homeless pets and seeks to find permanent homes for them. This being the definition, why are we seeing horror stories coming out of animal shelters of sick and malnourished animals, animals kept in such horrendous conditions; no heat or ventilation, dirty, cramped cages, animals killed using inhumane methods by uncaring shelter employees?

There is something wrong with our society when we refuse to acknowledge these atrocities and allow them to continue to happen!

Animals in shelters are usually frightened and scared. Many have been abused or neglected. The live and breathe and most of all, they feel! They hurt and feel abandoned. Animals that would so quickly and willingly give unconditional love and companionship, tossed aside like garbage. They deserve some dignity, some care and they deserve to be dealt with by people who have a heart.

Read more »

A shocking discovery of hundreds of dog carcasses buried in shallow graves behind the Morgan County Dog Pound after a tip to the Ohio SPCA has officials and residents upset and angry.

“It’s a mess. It’s a sad story. It’s a very sad statement that anyone would permit this to go on,” Ed Sisler, president of the Ohio SPCA. said.

“I’m shocked. I’m appalled. I’m speechless about it,” said Morgan County Commissioner Rick Shriver. “I just can’t express to you my outrage and my disappointment.”

Jeff Driggs who has been the part-time Morgan county dog warden for more than 20 years as well as a full-time highway department employee has been placed on unpaid administrative leave after the mass grave came to light. This is also not the first time the Driggs has come under fire for practices at the Morgan County Dog Pound. In 2002 he admitted to killing more than 600 dogs and puppies by shooting them in the head, rather than using the more acceptable and humane method of lethal injection. Public outcry put this to an end, or so it was thought.

At the time it was thought that problems had been handled with Driggs and there would be no future improprieties, no such luck! There have been complaints about his methods and attitude from residents as well and now this.

Morgan County Dog Pound New Story

SPCA received complaints from residents that Driggs was killing dogs by shooting again as he’d done in the past and when they investigated, they found much more then even they anticipated.

“When we got there there were no dogs in the pound,” she said. “Everything had been killed, probably on Friday night. We found a mother dog and her five puppies dead a couple of inches under the ground. Everywhere we walked we were walking on dead dogs. Heads were sticking out, paws were sticking out and bones were exposed. Hundreds of dogs had been buried there,” said Teresa Landon, executive director of the Ohio SPCA.

Read more »

I wish we could find home for all the dogs that so desperately need them but there’s something that touches me deeply when a soldier deployed into action has to give up his beloved canine companion and can only hope and pray that a good home can be found in time.

Rocky is just such a dog. His owner, a TN soldier deployed into action was forced to give him up and now he sits in a shelter in desperate need of rescue!

Rocky - URGENT
Humane Society of Clarksville-Montgomery County
Clarksville, TN
(931) 648-8042
humanesociety@clarksville.com

Here is Rocky’s information from Petfinder;

Rocky is a handsome Siberian Husky. He was born in June of 2001, weighs 92 pounds and is white and gray with beautiful blue eyes. Rocky is overweight but as with most Huskies, he has lots of energy and looks forward to play time and walks to help him trim down. Rocky is HOUSEBROKEN, likes to sleep inside and behaves well indoors. He also enjoys his time outdoors and sometimes spends a couple of hours a day in his fenced yard. Rocky gets along well with children and female dogs. Nothing about his personality indicates that he wouldn’t get along with other male dogs, he just has not spent any time with them. Rocky would though prefer a home without cats. Rocky also knows several tricks, and he will sit, jump or beg on command!

Read more »

As a journalist, I decided to go to the animal, and interview some of the “inmates”. I wanted to know what it was like in there from their perspective. What follows is not for the faint of heart.

I entered the building, and one of the workers accompanied me to the holding area. This is where dogs are kept before they are allowed up for adoption. IF they are allowed up for adoption. If the dogs are found to be aggressive in any way, euthanasia is employed. Fortunately, if “fortunately” is the word to be used here. In this establishment, and they use lethal injection, not a gas chamber.

The shelter worker led me past a big steel door that says “Employees Only”. “What is in there?” I asked. From the look he gave me, I knew that this is where dogs go in, and never return.

We moved on to a row of kennels. The dogs were barking loudly, there was the acrid smell of urine and feces, and a feeling of despair seemed to permeate the room.

“Go ahead,” the worker said. “They’re all yours.”

Pete

I looked into the first kennel, and saw only the back of a medium sized dog who was curled up in the corner of his kennel, shivering. He was mostly white, with some black spots. “Hello?” I said. “May I come in?” He lifted his head, as though it weighed more than he could bear. When he looked at me, I could see he was a Pitbull. His eyes were gentle, but filled with grief.

“Enter,” was all he said.

I stepped in, closing the gate behind me. He put his head back down, facing away from me. I crouched down a few feet away.

“My name is Pete. Petey my Master called me,” he said, still not looking at me.

“Why are you here Pete?” I asked.

Read more »

This was passed along to me by a friend in rescue from Rottweiler Rescue of NY.  It is an excellent education piece.  It’s straight and to the point.  The writer doesn’t try to ‘candy coat’ reality or spare anyone’s feelings.  Read it and understand!

By Rottweiler Rescue of NY, a fantastic breed specific rescue group

Preface

The following information may seem harsh, rude, and perhaps even ignorant. If you plan on pursuing adoption from rescue please continue to read no matter your opinion. The following things are meant as information only. These are not all truths in our rescue, but many of them DO fit, and we want you to be aware of the rescuer’s side of rescue.

We will spell this information out as plainly and distinctly as we can, so that hopefully it cannot be misunderstood or read incorrectly. You may not agree with some of the things said on this page, but please understand that these are the realities of many rescues. This is not to say that it should excuse rude or ignorant behavior, but it lets you have a behind the scenes view.
You may have encountered rescues who didn’t ever reply to your e-mail, never returned your call, never contacted you about your application, wouldn’t let you adopt a dog, wouldn’t let you foster a dog, or a rescue person who was impolite to the point of being rude. As you read the following page you will be given an insight to a rescuers day/week/month, and perhaps you will begin to see why so many rescuers are hardened, snippy, crabby people who don’t seem to be living in the same word as everyone else.

If you take offense to anything below we regret that, but if you are offended it may let you know a little more about yourself and your thoughts on rescue prior to reading it. We are not here to lecture anyone, and if you feel after reading this that you cannot for some reason adopt from our rescue, please find one that you feel you can adopt from.

Read more »

Three years after a law was passed to force Kentucky animal shelters to adopt more humane standards, many are still not in compliance. Dogs and animals still go without proper shelter, freezing outside in the winter, sweltering in the summer, short food rations, unsanitary conditions, lack of ventilation, poor lighting and more.

For 10 years WLKY chronicled and exposed the inhumane conditions at shelters statewide, and this forced “legislation outlawing gunshot euthanasia, providing money to struggling shelters and forcing counties to comply with minimal shelter standards — things like protection from the weather, including heated quarters during cold weather, and adequate lighting, ventilation and sanitary conditions.”

But now, three years later, investigation finds little change and in some instances, there is still not even a shelter facility!

Read more »