I run a non profit animal shelter vet clinic. Very very hard job, trying to serve as many pets as we can on donations, which frankly isnt a whole lot. We get a lot of people that dump pets on us, find them in boxes outside our gates, wandering around the property, listening to "people" wanting to know what "they" are suppose to do with all these puppies & kittens their pets had "again" cos they cant keep them, wouldnt think of offering a donation to offset the cost of vaccs, neuter/spay, health checks microchips( required by state law) & as we are totally no kill, we have to be very selective in what we take in, because if it isnt adopted out, it lives there forever. There are also laws in each state that govern a non profit animal shelter, strict laws on intakes & adoptions. We cant take in strays, they must go to animal control in case the owner is looking for it, but after 24 hours we are able to go to animal control & take in the pets for adoption which is what we do weekly, but we are not able to take them all in. Otherwise, consider your beloved dog got out, someone found it & took to a shelter as a stray & it is adopted out without your knowledge. I'll admit not all shelters are run correctly, those of us that really do it for the animals do it right, but we cant take in every stray out there as there are no funds except those raised by us on our off hours selling handmade items at marketdays, or working 12 hour days doing 90 spay neuters at low cost rates. So please dont think that all shelters are like this, if your local one is, try volunteering to become a worker, or perhaps a board member to make changes, for the good of the animals
As to animal cruelty. It is a state law. If your area does not have a animal officer, or one that does not follow up on reports, then you need to report it to your local police force & insist that the take the necessary steps to take care of it. Try getting the newspaper or TV stations involved in your fight. Show up at your city/county commissioners meetings & talk about your concerns. Pet overpopulation is the root to all these problems, the throw away pets that no one knows that to do with. San Antonio Animal Shelter has 700 pets in every day & are forced to euthanize 200 a day. My vet tech & I go in every week & have to pick the pets we think are most adoptable, & it is something that tears my heart out everytime & I do it crying the whole time & I promise you that I dont sleep for days afterwards remember the faces of the many pets we couldnt take. I am an American. I dont like being told what I can & cant do. But after taking on this job running this shelter/ clinic, I no longer breed my mini aussies & I am a very strong supporter of a mandatory spay neuter for backyard pets, I have no problems with breeders getting licenses & breeding purebreds, but those people that continue to allow their cats & dogs to breed with no thought to what will happen to the offspring- they need to be made to hold those unwanted puppies & kittens when they are put to sleep. And if you are able to find homes for those puppies & kittens, do you consider if the new owner does not spay & neuter what happens to the many offspring they produce & their offspring produce? We have had to turn our focus from total shelter rescue to spay neuter, as we found that we were overrun with unwanted pets with no source of income. We have since hired vets to provide low cost spay neuter, health checks, added boarding facilities contracted a groomer & take every penny we make & use it to save the lives of the shelter pets we are able to take in. It is the hardest job I have ever had, very rewarding, but as many lives as you save, you go to sleep at night thinking of the many that you couldnt.
As to animal cruelty. It is a state law. If your area does not have a animal officer, or one that does not follow up on reports, then you need to report it to your local police force & insist that the take the necessary steps to take care of it. Try getting the newspaper or TV stations involved in your fight. Show up at your city/county commissioners meetings & talk about your concerns. Pet overpopulation is the root to all these problems, the throw away pets that no one knows that to do with. San Antonio Animal Shelter has 700 pets in every day & are forced to euthanize 200 a day. My vet tech & I go in every week & have to pick the pets we think are most adoptable, & it is something that tears my heart out everytime & I do it crying the whole time & I promise you that I dont sleep for days afterwards remember the faces of the many pets we couldnt take. I am an American. I dont like being told what I can & cant do. But after taking on this job running this shelter/ clinic, I no longer breed my mini aussies & I am a very strong supporter of a mandatory spay neuter for backyard pets, I have no problems with breeders getting licenses & breeding purebreds, but those people that continue to allow their cats & dogs to breed with no thought to what will happen to the offspring- they need to be made to hold those unwanted puppies & kittens when they are put to sleep. And if you are able to find homes for those puppies & kittens, do you consider if the new owner does not spay & neuter what happens to the many offspring they produce & their offspring produce? We have had to turn our focus from total shelter rescue to spay neuter, as we found that we were overrun with unwanted pets with no source of income. We have since hired vets to provide low cost spay neuter, health checks, added boarding facilities contracted a groomer & take every penny we make & use it to save the lives of the shelter pets we are able to take in. It is the hardest job I have ever had, very rewarding, but as many lives as you save, you go to sleep at night thinking of the many that you couldnt.
