This post reminds me of an episode of Animal Planet's "Miami Animal Police" (featuring MDAS).

An ACO responded to a call about a hit by car dog. She got there and the dog had a severely broken rear limb (if I recall, and this was a few years ago, but I think he was unable to bear weight on the leg). He wore a harness with a chewed piece of leash attached, so she knew and commented that he was owned. No microchip.

Evidently, animal control officers at MDAS carry euthanasia solution for cases where they feel the animal must be put down on scene. Since this dog's leg would not recover with simple cage rest, the ACO elected to euthanize him on the scene.

Well, the internet was buzzing after that one. From what I could gather, there were lots of folks not happy that she made that call on a dog who probably could have made it with proper treatment. Or at least kept on pain meds to give the owners a chance to locate their dog at the shelter.

While I didn't like that the dog was euthanized on scene, I tend not to blame the ACO as much as whatever procedures/policies were in place. Certainly, IMO, the dog should at least have been taken back, evaluated by a vet, and determined at the very least if the dog could be kept comfortable for the stray hold period. And/or have a vet determine if the dog could or could not have recovered with cage rest. But evidently, ACO's have the euth drugs on their trucks and are to euthanize if they feel the animal cannot recover with cage rest. I got the impression the ACO was doing what she felt she was required to do based on shelter policy, but IMO that shelter policy needed a bit of a revamp.

I understand that resources for caring for dogs and cats not only at MDAS, but any animal control facility, are limited, and so decisions do need to be made. But it is disconcerting that said decisions, be they on apparently healthy animals or ones with injured legs, can be made without evaluation by a veterinarian.

Anyway, this post reminded me of that episode.

Ultimately, almost all kill shelters come under fire regardless of their policies.

Could any of us walk a mile in their shoes? Usually they're horrible jobs for sub-standard pay. The best and brightest don't normally apply for shelter jobs.

While there is no doubt that there are bad policies and questionable decisions in many shelters, what is the best way to address them and get them changed?

Re: doing euthanasia on the spot. Saw cat at side of road, been hit by car - head shot. Lower jaw hanging, one eye gone, other bulging, was a weekend, no one around (not even vets - no eR services), except if you called County sheriff they'd call AC. Managed to get cat on cardboard and into van. While I waited the 40 or so minutes until AC showed up the other eye leaked out all fluid, so she was essentially blind. I don't know why this cat was still alive, but she needed help getting off the planet ASAP and I couldn't talk her into it. AC arrives with narrow wire cage, we couldn't get cardboard in there, had to shovel cat over wire mesh which was hideous. I asked about euthanasia procedures, as I couldn't imagine lifting this cat's head up to get to jugular as everything was broken. I asked if they had gas anesthesia available to knock her out first. He said they had a shot like novacaine to give first. I don't know what he was referring to, suspect the paralytic (name?). Now how long did that cat wait at AC until it could happen? Did they have anyone on duty to do it immediately? (Dr. Patty, been wanting to ask how you'd euthanise a cat with such a severe head injury?)

Now to me, procedures need to be changed to deal with the severely injured. This kitty was thin and scruffy, obviously a stray. Even if this were my cat, I would have welcomed the kindness of immediate euthanasia. If there's been a vet around I would have paid for it myself. And they need cages they can lift an animal into, not shovel them over a wire grid.

Later in the week, at the vet's with a barely 4wk old stray kitten streaming goop from eyes and nose, told vet about it, he said you should have called. I'd tried to get past his answ. service before and failed. Years ago the vets in the county had a 2 wk rotation, no longer, and I had no idea he'd actually respond, as they recommend going 1 1/2 hrs up the road to an ER clinic.

The one time I tried to get past his ans service was WRT another stray who needed help - a dog with a frayed big A** rope tied to her - one end tied to a 4 inch rotted post that had come out of the ground. She had tangled herself up with a cast iron planter and was laying by the side of the road with her head pinned. She had a prolapsed rectum. I told him I didn't call AC because I couldn't imagine they'd treat. He said they're legally req'd to until they find owner or X # of days had gone by. But when? How soon after taking to AC? We tried to fix it, but purse string didn't hold. I had her euthanised the next day as he said he'd never had much luck with the surgery for this issue.

If the animals ever stop putting themselves in my path, maybe I need to visit with AC about a lot of issues. They've improved over the past few years and now actually try to adopt animals out.

The individual that sent you the message regarding the local animal control is sadly confused. Animal control is placed in the position of reacting to the failure of the citizens in safeguarding their pets. People do not take proper care of their responsibilities in this country and foist them on others. Animal not valued, allowed to get away. If tagged, animal control calls and the owner does not respond or says they don't want the animal anymore. Rescue groups do all they can to help. People bring animals with health problems. Again, they fail in their responsibility to the animal. They prefer to place the innocent animal's fate and cost in the hands of others in the community.
The individual who wrote, if s/he is so concerned, needs to get active and communicate with her neighbors and the broader population in her community. S/he needs to get active in solving the actual problem - people's irresponsibility. Encourage others to adopt shelter pets, volunteer for the animals and speak on these issues, donate to good rescues, foster, adopt, write to editor and local officials.
And as a society, it is time to stop coddling people who do not act responsibly. While they sit at their big screen television and piss and moan that they don't have health insurance, have to pay their mortgage and buy gasoline when they were sure someone else would, the rest of us pick up the slack.

This is a very hard subject, for most of us, People are the problem, Some let thier Pets breed at will. No this makes me sick to see Healthy Animals killed. It is not all the Shelters, look for no-kill shelter and support them. But they must be busting at the seams. Good hard working people are losing thier jobs, thier homes, Most renters will not let you have pets, heck, most do not want kids....Dear God I wish we had the answers. Were their is hope thier is Life, God Bless us all.

I am so surprised that people like UNeedaDog still put all blame on the evil public. Reads like a PETA press release.

Read #1 Luaren's comment again. Pet killed before the owner ever had a chance to learn of the dog's need.

What about Target?

There are weekly stories about abuse at animal shelters.

Why is it that some people think "the public" is evil, except when a member of the public works at an animal shelter?

Shelters should be doing the best they can, asking for public support, allowing poeple to see how they operate. Only after they have done the best they can and asked for support should they blame the public.

Public is full of irresponsible people. Yes. I prefer dogs much for that reason. Much more fun.

However, Reno Nevada seems to be doing a fine job. Plenty of shelters manage to do a fine job with the HELP of the public, rather than DESPITE the public.

Some our Pet DOCTORS ARE Giving discounts to seniors and people with low income to have their pets fixed, Some who had these as Pts. are finding homes when families can not keep them. We have seen Doctor Khuly help,many times. Than some of us, are taken in as many as we can afford, But, that will slow-down, We are taken in Family members now. We need to help, but some us like sit back run our mouths and do nothing. Shut-up or stand-up-to-the-plate.

I was commenting on Dr K's letter from an individual that was not happy with animal control, not Lauren's comments on same.

Also, regarding the sad situation of Target, the news reported he was not micro chipped or tagged. Dogs can't do that for themselves, it is the human's responsibility.

Shelters exist because people fail to manage their responsibilities. I did not disparage shelters or shelter workers. They do heartbreaking work every day.

But I see that even you acknowledge in your comments that there are many irresponsible people.

Yes UNeedaDog, I live in the real world, and am well aware there are irresponsible people.

And unlike you I understand some of them work in shelters.

You think the shelter which killed Target checks for microchips prior to killing the animal? You think the error they made would have been prevented because right before killing a dog they make one last check for a microchip?

And no kidding UNeedaDog, you clearly do not blame shelters for anything, that is the point.

In your bizarro world the public is full of bad people until they started getting paid by a shelter. Then you think they all become good.

@itserich
Do we know for a fact that the shelter didn't scan the animal?
My shelter practices euthanasia, and we scan the animal at incoming, during the exam, and again before euthanasia (or adoption). So i just want to be sure we're not making assumptions that all kill shelters don't always make the extra effort to get an animal reunited.
I'm not excusing the mistake here, but i just like clarity over misinformation.
If they didn't scan the dog at any point, then shame on them

@ Lauren
the story you related is just horrifying
in my state only a DVM can ok a euthanasia while the animal is on stray hold- and in those cases, only if the animal is irredeemably suffering

@ versinn

You may want to read a bit of the story about Target. The dog was not scheduled to be killed. That is the only error which really counts. The wrong dog was taken out of its cage.

I am simply responding to UNeedaDog's bizarre comemnt that the public is always to blame unless they happen to work at shelters.

I realize that is the PETA outlook, and as a result PETA goes on year after year killing in excess of 90%, in 2008 95%+, of the pets left at its shelter.

I am familiar with Target's story
But you're the one who said "you think the error they made would have been prevented because right before killing a dog they make one last check for a microchip"

And my answer to that would be yes- if the dog was chipped and they scanned before euthanasia. That's why we scan before any outcome. Because you can't scan too often, and for the most part, shelters would rather reunite a dog with it's owner than have to deal with something like the Target situation

But i agree with you in that, generally speaking, the public is not solely to blame.

So you think that if they had found a microchip on the dog, they would have put a big ribbon on the dog stating "Do Not Kill This Dog By Mistake" or something?

Is it true that it is common practice that right before killing a pet one last check is made for a microchip?

Because if your comment is in fact true that is interesting. It would seem a check for a microchip should be made far earlier in the process and only rarely would one last final check be relevant.

But it is an interesting claim to make and very interesting if true.

Well, as i said above, that's how my organization does it
But like i also said, we scan 3 times- not just before euthanasia, but immediately upon incoming, and again during examination. We scan before adoption too.
Obviously i can't speak for every shelter in the nation, but it's pretty common practice with all of the local organizations and impounds locally that i'm familiar with

And i can't say that it would guarantee that mistake wouldn't happen (because we're human, and sometimes mistakes happen), but it would certainly be a red flag to stop, and figure out what's going on- make sure that the chip has been called on, which would then lead you to realize- hey, i've got the wrong dog

Sounds like your shelter is well run.

Apologies for the long comment. But I have to say, this did make me feel sad to live in Oklahoma. Hopefully, Hydro will change their policies. (story from NewsOk.com)
HYDRO — People are questioning whether police could have found an alternative to killing a man's poodle while he was in jail for breaking the dog out of the pound.

The ruckus started about two weeks ago when 73-year-old Edwin Fry used bolt cutters to free the dog, Buddy Tough, and left on his riding lawn mower with the animal on his lap. Police arrested Fry at gunpoint a few miles from the city kennel and took the dog, Buddy Tough.
Fry said he couldn't pay the $100 it would take to free his dog legally and didn't want the animal put down. Hydro's police chief told a local newspaper publisher the dog was held for three days, placed in a box and killed with carbon monoxide from the exhaust pipe of a police car. Some residents in this Caddo County town of about 1,000 would like to see justice for the dog and his owner.
"The last time we had this big of a stink in Hydro was when there was talk about putting a hog farm in," said Joyce Carney, publisher of the Country Connection News.
The three-person town council is scheduled Tuesday to discuss the predicament. Fry and Buddy Tough's story caught national attention, and angry animal lovers have been calling Hydro's town hall expressing their disdain. Earlier this week, police officer Chris Chancellor said he already had fielded eight calls from non-residents in the first hour of his shift. "Most of them start out really angry, but once I explain the entire situation they seemed to calm down," Chancellor said. "We have a history with Mr. Fry, and it's not a good one." Chancellor said Fry once climbed a silo with a rifle. Another time he tried to buy a bullet-resistant vest, saying he wanted to shoot cops, the officer said.
"He's a character, but you never know if it could turn into something more dangerous," Chancellor said.
The dog was taken to the pound on complaints that it was running loose, he said. He said Fry's son was notified when he went to jail and told he could retrieve the dog. Instead, Fry spent several days behind bars, and after three days, as outlined in a city ordinance, Buddy Tough was euthanized, he said.
Fry is facing a misdemeanor charge of breaking and entering.
Chancellor said Buddy Tough was euthanized in a "gas chamber" with "carbon monoxide." He said the town's police chief handled the matter and possibly took the dog to a veterinarian in Weatherford. The town clerk claims she has no record or financial receipt showing the dog was taken to an animal hospital.
The Oklahoman's calls to the Police Chief Mike "Colonel" Sanders were not returned. Carney said the situation causes her stomach to turn. "We are not that kind of town," Carney said. "I don't want people to think that we live like this. We are good people that care about our neighbors." Hydro resident Linda Issac said someone would have taken in the dog to keep him from being destroyed, or taken him to a no-kill shelter. "I don't think the situation was handled right, and I think it's opened our eyes to what's going on here with animals," Issac said. "I don't condone anyone breaking the law, but someone could have shown some flexibility for the man." Hydro resident Mona Woods said she thinks the officers killed the dog just to show their authority.
"These two need to answer to someone," Woods said. "If that's the kind of officers we have, we need to make some changes."
The town's mayor, Bill Glasscock, said he knows little about what happened to Fry and his dog, but all that will be worked out in Tuesday's meeting. He said he expects a full house.
Glasscock said he's not opposed to changing ordinances on animal control, but wants residents to realize there is no money in the city budget to build a new animal shelter.
"We barely have the money to keep the things we have going," Glasscock said. "If people want an animal shelter they're going to have to raise money for it, and keep paying to maintain it."
The Oklahoman's website, NewsOK.com, received more than 400 comments about the story of Fry and his effort to save his dog.
A reader logged in as Pearliemea, of Los Angeles wrote this:
"I just can't believe that after arresting a 73-year-old senior citizen, they euthanized his pet while he's in jail. This is one of the cruelest, vilest, uncaring things I have ever heard. Whoever did this should be sued, removed from office or fired."
Another reader established an online Facebook page to honor the dead dog. A Cushing man said he will donate $1,000 toward legal fees if Fry sues the town. Clinton Sanders, a sociology professor at University of Connecticut, said he's not surprised people are reacting the way they are about Fry and his dog.
Sanders studies the relationship between humans and dogs.
"Stories like this become symbolic of the way we care about animals and a reflection of our own humanity," Sanders said.

First, I have to take exception with TheOldBroad's sentiment that the best and the brightest do not apply for shelter work. These are low paying jobs, but in my experience, many (most?) of us work in shelters by choice, are college educated and could be making a lot more money elsewhere.

Do healthy and/or treatable animals get PTS every day, all day? Yes. How is this a shelter's fault? The last shelter I worked at was well-funded with a large vet staff. There are also several other large shelters within 20 to 40 miles of us and many, many active rescue groups, so we're not the only group working in this area.

Did we euth healthy/potentially treatable animals? All the time. With our own shelter population approaching 1,000 animals, we were FULL. No room at the Inn. And guess what? No room at the rescues. No room at the no-kill shelters (like those even truly exist). No room in the foster network either.

What are you going to do? Build bigger tax-funded shelters? Not in this lifetime. The public wants to be able to buy their puppy milled dog on craigslist and to be able to dump it when it becomes inconvenient, but don't count on them stomaching a tax or fee to support the shelter.

The $20 fee charged to surrender an animal barely covers the vaccines and worming it gets upon intake and people all day long refuse to pay it. They'll tell you how they paid $800 for the cockadoodlepoo, but in the next breath they'll claim poverty and will refuse to pay even the surrender fee and threaten to turn the animal loose instead.

Shelters are drinking from fire hoses and for the most part, they are doing the best they can with society's cast offs. Sure, mistakes like the one with Target happen, but those are rare.

Unless you're planning to get a kennel license and to foster and rehab 50 or more animals a year or to fund raise and campaign for a full-funded shelter system, shut your trap.

Oh and itserich, yeah, some bad people do work at shelters, but hardly enough to blame the entire pet overpopulation problem on. Who holds the blame there in your eyes? No one? The boogie man? Mother nature? And what does PETA have to do with anything here? Yeah, nothing.

Barnyard, I am sorry, but not surprised, the basic logic escapes you.

The comments you and other shelter apologists are the same excuses PETA makes. That is the connection.

And when are people like you going to be honest?

If you honestly felt you were doing a good job, you would not need to turn the word Kill into Euthanize.

Oh, and to be more clear Barnyard Punch.

What absolutely disgusts me when I run into people like you is you NEVER try to explain why some shelters go from a 50% kill rate to a 10 or 20% kill rate, almost overnight.

Does the town population change overnight?

Do pet owners start acting better?

Try to answer that honestly.

OK, itserich, ball in your court. What exactly are shelters supposed to do with the numbers of animals they receive? Should an infections, but treatable animal be kenneled with a high probability that it's contagion will spread? What should be done with the feral and semi-feral cats? Or the 12 year old diabetic cat with little to no chance of adoption? Should it get a slot in the shelter for the several years it might take to have it adopted?

You've clearly never, ever worked or volunteered at an actual shelter. Instead of spewing PETA nonsense, how about some suggested solutions?

As far as shelter stats go, I fully agree with you. The public doesn't want to know what's really going on behind closed doors so they'll only donate if your "kill rate" is low. So yes, there is a very "magical ponies and rainbows" thing going on with numbers.

Raw numbers need to be reported for all shelters. How many animals came in in total, NOT just the number deemed adoptable. "100% of all adoptable animals were saved last year" could mean 10,000 animals deemed "unadoptable" were killed at the same time.

I am absolutely 100% fine with skipping the euphemism and calling it "killing" pets. But it's only happening because people ("society") continue to dump and abandon those pets. It's not like us shelter workers are out there breedin' 'em just for the fun of killin' 'em later, you know.

@BarnyardPunch

Do you have a clue what you mean when you write this:

"Instead of spewing PETA nonsense, how about some suggested solutions?"

You are the one quoting PETA.

I hope you do make a more compassionate, civil vet.

The dog's death was a mistake. Itserich, you say that happens weekly in those eeeeevil shelters. Care to provide links to actual news stories? Or are you just guessing/exaggerating?

Target was not microchipped, nor was she licensed. We also scan multiple times for a microchip with any animal coming into the shelter system. They are scanned on intake, before spay/neutering or other medical treatments requiring sedation. With zero identification on the animal, the legal holding period is three days in California. Most shelters will hold a healthy animal longer if they can, but many cannot. Organizations with an emphasis on animal control, NOT rehab, will euth/kill the animal at the end of the holding period. Truth be told, even without the mistake, Target could have been dead here in just about that same time frame. Sad, but true.

Barnyard, your comments were offensive now they are just annoying.

You seem to know very little about the shelter industry and I have no industry in discussing any issue with someone who is too lazy to learn a bit before making a point.

OK, so you asked me to comment on the manipulation of statistics that happens with shelter numbers and it turns out we're in agreement. So you run away from the debate? Without offering one suggestion?

THAT'S rich indeed.

Barnyard, I asked you why some cities cut the killing literally overnight. You skipped the part about an answer and instead asked me to educate you how good shelters operate.

So please, don't ignore me question and then be surprised when I don't start reciting well known programs that are used by good shelters.

When you graduate and get a job you might not be so willing to waste your time with online arguing.

If you actually want to learn about the shelter industry there are many blogs.

If you want to read how often cases like Target's do happen here is a start.

http://yesbiscuit.wordpress.com/

The fact that you blandly defend the shelter industry while apparently being unaware how hard it has fought the release of the kill rates is a good sign you have nothing to teach me.

I live in a large metro area on the West Coast. The primary veterinary hospital I use is a mid-size facility with a dozen vets running it 24x7. The hospital supports 4 major shelters in our community (2 county, 2 private). The hospital just celebrated its 10th anniversary and sent out a newsletter highlighting their first decade.

They have donated over $750,000 worth of veterinary care and supplies since they were founded. They constantly run promotions to raise money for the shelters, and their clients gladly contribute. There are always adoptable pets in the facility that were for whatever reason disconnected with their families that they care for until homes are found.

Thank you great vets, vet hospitals and shelters. There is a lot of goodness still around.

Our small local shelter is understaffed, underfunded, but very well run. I find each shelter's policies reflect the view of their individual management. Ours relies heavily on donations and volunteers. Yes, it is a "kill" shelter (the local "no-kill" is always full with a long waiting list), but our adoption rate is close to 90%. We have a full-time vet on staff, and I am a volunteer veterinary asst. (no formal training, but due to my extensive medical background, was recruited from being a dog-walker and trained on-the-job). We treat infectious animals as well as injured ones--a couple wks. ago, the vet & I reduced a hip dislocation and pinned a fractured femur in a 6-wk.-old kitten, who is now in foster care. Almost all the staff and volunteers do foster work. The kennel staff is cheerful, upbeat, and truly love the animals in their care. Many work unpaid overtime to train the dogs in basic obedience to make them more adoptable (most notably the pitties and pit-mixes, as well as other large breeds).

When I began as a volunteer, I had reservations, picturing a sad place with mass euthanasias. Now, I am proud to say I am a part of that organization (albeit an unpaid one). I guess I am one of the lucky ones.

I'm on a rescue list that deals with Miami-Dade and what horrifies me is the number of dogs that need medical care that are not treated. These poor people scramble to try to find rescues for the ones in misery and pain leaving healthier dogs behind to try to alleviate the suffering. The question is not why do they euthanize – it is why don’t they provide basic medical care and pain relief?

I was chatting with an Animal Control Officer from New Zeeland and she is appalled that we don’t provide vet care for injured strays. They are mandated by law to do so.

Whoa, why are people landing on Barnyard Punch for telling the truth? I've done rescue all my life and worked at several kill "shelters" and she speaks the painful inconvenient truth. People want puppies and will pay through the nose to get them and then dump them when they aren't cute any more. There is a reason a high number of dogs killed in pounds are young. No one wants an trained dog who jumps and barks. No one wants an old dog either. And while we're at it, we don't want to pay for shelter staff to train turn-ins, or run a hospice.

Right now pit bulls are the most over-bred dog in the country. At the moment Petfinder lists 15,413 pits, 1,234 Staffordshire terriers and 2,359 American bulldogs - most of those not labeled pits are, but shelters and rescues don't want to call them that because no one much wants pit bulls. There are also 22,640 Labs listed. Remember most dogs never make it to Petfinder. Just where do we find the approximately 6 MILLION homes for the dogs killed every year?

New York city announced with fanfare they were going no-kill soon and hired someone for a ton of money. Well they are higher kill than ever and have a lot of sick un-vetted dogs rescuers are desperately trying to save. If you want to know what is REALLY going on with pounds in this country join some of the Yahoo lists for rescue. They will open your eyes very quickly what a through mess our country is in when it comes to unwanted pets.

The Hartford, CT Pound doesn't mince words. this is straight off their website: "Why adopt a Hartford Pound dog?
The situation is urgent - these dogs only have ten days to find a home."

Shelters don't stop killing overnight - they dump their dogs in other pounds or kill them discretely so no one knows. Shelters have a lot of dirty little secrets that you have to be on the inside to find out about. Join some of the rescue lists and get your eyes opened.

I wish I had an editing program that would catch when I leave out words. I, of course meant, where do we find homes for 6 millions dogs a year?

I ran myself bankrupt - literally - pulling dogs before they could be gassed or given the needle, getting them healthy and then finding them homes. There number of people like me in this country is probably beyond counting and yet we can't make a difference in the number of dogs killed. If I take 3 and someone brings in a box of puppies it starts all over again. Doing rescue is like trying to stem a flood with hay bales.

When we get enough low/no-cost spay and neuter, close down the puppy mills, educate people to take advantage or it and cut the breeding rate then and only then can we stop killing our most loyal and loving companion. Dogs deserve so much better than they get.

But seriously, join a Yahoo rescue group, learn and maybe you can help some of these dogs be saved.

Jane - Perhaps you can explain away why Reno Nevada stopped the killing almost literally overnight.

A - Was it that Reno has the worst economy in the country?

B - Did the entire population change overnight into caring sensible pet owners?

C - Or did the shelter management change?

How did they do it? Where did they put all the dogs coming in? What did they do with the hard to place dogs? I'd love to know. It's not enough to just state that a shelter did this. HOW did they manage this amazing feat?

I'm not defending killing. I fight it every day and have a houseful of dogs that were doomed to die. It's just that if it was easy, more shelters would do it.

Apologies Jane.

You and Barnyard Punch represent yourselves as experienced pet shelter animal loving saviors.

That neither of you are aware of Reno's example is why I mocked Barnyard in the first place.

You mention NYC. Are you aware NYC charges volunteers to volunteer? That they no longer will search shelters for lost and missing pets?

I am not willing to respond individually to try and educate people about the shelter industry. I learned from reading and I guess anyone who cares enough to learn actual facts can do the same.

My only point in bringing up Reno is to let you all know that you really don't know as much as you apparently think and claim.

Thanks, Jane. The situation is bad in a lot of places and not every shelter is great at handling their animal load, but most are doing the best they can with the resources they have. Many places we call shelters are actually functioning as animal control funded by local government. Their mandate is to "deal with" strays, not rescue and rehab. They can have a high kill rate and usually they don't lie or distort the numbers because they don't rely on donations.

Organizations who DO rely on donations are in a catch-22. Many of them with open door policies cannot handle the number of animals that arrive on their door steps. They do euth for space reasons, although officially it'll be recorded as temperament or health reasons. Or they will, as you say, transfer parts of their animal population elsewhere. Why can't they just be honest? Well because donors and the public don't want to hear the truth.

And the truth is that millions of animals die every year because of irresponsible breeding and uncommitted, uneducated owners. If those two things didn't exist, our shelters would be empty and we'd all--especially the animals--be a lot better off.

Still too lazy to try and explain why some shelters do so much better than others.

Glad you will never be treating my dogs.

Rich, which shelter specifically are you talking about in Reno? Link to the organization please?

Also, if you had any reading comprehension skills at all, you'd understand that I've stated over and over that the stats presented by individual organizations are often manipulated. And that some orgs have different goals and different types of funding. Some focus on animal control, others on rehab and adoption. It's really not that complicated.

Again, please share a link to the specific Reno organization you're referring to.

Thanks.

In fact, I have a place less than 50 miles from Reno. I just want to make sure we're discussing the same organization.

Uh, itserich, I'm on a couple of rescue groups for NYC since I'm East Cost. I have enough on my hands with our own kill shelters, the awful pounds in the South and working on mill rescue. No, sorry - I don't monitor what Reno does. Come to think of it Reno hasn't been touted on any of the rescue lists I'm on, so maybe it's not the role-model you think it is. By the way, being rude doesn't get you much except disdain.

Reno has the: SPCA of Northern Nevada, Nevada Humane Society and the Washoe County Regional Animal Services – so yes a name and a link might be nice.

Itserich, I think you are probably referring to Washoe County Regional Animal Services which is the municipal shelter serving the county. The others are privately run and do not take strays (as near as I could tell.)

Washoe County http://www.co.washoe.nv.us/animal is huge, currently reporting on Petfinder 625 adoptable pets, not reported are strays on hold. They also keep 25% of their kennels free for emergencies. does have a very impressive statistics page and an excellent review you can read from American Humane. That they have done this with a municipal shelter is nothing short of amazing. I really would like to know how they accomplished it. I do have a hunch that they rely very heavily on local rescues.

From their American Humane report: “Currently, staff will utilize this open space and hold adoptable animals past their stray period if possible. If WCRAS needs to open up more kennel space, staff will call NHS and other rescues, and they will come as soon as possible and transfer animals in order to make the necessary room.

Their “How We are Doing” page shows a pie chart with 4,610 dogs and cats rescued for a total of 55.5%. There is no category for “adopted.” I find that strange and wonder how many are going out the door to rescues. They can euth for space and I’m used to getting last minute calls begging for help so a dog isn’t killed. This is one way a shelter can end up looking really good while half killing the local rescues. I don’t know that this one is, but it happens.

We simply don’t live in the nice world where every pet has a home. Lord how I wish we did!

By the way since you say: "You and Barnyard Punch represent yourselves as experienced pet shelter animal loving saviors." Nice cheap shot from someone not in the trenches. Here's my Flickr page, I'm not currently taking in dogs but you are free to look at the ones I saved and the ones I still have.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/holeinthewallrescue/
Here's my Webshots page:
http://pets.webshots.com/album/223665531gfRbHn

Uh, Jane, my goal is not to be your friend.

I was responding to your spirited defense of the ignorant Barnyard who called me a troll.

I was responding to your spirited defense of shelters whick kill their animals.

I pray that someday you take time out of berating the careless, irresponsible public to learn how successful animal welfare groups work with the public that support them.

Jane, nice work with your rescues! Nikki looks a lot like one of mine who also happens to have significant OCD tendencies. I'm almost certain he is a good deal border collie, which helps to explain his intense focus abilities.

I didn't bother running through the orgs in Reno because Rich isn't going to listen to reason no matter what anyone here says.

Oh, and Barnyard, sorry if you think you were being tricked. Reno Nevada does indeed mean Reno Nevada.

As you live less than 50 miles from one of the most successful municipal shelters in the country which turned around almost oevernight and are completely ignorant of it does, in fact, prove my original point.

Here is an interview with the man you should already know and respect, yet somehow do not.

http://www.nathanwinograd.com/?p=4412

Ok now we have an actual organization to discuss. Was that so hard, Rich?

Washoe is great. They've made huge efforts to improve their return to owner rates, their save rates, their service to the community and their overall kill rates.

How does one shelter make the numbers look so good so fast? Well there are several ways the numbers can be manipulated. Let's compare 2007 to 2009.

2009 looks great! Zero healthy animals killed, while in 2007 they killed 342 healthy animals.

Let's look at the numbers more closely...

2007 they brought in 1,000 more animals than 2009, so it would stand to reason, more animals would be euthed.

The number of "owner requested" euths went up from 50ish in 2007 to 150ish in 2009. Why's this matter? It goes like this:

Owner comes in and says "My dog bit my kid, I want to surrender him."

Shelter says, "Sorry, because you claim he bit someone, we can't adopt him out. We can only take him if you sign a euth request."

Owner signs the form, the dog is euth'ed. No proof of bite or aggression needed. Dog is euthed at the shelter but the number of healthy animals killed gets to stay at zero, since technically it was an owner request.

Second, if you look at their numbers, they transferred out 776 unhealthy/untreatable animals in 2009, but only 236 in 2007. That could indicate that they are much better getting sick/under-socialized animals out to rescues. And good for them! However, those animals still could go on to be euthed for health or temperament reasons, just by someone else. Again, animals could be euth'ed but the organization's numbers don't take the hit.

How do I know this happens? Because I've worked at two large shelters with save rates north of 95%. With standardization of how numbers are reported, there's great discretion in what bucket each euth goes in.

TO BE CLEAR, I'm not saying this is what has happened at Washoe specifically. I'm saying it's how numbers can be manipulated. I think Washoe is on the right track, moving from an animal control facility to a shelter mind-set that brings them in-line with other larger shelter facilities. They are great and I applaud them.

However, it wasn't an overnight jump from a 60% save rate to a 90% save rate as some here might claim.

There, Rich, your questions could not have been answered in greater detail.

Barnyard Punch - great name - you have your head on straight and understand reality. Too many people get on to topic of euthanizing animals and have no facts and a lot of fantasy. They are sort of the Tea Party of rescue - loud, rude and clueless. They never had the heartbreak of holding an animal as it is killed knowing that it's not his fault for being born and it is societie's fault for wanting to shield themselves from the ugly reality of what over-population truly means.

I checked out Reno out of curiosity. I found that they had played with their number just like every other shelter who boasts low kill rates. I'm always interested in these things because too many people wave the Nathan Winograd flag who have never worked with strays. He talks a good game but he's been talking for quite a while now and people just aren't jumping on the bandwagon. Until we stop over-population we will never be able to stop killing.

OCD dogs are tough to live with. Nikki has it very badly which is why she is here with me along with the other broken ones. She drives me nuts with her ball fixation, but I love her.

Did I read someplace in this mess that you are going to be a vet? Good for you! I couldn't do the math so I rescue and pay the vets to keep 'em alive. Since you know the realities of over-population, shelters and rescue you will be a great asset. Good on ya, as the Aussies say. :)

"I checked out Reno out of curiosity. I found that they had played with their number just like every other shelter who boasts low kill rates."

I am quite disappointed, but not surprised, you would both slander a well performing shelter without being able to articulate a single fact you claim they are lying about.

Shocking. Arrogant. Insulting.

Apologies, what you have both done is libel the place, at least in my non legal opinion.

I often wonder why people such as you who obviously do not hate animals put on such spirited defenses of their killing by the places paid to protect them.

At least we finally answered the question.

Neither of you, NONE of you who keep returning to LIKE the people defending the killers, can explain why a place like Reno is able to kill less than 4% of its animals.

Ha ha.

It is fun watching people trip over each other.

Barnyard states: I've worked at two large shelters with save rates north of 95%.

Joan states: I found that they had played with their number just like every other shelter who boasts low kill rates.

So Joan, are you now claiming Barnyard's prior employers were also lying?

You might want to get your nose out of Nathan's book and do some research. The main reason pounds euthanize - and many still gas - is pure economics. No one really cares about the animals and so they make their decisions based on the bottom line.

Spalding Co. GA Shelter was one of the worst gassing pounds - pulled 7 dogs out of there on their last day. They have decided to switch to injection - not because gassing is torturous, but because injection is cheaper! The animals are still housed in inadequate quarter, some outside with little shelter because no one cares.

Here's a quote from Pibull Saloon forums. "I called and spoke - in person - to William Wilson, the County Manager himself, and he said that their decision to close the gassing facility was indeed fact, but that the decision was strictly financial."

Until we can educate people that animals have feelings and that those feelings matter AND get them to designate money to fund no-kill shelters we will never stop the killing in more than a few scattered shelters.

Go to http://www.shelterreform.com/index.htm and see if you can work with local shelters in your area who are still killing and see if you can make a difference. If you don't -- no one will.

Jane.

I have been on this site for 3 or 4 years and my guess is you have been here about a week.

You libel one of the best run municipal shelters in the country on the basis of absolutely nothing. A shelter which likely discloses more data under the Asilomar Acocords than any shelter or rescue you have worked at or with.

All I did was ask why Reno Nevada does not kill pets.

You and your hyperactive friends on this thread including Barnyard the future vet are all too lazy to even acknowledge the question, much less try to answer it.

Oh and Jane.

Why not just once try to answer a question:

You labeled Barnyard's former employers dishonest as I previously pointed out.

Do you have any basis for that?

Is Barnyard going to defend his employers?

It is truly sad that people like you would rather be defensive and ignorant than try to understand what makes good shelters work.

I apparently know more about how Reno works and NYC works than you, the self appointed animal rescuer from the east coast. Why is that?

And since your only interest is on the east coast, why does it not interest you that Winograd's upstate NY shelter was able to save about 85% of pit bulls while the establishment shelter an hour away killed almost all?

I care about facts. I care about why pets are killed and people like you and future vets don't seem to care.

Our local shelter is extremely poorly managed. About 5 years ago, they fired volunteers (how do you fire a volunteer?) who had the nerve to criticize entrenched, lazy management whose practices involved pretty much ignoring potential adoptee visitors, not getting the pets out and into a more flattering venue, no motivation to do anything about the lack of individual air returns and poor sanitary practices that caused entire populations of cats to get URIs and then be killed for it, euthanizing as "owner requested euthanasia" every owner giveup, and I could definitely go on and on. Animal lovers do not want to volunteer there. They seem to be averse to teh significant help members of the community have tried to provide. And they are not as bad as many in the country; they do have some significant local financial support, and some volunteers who care, but management (now turned over 3x in 5 years on the heels of a neverending 30++ year stint of entrenched power) would rather fudge euth rates and falsely list themselves as "no kill" even though they use the same lousy tactic -- finding dozens of reasons to classify still adoptable animals as "unadoptable" and not counting them in the euth stats. It is a depressing place, and when you visit it, your impression is one of disorganization, lack of conscientiousness, and structural decay. The mice in the shelter aren't up for adoption.

I conclude from personal observation that most shelters fall short due to laziness and incompetence and loss of ability to think creatively about how to meet the goal of saving truly every adoptable animal.

I can't give a pass to shelters when I see things like what I've seen. When they fire volunteers for having the temerity to give ideas for improvement. When they do god only knows what with all the money people have been donating in the hopes that they will build a new shelter with individual air returns. When volunteers come out telling horrible stories about rows of cats hastily euthanized with shots given through cage doors (don't know if that's true, but why would these people lie?) I know they toil under depressing conditions, but they could be doing so much better and killing so much less, and it seems that when faced with a choice between easy killing and workign harder, they choose killing.

If Stefanio is the Stefani I am thinking of, then we are neighbors (well, same county, so same shelter.) Everything she has said is true. The reason I have not volunteered there or applied to work there is the very fact that she states about suggestions for improvement resulting in mistreatment. It's bad enough that our system refuses to be open to no-kill. It speaks volumes about the quality of the people RUNNING the place that this is happening. It's a disgrace. We live in what is supposed to be (or was at one time) one of the wealthiest counties in the nation.

One thing Nathan Winograd DOES get right is this: The problem with most shelter systems is the management. He was able to turn around Tomkins County (I think I have the name right) in NY, simply by replacing the management. In order to have well-cared-for, well-sheltered animals, you HAVE to have good managers--people who actually CARE about the animals.

I am only sorry to learn from the above post that nothing has changed in my county in the last 5 years. Why have I not been more aware? Because I'll be honest: I have given up on our shelter, and I work with no-kill organizations.

No, I have never worked in a shelter myself; however, I HAVE written about animal welfare topics and have done a good bit of research. I also make sure to listen to/read both sides of any debate related to animal welfare. I'm interested in bettering the lives of animals, not simply being right. Yes, I favor no-kill strongly; however, I am aware of the realities those of us in animal welfare face.

Even according to them, they kill 2/3rds of their animals. Pizano is a nut. How she could preside over such unspeakable cruelty boggles the mind. Something must be wrong with her.

http://badvetdaily.blogspot.com/2011/02/vet-sarah-pizano-fires-whistleblowers.html