Decade of Adoption Focus Fails to Reduce Shelter Killing

[peace]

A decade that began with giddy hope that the U.S. might soon become a no-kill nation is ending with the numbers of dogs and cats killed in animal shelters still stubbornly hovering at 4.2 million, right where it was in 2002, with the average for the decade at 4.5 million, where it was in 1999.

The numbers repudiate the emphasis of campaigns that seek to reduce shelter killing chiefly by increasing adoptions, instead of preventing the births of the cats and dogs who are most likely to enter shelters and be killed.
In fact, dog acquisition "market share" has barely changed in almost 30 years, when shelter adoptions are combined with adoptions of found strays.
...
The rate of shelter killing has dropped gradually from 16.6 dogs and cats per 1,000 Americans in 1999 to 13.5--but this merely returns the U.S. to the rate of 1950, when virtually all pets roamed, none were sterilized, a third of all dogs were still homeless vagrants, more cats were feral than in homes, and little effort was made to collect and kill animals whose presence was not a specific health or safety issue.

As public policy shifted toward zero tolerance of free-roaming dogs, and less tolerance of roving cats, shelter killing increased tenfold--and then fell with the advent of pet sterilization in the 1970s and 1980s, followed by the introduction of neuter/return feral cat control in the early 1990s.
In the mid-1990s, however, 25 years of rapid progress to reduce shelter killing appeared to hit limits to what could be done without more effective approaches to controlling the reproduction of the cats and dogs who are most likely to enter shelters, and eventually be killed as unadoptable.


Full story: http://www.animalpeoplenews.org/09/7-8/July-August09.htm

[unovegan]

That's depressing. I guess we really need to be stressing fixing of animals. I see cats all over my neighborhood and I bet that probably half are unfixed.

[peace]

Agreed. It is perhaps, a call for regional humane societies with limited funds to carefully consider where their money could best be spent.

[unovegan]

Agreed. It is perhaps, a call for regional humane societies with limited funds to carefully consider where their money could best be spent.

I agree. Perhaps efforts need to be doubled or a new wing of the humane society devoted specifically to fixing stray cats and dogs. As it is, there are private citizens where i live that do that specifically and they pay for it out of pocket.

[Kellye]

Lots more people would probably spay and neuter if it was offered at a less expensive rate (or free in some cases). Very few people feel strongly about it one way or the other, and if they could have it done cheaply, they'd probably go ahead with it.

I know at the animal shelter I worked out, the vet did sterilization for dirt cheap as a public service. We need more services like that for the average pet owner, not just the municipalities.

I vote for a flux of neighborhood spay-mobiles. :up: I'd totally donate money to make that happen.

[unovegan]

Lots more people would probably spay and neuter if it was offered at a less expensive rate (or free in some cases). Very few people feel strongly about it one way or the other, and if they could have it done cheaply, they'd probably go ahead with it.


Why do you think that few people feel strongly about it? I don't know if i agree on this one. I also worked at the HS and as a vet tech and i think lots of folks believed in fixing their animals.

I do agree that a free/cheap clinic would help.

[Kellye]

Why do you think that few people feel strongly about it? I don't know if i agree on this one. I also worked at the HS and as a vet tech and i think lots of folks believed in fixing their animals.

I should have been more specific - what I meant was that a lot of people who are uninclined to fix their animals usually don't feel strongly about their animals not being fixed. Thus they are likely to get them fixed if there is a cheap, easy opportunity to do so. You know? A lot of excuses for not doing it - can't afford it, it's inconvenient - could be saved with mobile spay units.

Except for the macho "don't emasculate my dog because our testicles match!" guys. I've never understood that particular complex. :p

[Fyvel]

I think this is really sad :(

Spays and neuters at many vets is a ridiculously expensive procedure. I recently found 4 young kittens and ended up rehoming 3 of them. I wasn't going to adopt them out until they were spayed/neutered so I started looking into options. Our local vet wanted $200 each. That has got to be a deterrent to most people. Luckily we found a humane society that did them for about $30-40 each. I think more vets should be offering low cost spay and neutering. I understand that running a veterinary office is expensive and they obviously couldn't do that if they were going to be losing money because of it.

It also makes me a bit sick to think of the billions and billions of dollars given to banks, car companies, and to war. Even a very small fraction of that given to shelters, rescues, spay/neuter programs would be a huge help.

[unovegan]

I think this is really sad :(

Spays and neuters at many vets is a ridiculously expensive procedure. I recently found 4 young kittens and ended up rehoming 3 of them. I wasn't going to adopt them out until they were spayed/neutered so I started looking into options. Our local vet wanted $200 each. That has got to be a deterrent to most people. Luckily we found a humane society that did them for about $30-40 each. I think more vets should be offering low cost spay and neutering. I understand that running a veterinary office is expensive and they obviously couldn't do that if they were going to be losing money because of it.



I thought that local humane societies usually have a low cost spay/neuter clinic weekly. Where i've lived they do. they usually run about 30. If that's the case, maybe promoting this with more media publicity would really help. if more people know about the low costs, they'd probably use it.

[peace]

I thought that local humane societies usually have a low cost spay/neuter clinic weekly.

I wish my local humane society had a weekly S/N clinic. Instead, they have a yearly event--and the only animals accepted are male cats, because they can be done cheaply and easily. While this obviously helps more than nothing, it strikes me as throwing teaspoons of water on a brushfire.

[unovegan]

I wish my local humane society had a weekly S/N clinic. Instead, they have a yearly event--and the only animals accepted are male cats, because they can be done cheaply and easily. While this obviously helps more than nothing, it strikes me as throwing teaspoons of water on a brushfire.

Maybe a key push would be to put pressure on HS to have at the very minimum a low cost clinic once a month. That would surely help. or biweekly.

[peace]

Good idea. But an issue for them would be finding vets who will perform low cost S/N. Many won't. I think that's why their other program is so small, as only a couple vets participate.

[unovegan]

Good idea. But an issue for them would be finding vets who will perform low cost S/N. Many won't. I think that's why their other program is so small, as only a couple vets participate.

Well, then i guess another plan would be to either guilt or hype the vets that do help as heroes in the media. I would think it would be very good for their business to be the good guy helping with overpopulation. I think using the media for all of this would be key.

[Fyvel]

I thought that local humane societies usually have a low cost spay/neuter clinic weekly. Where i've lived they do. they usually run about 30. If that's the case, maybe promoting this with more media publicity would really help. if more people know about the low costs, they'd probably use it.

Honestly I never encountered this sort of thing until I moved into a major city. There are actually some decent options around here (like one free clinic every Thursday but you have to arrive at 5am to get your spot in line...). A lot of people seem to be aware of the options, thankfully (but maybe that's just the circles I run in).

But with smaller towns a lot of the time there isn't even a shelter, period, let alone one that offers affordable spay/neuter. The town/city I grew up in just got an animal shelter a few years ago, there was never one there when I was growing up.

[mlp]

Honestly I never encountered this sort of thing until I moved into a major city. There are actually some decent options around here (like one free clinic every Thursday but you have to arrive at 5am to get your spot in line...). A lot of people seem to be aware of the options, thankfully (but maybe that's just the circles I run in).

But with smaller towns a lot of the time there isn't even a shelter, period, let alone one that offers affordable spay/neuter. The town/city I grew up in just got an animal shelter a few years ago, there was never one there when I was growing up.


Agreed. Cities tend to have programs, however limited and inaccessible. Where I live now, there is no low cost programs within a hundred miles. With the two pregnant cats and the deaf male cat that were dumped here this summer, I have nine cats to spay/neuter, at $300 each. (It would be just over $200 each with use of less safe aenesthesia and no post op pain management.)

For the last decade or so, my charitable giving has been targeted to low cost spay/neuter programs. Anything else is just sticking your finger in the dike.

[mlp]

I should have been more specific - what I meant was that a lot of people who are uninclined to fix their animals usually don't feel strongly about their animals not being fixed. Thus they are likely to get them fixed if there is a cheap, easy opportunity to do so. You know? A lot of excuses for not doing it - can't afford it, it's inconvenient - could be saved with mobile spay units.

Except for the macho "don't emasculate my dog because our testicles match!" guys. I've never understood that particular complex. :p

Weren't you arguing in the other thread in "Companion Animals" that people refuse to spay/neuter out of moral/ethical grounds?