i thought turtles were gonna be in charge in the future. i have 10 in training now. Dag.

Glad to hear he is much better!

Ps. i am no way taking the HSHC side on this. They suck. But pre-screening is vital.

I would like to share my personal experience in adopting my dog from HCHS this May 2008 when it was extremely crowded … I felt like I needed to give my first born in order to adopt my puppy … I understand that the shelter is having problems and screening is important; however, this was out of control. I had to renew my puppy’s adoption three times, or they were going to “give him away,” who by the way had mange, was malnourished, and had some sort of cold.

I wanted to take him home ASAP so I could give him the care he needed and bring him to the vet … what an ordeal it was to adopt him, one would think they would want a kind animal lover with a large backyard to take home the “mangey mutt, with a cold or something” one of the volunteers called him because he had patches of hair missing on his head and throughout his coat.

Anyway, in order to bring him home and get him the medical attention he needed which they clearly did NOT provide I had to do the following: bring a family member to the Humane Society, bring my boyfriend, my boyfriend’s mother and oh yes even his dad had to leave work and come to the shelter. Mind you I am a 25 year old woman, not a small child who rode their big wheel to the shelter, I found their adoption policies rather odd and certain staff members very unhelpful.

I would like you to know after about a month my puppy, who was an absolute mess, is a wonderful dog and in good health, playful, and happy but it took time and cost a lot of money; something really needs to be changed there because it is the animals who are truly suffering and only true animal lovers should work at shelters.

Thanks!!!

-Kate

As far as a “No Kill”. i wish that life were as simple as that. But it is not. The Shelter can hold so many animals. If it were No kill then can you imagine how many will be turned away and destroyed somewhere else? Or in some inhumane way?
It bothers me that we are letting the person there play God and decide who gets to live and who doesnt.
Did you read the Aegis article? The lady who makes the big decisions is an idiot.
i work as a Veterinary Nurse at a local vet. This woman….i forget her name because it is barely worth remembering…claimed that a dog they had worked with and taped a local t.v show spot for his adoption was put to death because of behavior issues that just popped up.
He was dog aggressive and got into fights through the cage wires that hold the dogs in the shelter. He even injured a couple.
Well…whoop de doo lady. i see dog aggressive dogs that must be muzzled by their owners before they walk in our clinic. These owners KNOW the consequence of their dog being close to others and handle it because they love their pet. The dogs that are human aggressive (to everyone but the owners) also come in for annual vaccinations with a muzzle and a tight leash.
So dont give me that crap that you couldnt adopt out a dog who fights with other dogs. There are PLENTY of 1 dog owners out there who are capable of dealing with that.
If the dogs are fighting through the kennel fences…then build ones that have a concrete wall so that they can’t torture each other. Duh.

To reply to the volunteering of vets theory to fix pets for free to control the population…in this economy i see where that will fail. It is hard to run a business when everyone is suffering and cutting corners…including vet visits.
This is where someone in charge needs to really push ahead and gain the trust and respect of our local veterinarians. The problem is that there are SO many problems at the shelter….some doctors prefer to stay away from it.
i would promise incentives for their help. Not bribes…but reason to contribute. My shelter would be so awesome that everyone would want to help!!