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Post by masha on Sept 2, 2004 4:49:15 GMT -5
We have a number of dog rescue orginisation here in South Africa. Recently I heard this about one of them:
It has a policy of not putting dogs to sleep, but keeping them and trying to find homes for them. The SPCA, which is our big animal shelter here, does put animals to sleep after a certain period if they cant find homes for them. The SPCA is not government run, and also struggles for money, but generally does a good job, I think. But many people hate it because they do kill so many animals.
Well, this non-kill shelter did not kill the dogs, but because they dont have the funds to keep limitless dogs for ever, these dogs were kept in the worst conditions. Small cages in the direct sun, starving, your worst nightmare for how a dog can be kept. Eventually the SPCA had to step in and take over, and actually put many of these animals to sleep because they were in such terrible shape.
And people still say "yes, but at least those dogs had a chance".
Isnt this false mercy?
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Post by Nicole on Sept 2, 2004 6:40:05 GMT -5
That is so sad. I personally think that euthanasia is preferable to torture and suffering and living in unthinkable conditions like that. There are really no such things as true no-kill shelters. We have facilities here that claim to be no-kill but they are frauds. They will interview every dog and only accept those that are highly adoptable and they will ship dogs to kill shelters to be pts. So the claim that THEY are no kill is technically true With the number of dogs in shelters you would need unlimited funds to accept every dog and maintain it comfortably forever. The whole situation is very sad.
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Post by Aussienot on Sept 2, 2004 22:38:51 GMT -5
I'd ask, a chance for what? A miserable existance starving in a filthy cage? How much actual adoption goes on - 1 out of 1,000? Even if it's 100 out of 1000, is the suffering of the others justified?
A rescue outreaching their resources is understandable, but not a solution. They would be better spent fighting to get pet dogs de-sexed and strays off the street.
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Post by ripley on Sept 3, 2004 10:09:40 GMT -5
It's very sad... Personally, if I were one of the dogs howling and crying in those cages for months and months in a 'no kill' shelter, I'd rather be PTS. But, since the dogs can't make the decision on their own, people make it for them, and usually make a mistake. I've seen dogs, particularly in the 'no kill' shelter I worked at last year, that became uncontrollably aggressive after being kept in the cage for months. Even with regular walking (like 5 walks a day) the 'cage crazed' dogs would attack the chain link whenever someone walked by. Of course, since nobody wants to adopt the dog that bites at them when they say hello to it, these dogs are there longer. They're unadoptable, but they still stay there, because it's a 'no kill' shelter. Now, that's just inhumane. those dogs can't live in an average foster home because they are just too wound up and aggressive. I don't even think I could handle one of them. So, if they're not adoptable, and nobody can work with them to MAKE them adoptable, the humane thing to do, IMO, is to PTS. All of this could be solved if people were only responsible and kept their dogs from getting out, mating and having litters.
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Post by sibemom on Sept 6, 2004 14:05:02 GMT -5
The sad reality to this is that there are way more unwated pets, than available people to adopt them. Yes you are all correct the spay and neuter issues need to be addressed full force. I would much rather see dogs PTS then living in those conditions, or just adopted out to anyone. That is where you have the constant return of certain dogs. Alot of shelters and more so rescues are under the Fantasy that every dog can be adopted. Well we all know that this is very far from the truth. Some dogs are better off being PTS, because of aggresion, severe health issues etc... It is a shame because so many good potential family pets have to suffer because of stupid humans who refuse to spay and neuter. I think it should be a LAW
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