Although, I agree with much of what you wrote, I disagree re dog surrenders decreasing. I volunteer @ ACCT Philly, and the number of dogs, both stray and surrendered, has increased 2-3x. Many pet owners cannot afford the care. My household is in the top 2% of wage earners, and to come up with the cash for surgeries, medicines, etc., will sometimes, make me gasp. Everything, needed to care for a pet, has risen astronomically. Sometimes, something simple like buying a certain food can be problematic. If it is not available (either the type, or size), then, one must buy from a different source, or buy a larger bag, which will cost more. To someone on a budget, that can hurt. Most pet people have multiple animals, and never anticipated the skyrocketing costs. They will do whatever they can to keep their pets, but there are times when the hurdles are insurmountable. Many shelters are trying to help, but sometimes, that is not enough. Again, I am in concert with most of your thoughts, but inflation, and animal surrenders increasing, is very real, and affecting many.
1. The data I cite is national data so there may be local or regional variation.
2. I am also comparing YTD intakes with pre-pandemic levels (2019) to compare normal years.
3. I checked ACCT Philly's stats and so far this year, 823 dogs have been surrendered by owners. Overall, 3,888 dogs have come in (owner surrenders, strays, etc.)
In 2019 during the same time period, 2,336 dogs were surrendered by owners and ACCT Philly took in 6,712 dogs.
So they have not increased 2-3x. They are 65% lower in terms of owner surrenders and 42% lower overall.
The "shelter"situation is so awful. These crooks are accountable to no one it seems, and this needs to change. These managers are obviously paper pushing chair warmers who have never worked with or helped any animal in their life. Many of them have criminal records and are animal abusers themselves, and this is not my invention but has been shown to be fact. "Clear the shelter" day should involve firing all these miscreants and offering well paid positions to the rescues and caretakers who are overwhelmed but nevertheless will do whatever it takes to help animals in need.
I really appreciate the work you’ve done and continue to do with educating and spurring communities and shelters to do better.
I can’t help but wonder what the money component does to drive these policies. I can’t imagine any reason to go back to old practices if money wasn’t involved. Do No Kill Sheltering practices impact the breeder world financially? Do they play any part in this? Or is it just the administrative expense? Just curious of your thoughts on it?
Although, I agree with much of what you wrote, I disagree re dog surrenders decreasing. I volunteer @ ACCT Philly, and the number of dogs, both stray and surrendered, has increased 2-3x. Many pet owners cannot afford the care. My household is in the top 2% of wage earners, and to come up with the cash for surgeries, medicines, etc., will sometimes, make me gasp. Everything, needed to care for a pet, has risen astronomically. Sometimes, something simple like buying a certain food can be problematic. If it is not available (either the type, or size), then, one must buy from a different source, or buy a larger bag, which will cost more. To someone on a budget, that can hurt. Most pet people have multiple animals, and never anticipated the skyrocketing costs. They will do whatever they can to keep their pets, but there are times when the hurdles are insurmountable. Many shelters are trying to help, but sometimes, that is not enough. Again, I am in concert with most of your thoughts, but inflation, and animal surrenders increasing, is very real, and affecting many.
Hi June,
1. The data I cite is national data so there may be local or regional variation.
2. I am also comparing YTD intakes with pre-pandemic levels (2019) to compare normal years.
3. I checked ACCT Philly's stats and so far this year, 823 dogs have been surrendered by owners. Overall, 3,888 dogs have come in (owner surrenders, strays, etc.)
In 2019 during the same time period, 2,336 dogs were surrendered by owners and ACCT Philly took in 6,712 dogs.
So they have not increased 2-3x. They are 65% lower in terms of owner surrenders and 42% lower overall.
The statistics are here: https://acctphilly.org/statistics-and-reports/.
The "shelter"situation is so awful. These crooks are accountable to no one it seems, and this needs to change. These managers are obviously paper pushing chair warmers who have never worked with or helped any animal in their life. Many of them have criminal records and are animal abusers themselves, and this is not my invention but has been shown to be fact. "Clear the shelter" day should involve firing all these miscreants and offering well paid positions to the rescues and caretakers who are overwhelmed but nevertheless will do whatever it takes to help animals in need.
I really appreciate the work you’ve done and continue to do with educating and spurring communities and shelters to do better.
I can’t help but wonder what the money component does to drive these policies. I can’t imagine any reason to go back to old practices if money wasn’t involved. Do No Kill Sheltering practices impact the breeder world financially? Do they play any part in this? Or is it just the administrative expense? Just curious of your thoughts on it?
No Kill is not only more cost-effective than killing, it provides significant economic benefits to a community: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/631da1c3be6a0b0252612c53/t/631e70c7b125671bd9b91cba/1662939338847/Dollars+%26+Sense.pdf
Here's a study out of Austin, TX: https://www.nathanwinograd.com/wp-content/uploads/IHAC-MageeAustinNoKillStudy_final.pdf