How many animals are killed while under the care of ASPCA shelters each year?

[bill]

I was just wondering how many animals this "humane" organization destroys each year after determining that an animal is un-adoptable. I would also like to know exactly who makes these determinations and what are their qualifications? I have 5 senior dogs from our local SPCA shelter that were to be destroyed simply because they have past their prime or are over-weight. My wife and i love these dogs and have put them on diets, give them love and excercise and they have been better family members than any dog you can buy from a breeder

[Lani]

Euthanization is sometimes an unavoidable fact of animal rescue. Shelters that are over run may have to make the call to do the sad task by choosing the dogs with the lowes adoptability rates first (hate to tell ya that big, old, mixed tend to spell out no one wants them). The animals that are brought into the shelters have to pass asessment from animal professionals based on socialability, temperment, overal manners, and weather or not the animal could possibly be dangerous under many scenarios (ie hands coming in to pick up a food bowl while eating, ear pulling, tail pulling, hugging, etc). Unfortunatly they have to err on the side of caution, because likely the adoptor may be a first time pet owner, inexperianced with the breed, have small children...it's better to say this dog is unsuitible for (the shelter) to adopt out to the general public than it is to send an unexpecting person home with a potential ticking time bomb...and in the great USA that could lead to LAWSUIT!

Now, it is possible for the shelter to work with breed specific rescues to help place dogs in more suitible homes for the temperment. Many work with our group in just such a way...we do more screening than the shelters are able to do and can be the last best choice before euthanization.

The point is, you cant keep them all forever and if they do not become adopted they are just really draining your resources. Which being a donation based operation can be a risky thing as donations can dry up without warning! Better to stay open and help many than blow it all on one and be put out of business, thus unable to help no one.

[M-A]

Just to clarify, Bill, the ASPCA is not affiliated with local SPCAs across the country. We operate one shelter here in New York City.

[bill]

Thank you for the clarification. Can you tell me what your shelter's policy is on euthanizing un-adoptable animals? What qualifies an animal as un-adoptable? I'm not being a wise-guy, just curious. our local shelter seems to have the same philosophy as the marines, " Kill 'em all, let GOD sort it out". I just wonder how many "humane" organizations declare animals "unfit" for adoption and euthanize as a means of population control as opposed to spay/neuter or do it just because it's easier than finding good homes for them?

[Lani]

We had a Siberian Husky just recently the shelter contacted us saying that he was deemed unadoptable so they could either release him to rescue or euthanize him...I went to meet him he was WONDERFUL! A bit on the hyper side but he was young, so that's kinda normal. When I asked what made him unadoptable they stated because he's too hyper and he howls...well that's like line one of the Siberian Husky hand book! They elaborated by saying that if a family with children were to adopt him he could unintentionally hurt the child and then be returned now he's got a bigger strike against him. So they were just being careful, maybe a bit on the extreme side but careful.

And as an update on the dog, we just adopted him out, last Saturday, to a great home that is into dog sledding...which will do wonders for him!

[Leah Hickman]

ok i dont get it. everyone says huskys are a hyper breed of dog.
my x-hubby's mom has a husky/malamute mix, and I now have shiro (who we are told is a pure bred husky) and both are lazy! they love to just lay around. yeah they both get a bit hyper every once in a while, but it only lasts for a few minutes.

[Lani]

Leah, count your blessings, sounds like you got an "exception to the rule"...

[M-A]

The ASPCA recognizes the necessity for euthanasia in certain critical circumstances, such as an agonizing, terminal illness or a dangerous behavior problem that makes an animal a threat to itself or to others. At the ASPCA Adoption Center in New York, no adoptable pets are euthanized.

[Darrell]

m-a:

But like lani pointed out, one shelter's "unadoptable" is a specific breed rescue groups' ideal dog. Perhaps there should be two categories of "adoptable" -- one for general population and another for breed knowledgable owners. Give it some serious thought.

[Camille]

That's the way our shelter works. Only a few dogs have ever had to go this way, though.

[Camille]

I had a rottie try to bite me in the face (she had an issue about being alpha) but she was very sorry afterwards and licked me to death. She ended up being adopted by an ex K-9 cop who probably will be a great owner for her. I was happy she got placed in just the right area. Now, 2 pits of ours (gorgeous sweet dogs to people, terrible to other dogs) got put down for attacks. Other than that, that is all I can remember. Oh, we had an Akita/Husky mix that was a baby with severe anxiety/aggression issues that I was absolutely in love with. She responded well to me but I didn't dislike her like the rest of the volunteers did. After she attacked a few puppies they sent her to get euthanized. That hurt.

[Camille]

I don't know much about akitas. I've been around a lot of akita mixes and for the most part, they are very territorial and energetic dogs, and they seem to display a certain level of dog aggression.

According to Dog Breed Info:

The Akita is docile, intelligent, courageous and fearless. Careful and very affectionate with its family. Sometimes spontaneous, it needs a firm, confident, consistent pack leader. Without it the dog will be very willful and may become very aggressive to other dogs and animals. It needs firm training as a puppy. The objective in training this dog is to achieve a pack leader status. It is a natural instinct for a dog to have an order in their pack. When we humans live with dogs, we become their pack. The entire pack cooperates under a single leader. Lines are clearly defined. You and all other humans MUST be higher up in the order than the dog. That is the only way your relationship can be a success. If the dog is allowed to believe he is the leader over the humans he may become very food-possessive as he tells the humans to wait their turn. He eats first. The Akita is a first class guard dog. Japanese mothers would often leave their children in the family Akita's care. They are extremely faithful and thrive on firm leadership from their handlers. It should definitely be supervised with other household pets and children. Although the breed may tolerate and be good with children from his own family, if you do not teach this dog he is below all humans in the pack order he may not accept other children and if teased, Akita's may bite. Children must be taught to display leadership qualities and at the same time respecting the dog. With the right type of owner, the proper amount of daily mental and physical exercise and firm training, they can make a fine pet. Obedience training requires patience, as these dogs tend to get bored quickly. The Akita needs to be with its family. It vocalizes with many interesting sounds, but it is not an excessive barker.

Sounds like any other guardian breed. A lot of the time these dogs come in because their owners simply couldn't deal with this kind of animal- they need a lot of training, structure, and an owner that is dominant.

[Linda]

Just an FYI, not all shelters are SPCA.

So many animals come into a shelter as mix breeds, the option for breed rescue does not apply to many dogs. When possible the shelter I volunteer for will try to adopt a specific breed dog, but if after a few weeks this is not working, they try to get it into breed rescue. As with a GSD I fostered earlier this year, I fostered for the rescue, not the shelter. I was able to get him vetted and healthy, and the rescue picked up the vet bills. He was adopted through the GSD rescue. I now am fostering a mix breed GSD/? for the shelter. All the cost for this one is on me, but she is worth it. She should have been dead, she was found in a rental house with 3 cats. Two of the cats were already dead, the last one was euthanized, it was in bad condition. All the animals were covered with fleas. Just to show what can be done by fostering, go to my pics on Picasa. http://picasaweb.google.com/lindap.arbonne/Phoenix#. I am kind of proud of what my daughter and I have accomplished with the little gal.

You have to be in the shelter environment for a while to really get a good idea of how decisions are made. I do have to say that I volunteer for a pretty good shelter, some shelters are not so great. I have helped transport many animals out of high kill shelters. Some have a time limit on their animals. But you do see a difference if a an animal has been in the shelter too long. A dog can become kennel crazy over time. There is one that didn't go crazy, in fact he thought he owned the shelter. Bill I think you will be interested in this one; here is the story of Clarence: http://qconline.com/archives/qco/display.php?id=442103&query=cl...

The county shelter is not like a humane society, or private rescue, they do not choose which animals they want. Any animal picked up, or any animal that an owner wants to release, comes to our county shelter. At first you think they should all get a chance, but when you have been around for a while you have to realize that all animals cannot be saved. Any animal that is too aggressive or too sick, is not adoptable. The county does what it can, but it cannot risk adopting out an animal that may do harm, or one that needs to more care than they can afford. There is a budget, and the volunteer group tries to pick up the slack when possible.

Lani's first post was excellent. She gave a good assessment of shelter dogs. Cats have to be assessed too. I could not have said it better than she did. Keep in mind that it is not always the big dogs that are not adoptable. Some of the small breeds, or mixes, are not so nice.

The shelter can keep costs down, and save more animals, if there are volunteers to help take the load off the staff. If people donate money, food, toys, laundry supplies, old towels, newspapers, etc., that can help tremendously. Get involved with a shelter, there are many things they can use help with. Most of the smaller shelters that I have known are in desperate need of volunteers, some are run by volunteers.

The original post by Bill is about senior dogs. It is unfortunate, but these are dogs that are so many times overlooked. We look for people who would be willing to adopt a senior dog. There are some good reasons to adopt a senior. They are especially good for people who are seniors themselves. An older person may not want to train or try to keep up with a young dog. But there is the down side too. Medical issues being the main reason. I understand how you feel, but they are hard to place. We just need more people like you that can look past that it is a senior dog. It is wonderful of you to take these dogs in and make them family. We just need more people like you in volunteer work. You would be a good person to go to the shelter on a Saturday and point out the qualities of owning a senior dog. Thumbs up to you, and your wife, for being caring people.