Our local newpaper (the Oregonian) ran a Community Writers piece about animal abandonment. The title was "City Cousins, shelter is a better fate" and opened with, "City pet owners are lucky. Sure, they have to deal with neighbors and the nearest off-leash park may be miles away. But they have the advantage of getting to choose their pets. Then, some of those City Cousins dump their unwanted pets in the country."
http://blog.oregonlive.com/oregonianopinion/2008/05/the_dark_side_of_dumping_unwan.html
Her ending, “I wish someone would invent a sort of recycling system for these pets - oh, wait! That would be the Humane Society, wouldn't it? Why, I ask myself, does my City Cousin dump unwanted pets on a country road rather than taking the animal to the Humane Society? I'm not sure.”, made me stand up and be counted by writing a reply.
I was only allowed 150 words. There is a longer version from which this was distilled from below.
"Susan Clark’s May 11 letter asks why her “City Cousin dump[s] unwanted pets … rather than taking the animal to the Humane Society.” Here’s why.
Oregon Humane Society cannot be Ms. Clark’s “recycling system” because the job is too large. OHS requires appointments pre-surrender interviews, three to eight weeks out. It doesn’t accept every animal, telling many owners that if left, their animal will be euthanized.
The only local shelter accepting all pets is Washington County’s Bonnie Hays, which is small and often euthanizes pets for capacity reasons. Some small shelters and rescue organizations serve Portland, but these have waiting lists. County animal services only accept strays.
Many pet owners cannot keep their pets for reasons beyond their control. The current economy has increased demand for animal re-homing services.
Portland’s animal-welfare organizations do great work, but they need help, primarily through public education about responsible pet ownership and spaying/neutering."
I’ll let you know if it is published…
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Options for Animal Surrender: as more non-profit humane societies limit their admission there are fewer alternatives for owner-released pets.
Susan Clark’s letter of May 11 asks why her “City Cousin dump[s] unwanted pets on a country road rather than taking the animal to the Humane Society.” Here is why.
The “Humane Society” is not a single organization; it is many local organizations with some principles in common. In Oregon, the best-known humane society is Oregon Humane Society (“OHS”) in North Portland. OHS cannot fill the role of what Ms. Clark calls a “recycling system” by taking in pets surrendered by their owners, for placement in new homes. This job is too large for OHS’s capacity. For that reason, OHS does not accept every animal that owners seek to surrender. Instead it requires an appointment for an interview, typically three to eight weeks out. It does not accept every animal at the interview, instead telling many owners that their animal, if surrendered there, will be euthanized. OHS also requests a donation of $45 to $100 for each surrendered pet.
So, what alternatives does a pet owner have, if they cannot wait three to eight weeks or if OHS refuses to accept their pet for re-homing? The only local open-admission shelter (meaning it accepts all surrendered pets) is Bonnie Hays, in Washington County. This shelter charges $10 - $40 for surrendering a pet. Bonnie Hays is a small shelter, however, and if the incoming animals overwhelm its kennel space and it cannot place them in new homes as fast as they come in, they are euthanized. There are a few small shelters and breed-specific rescue organizations in the Portland region, but these usually have long waiting listing for surrendering a pet. And Multnomah County Animal Services (“MCAS”) does not accept owner-surrendered animals, only strays – and then, only if citizens bring them to the shelter. (Citizens interested in these issues can attend a series of public hearings in July with the City of Portland Animal Services Task Force, a temporary organization exploring the creation of an Animal Control agency for the city, separate from MCAS. For further information contact county commissioner Leonard or commissioner Wheeler’s offices.)
Many pet owners want to keep their pets, and often go to remarkable lengths to do so. Sometimes, however, they simply cannot. The circumstances I have outlined leave many pet owners – faced with eviction, entering prison, moving for a job, or helping out after the original owner’s death – with difficult choices. They may not be able to wait up to eight weeks for an interview, or they may have been told that OHS will not seek to re-home their pet. They may not be physically able to get to Bonnie Hays, or dread the certain death that faces many pets surrendered there. The current economic environment, especially, the surge in people leaving their homes (rented and owned) has noticeably exacerbated the demand for services to re-home these animals.
I do not mean in any way to demean any of the animal-welfare organizations in the Portland region; they do great work. However, their task is Sisyphean: it is more than they can hope to accomplish. They need all the help anyone can give them, but even more, they need public support in the form of education about responsible pet ownership, including spaying/neutering, basic veterinary care, and behavior modification. These can help turn the tide of pet over-population and the crime of animal abandonment.
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