Shelter Animals

From Tails Media Group

The Truth Behind the Surrenders

By Melissa Wiley

Far more often than not, the animals we encounter at shelters are the victims of human circumstances beyond their control. However, the myth that shelter animals have somehow earned their way there is still heartbreakingly pervasive. All too commonly, prospective pet parents purposely bypass the shelters for fear that shelter animals come with baggage they’d rather do without. According to Julie Morris, senior vice president of community outreach for the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), “Shelter animals come from a wide variety of sources. … Shelter animals arrive with an equally wide variety of experiences and behaviors. There is no reason to believe that shelter animals are damaged goods.” Far from being responsible for their own abandonment or surrender, companion animals are at the absolute mercy of their guardians’ life choices, financial and emotional stability, and willingness to assume responsibility for a voiceless living being. Likewise, animals are equally victimized when their people undergo taxing, even traumatic events. Pets suffer when their guardians suffer—and often end up in shelters as a result.


Recent studies have verified the fact that people, and not animals, constitute the reason for the bulk of animal surrenders to shelters. In 2007, under the auspices of the National Council on Pet Population Study and Policy, of which the ASPCA was a founding member, shelters recruited by three universities and a national humane organization partnered to develop the Shelter Population Index. The index was the first to reflect the combined impact shelters and their communities have in addressing pet homelessness. Included in the index are the study’s findings on the top reasons for cat and dog relinquishment. According to Morris, the study’s top three reasons for dog surrender are lack of time, a guardian’s personal problems, and allergies. The top three reasons identified for cat surrender are allergies, guardian’s personal problems, and a new baby. Reflecting on these findings, Morris says, “Most animals end up in shelters for people [related] reasons that were not the fault of the animal. As such, the brunt of the responsibility of shelter relinquishment is people-related.”

Also in 2007, Pethealth Inc.—the second largest provider of pet health insurance in North America—conducted a study to determine the top 10 reasons for cat and dog relinquishment to shelters. The results of the study are based on data collected from nearly 800 animal-welfare organizations related to more than 1.4 million dogs and cats. Findings were published in PetPoint Journal #7, distributed in November 2007.

Reasons related to the personality of the animal in question did not enter into the top 10 for either dogs or cats. In fact, the study found that 86 percent of all animals surrendered to shelters were assigned a dubious fate for reasons directly related to the life situation of the guardian. As positively as these findings speak to the blamelessness of animals for their return, they also point to some disconcerting patterns of behavior among the most well-intentioned of guardians. All too often, people adopt without fully assessing their life situation and preparedness to adopt an animal. Reasons such as “cost of maintenance,” “no time for a pet,” “inadequate facilities,” and “too many pets” indicate lack of foresight on the part of the guardian at the time the decision was made to bring an animal into the home. “Too many pets” and “no homes for littermates” often indicate a failure, perhaps even a refusal, to spay and neuter on the guardian’s part. According to Nadine Walmsley, vice president of development for the Anti-Cruelty Society in Chicago, failure to spay and neuter constitutes the number-one reason for surrenders to the organization. “[Pet guardians who don’t spay and neuter] think they can find homes for the cute litters of kittens and puppies, and when they can’t give them away or sell them, they end up in shelters,” says Walmsley.

“Moving,” “landlord issues,” and “personal problems,” such as divorce or sudden illness, are less directly related to pets, less within the guardian’s control, and less possible for a guardian to anticipate. Reasons related to loss of home and job are also, unfortunately, signs of these hard economic times and have likely only been exacerbated with the accelerated decline of the economy since 2007. But Walmsley has found a silver lining amid all the media reports of the recession’s impact on shelters filling to capacity. “People who can afford to care for animals are adopting,” she says, as opposed to buying from breeders or pet stores, a fact that she attributes to increased media coverage of the problem.

And though they may account for only 14 percent of animal surrenders, those reasons ostensibly attributable directly to the animal may still indicate an inability or reluctance to work through problems—both behavioral and health related—on the guardian’s part. “Doesn’t get along with other pets,” for instance, refers to a behavioral difficulty that guardians with enough patience can proactively address through consultation with a behaviorist. Providing a scenario in which seeking professional help can make all the difference to an animal, Walmsley says, “A new pet comes into the family and does not get along with the existing pet. A woman has a new baby, and [the family] is worried about the way the pet is going to adjust. Many of the pet behavior issues are simple and workable, and our behaviorists provide advice and assistance through our free behavior hotline, helping and hoping to keep the pets in the homes they are in.” Many larger humane societies offer similar types of free behavioral assistance to assist newly adoptive pet parents.

When asked what measures prove most effective in limiting the number of animal surrenders, Walmsley unhesitatingly states, “Education and prevention.” Prevention refers to spay and neuter—prevention of unwanted litters that might too easily mean unwanted animals. Education, says Walmsley, means “educating pet adopters and the public about responsible pet care and pet [guardianship]. The adoption fee is not the only cost involved.”

Knowing that human beings, and not animals, constitute the greatest reason for the presence of animals in shelters should elicit not our guilt, but our compassion. Moreover, “Dispelling the myths of shelter animals is a continual process,” according to Morris, a process that the more people partake in, the better the outcome for homeless animals.



The top 10 overall reasons for animal surrender


1. Too many pets 18%
2. Unwanted/incompatible 10%
3. Moving/deployed 10%
4. Stray/found/abandoned 8%
5. Inability to care for 8%
6. Financial/home insurance policy restrictions 6%
7. Euthanasia request 5%
8. Other/unclear reason 4%
9. Unwanted litter/pregnant female 4%
10. Allergic to animal 4%

* 2007 Pethealth Inc. study


The top 10 reasons for feline relinquishment

1. Too many cats in the house
2. Allergies
3. Moving
4. Cost of pet maintenance
5. Landlord issues
6. No homes for littermates
7. House soiling
8. Personal problems
9. Inadequate facilities
10. Doesn’t get along with other pets


The top 10 reasons for canine relinquishment

1. Moving
2. Landlord issues
3. Cost of pet maintenance
4. No time for a pet
5. Inadequate facilities
6. Too many pets in the home already
7. Pet illness
8. Personal problems
9. Biting
10. No homes for littermates

* 2007 Pethealth Inc. study


The average yearly cost of caring for your furry bundle of joy

Dog:
Food: $120
Medical: $235
Toys/Treats: $55
License: $15
Health Insurance: $225

Cat:
Food: $115
Medical: $160
Litter: $165
Toys/Treats: $25
Health Insurance: $175

* As reported by the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals

-- Contributed by Heather, Wharton NJ