Kittens Kittens Everywhere!

The other day, I was standing in a local veterinary office when a woman walked in with a box and asked, "where is the local humane society?"  Of course, I stepped forward and was handed the box with (4) freaked out kittens in it.  Luckily, the Rimrock Humane Society has a policy that if we take any puppies and/or kittens, the momma has to be spayed as well.  Such was the case in this instance and one more "kitten factory" will soon be put out of business. 

The thing that saddens us the most is even though preaching spay/neuter is making a difference, it just doesn't seem to be imparting that BIG of a difference.  When we try and educate folks on the human to pet ratio as pictured here, we are not sure that it is truly sinking in.  Get it ... for every human born there are 15 puppies and 45 kittens.  Do the math, peeps ... there just aren't enough homes!  Because of this surplus, animals are homeless, starving, neglected and ... in most shelters throughout the U.S. ... euthanized due to lack of loving homes.  What a tragedy especially since it is a "fixable" (excuse the pun) situation.

I have always contended that there is no "lesson" for people who can just walk into a shelter, dump their animals and walk away.  They don't have to watch their dog's two week depression after their departure, witness their cat blow up with an upper respiratory infection due to stress in the shelter environment or the light leave their puppy's eyes when the euthanasia solution reaches his heart.  Pull into the shelter, dump your animal, walk away and it is life as usual.  Now mind you, we all know and recognize that there are life situations that cannot be avoided such as death, divorce and other altering moments that might cause an animal to be seeking a new home.  It is the "I just got new carpet and my cat's hair doesn't match any more, I don't want her" that irks me (and yes, that was an actual surrender scenario).  Then these very same people are aghast at the fact that their animal was euthanized!  All of us out here in the animal welfare world are expected to find homes for every animal that crosses our door step whether it is a cat that is wilder than a March hare or that dog who has severe aggression issues "only 20% of the time".  May I refer you back to the statistics at the top of this page ... it just ain't gonna happen people!  Most of us in this profession wear this responsibility like a yoke around our necks ... it is a heavy burden that we carry with us 24/7 and it actually has a scientific name "Compassion Fatigue".

So what is the answer?  The days of apathy are over ... they have to be.  We all need to play a vital part whether it is educating, volunteering, fostering, donating, adopting ... it doesn't take much to make a difference.  If you could educate one person on the benefits of spay/neuter and that person educates one person ... think of how the ripple effect would spread!  Yup, huge strides have been made in the last decade or two in regards to animal welfare but we still have a long ways to go.  This is clearly evident every day for us when the phone continues to ring with people who have unwanted pets. We cannot do this alone ... please help us be part of the solution ... if not for us, then for them?

Sandy Church
President

NOTE:  Do not forget that we have many kittens, adult cats and dogs looking for good homes.  If you or someone you know is looking, please have them contact us!