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Working with animal shelters should be viewed as a last resort for you and your
pet. Not only are Chicago area shelters overflowing with hundreds of incoming
animals everyday, they are also a very stressful environment for pets accustomed
to living in a permanent home.
If you want to ensure that your pet does not become one of the thousands of dogs
and cats that will be killed this year in Chicago, do your homework before
surrendering your pet to a shelter.
Here are a few tips on how to determine if a shelter is committed to the life of
each pet admitted:
- Does the shelter call itself No Kill?
If so, your pet will most likely be adopted into a new home. If not, this is
a strong indicator that the shelter utilizes killing as a space management
tool.
- What is the shelter’s definition of “adoptable” and “unadoptable”?
Before placing an animal on the adoption floor, some shelters may categorize
whether an animal is “adoptable” or “unadoptable.” These categorizations are
defined differently within each institution. And while your pet may appear
perfectly adoptable to you, sometimes age (too young or too old), dental
issues, shyness, or coming down with a common cold will fall outside a
shelter’s “adoptable” guidelines and may lead to your pet’s death.
Clarifying how a shelter defines these terms will give you better insight as
to whether your pet will be adopted into a new home or killed.
- Do you have to make an appointment to surrender your pet?
It is a good indication that shelters are committed to the life of every
animal when they only admit by appointment. Shelters that accept “walk-ins”
are most likely killing to make space for the unmanaged flow of animals into
their facility.
- Read the fine print!
In surrender/relinquishment contracts, it is important to read all fine
print before you sign over ownership of your pet. Often, critical
information about euthanasia/killing policies can be found there.
- If a situation arises, will the shelter call you before they kill
your pet?
When a shelter reserves euthanasia only for pets that are irremediably
suffering or for incidences of aggression, euthanasia is a rare occurrence
that is taken very seriously. As a result, these No Kill shelters will often
be willing to contact you if such a situation arises. If a shelter is
unwilling to inform you of a potential euthanasia, it may be an indication
that the shelter commonly utilizes killing.
You may want to check space availability with:
-
Chicagoland Animal Shelters
(Due to Chicago’s pet overpopulation problem, you may also find these shelters
to be at capacity)
-
Chicagoland Breed Rescue Groups, if your dog is purebred
-
Your Local Shelter |
