I want to get a dog. I am going to be off work for a week and a half so this will allow me time to bond with the little tyke and give him/her quantity time.
I go to the pound (I know calling it the pound is not politically correct anymore so we now call it animal shelter). It is not opened. It is a Sunday. Huh? They are always having “adopt a pet” on newscasts. I hear every morning from Mon-Fri how we should adopt from a shelter and even get an older animal who needs a good home. But they are only opened Tues-Sat from 11:30-5:30. They are closed Sunday and Monday. The reason I wanted to pick out the pet on Sunday was that it usually takes a few days before you can take the new one home because it takes time to get them fixed and have a vet visit and bath.
Some of you are going to justify their hours by saying how short funding is–BS–this is L.A. There are alot of people willing to give $$$ to help the little ones.
So what we have is a government agency laying a guilt trip on the public and then not making the hours convenient for people to adopt a pet. What a load of …
Have a heart, man. Despite what you may think, working in a shelter is a relatively low-paying, thankless job. And money isn’t exactly falling from the sky, even in L.A. People aren’t quite as generous as you might think, and it does cost quite a bit to feed, medicate, and clean up after a lot of dogs. Not to mention the vet costs.
Don’t begrudge them their two days off a week. They close on Monday so that they can remain open on Saturday, which is a weekend day, and ostensibly convenient for those with a M-F 9-to-fiver. Hell, the BANK isn’t open on Sunday, either.
Even though the shelter isn’t open, it doesn’t mean that there aren’t people working there. They’re probably catching up on all the things they can’t do during buisness hours, bathing dogs, taking them to the vet, and such, and somebody has to feed the dogs, and clean cages on “off” days as well.
I object to the fact that there are all of those animals being put down and they close on Sunday and have inconvenient hours during the rest of the days. Why not close on two weekdays and stay open on both Sat and Sun. I don’t begrudge them their days off, I am just tired of hearing about how all of these animals are being put to sleep and then they don’t provide good hours to adopt a pet.
Oh yes, is complaining about animal shelters a taboo subject?
No, it’s not a taboo subject. Hell, nothing’s a taboo subject in the Pit. I just disagree with you, that’s all. I think, actually, that closing on two weekdays would be even MORE inconvenient. The only way it could be convenient for everybody is if they were open every day from 10 am to 10 pm, but that would cost too much. As it is, they’re probably trying to work within their budget for man-hours, and trying to stay open on a weekend day, as well as staying open after 5 pm.
I think it’s tragic that any animal has to be put down. Space is limited in shelters, however, and so is money. As I said, they’re trying the best they can within their somewhat limited means.
Have you considered adopting your dog from a no-kill shelter? In L.A, there has to be several, and even though it might cost a bit more, you would be supporting a very good cause.
Jeepers, Deb, animals from the city pound suck. Spend the extra money, look around, and find a no-kill agency or the local Humane Society. Some vets even operate their own private adopt-a-pet storefront. Also check out the “free to good home” ads in the paper–there are some absolutely beautiful, healthy, already housebroken older dogs being given away because their owners are moving.
Also consider the “adopt a Greyhound” program, which rescues over-the-hill racing dogs. And actually, there are “rescue” groups for just about every breed of dog you can name. Do a Google search under the name of the dog breed you’re interested in, like “Dalmatian rescue”. http://www.google.com
You’ll get a healthier, less stressed-out pet, and I think you’ll be happier in the long run.
Adopt-a-greyhound agencies put potential owners through multiple interviews and site visits. Only experienced dog owners need apply, and rightly so. The purpose of an animal rescue is to nurse them back to health and to place them in a good home. The retired racing greyhound placement folks generally have a waiting list, and they do periodic inspections throughout the pets life. Very elite. A greyhound is about the mellowist pup out there. They are used to spending their whole day in the crate, and uncomfortable without it.
Owning a pet is a responsibility that lasts for the life of the pet and should be taken very seriously. If a potential owner does not have the stones to work within posted business hours, what will happen when Fido chews the divan, or that last minute ski weekend comes up?
I encourage all potential pet owners to weigh the responsibility and 10-30 year commitment very carefully against current lifestyle needs.
Personally I love my four rescues (2 canine/2 feline Sorry no more room)and respect the OP hostess for considering the pound. Very good suggestions about other outlets for rescue pets. The PetSmart in my neighborhood allows different rescue groups to bring critters to the store on weekends. They still do interviews but adoption is easy, Saturday or Sunday too.
Good luck, and the love you get from a rescue is deeper and certainly unconditional.
My cat came from this same shelter. I have also given a home to other animals from pounds. I am a very good pet owner. I give the animals a loving environment and they end up being very spoiled member of the family. My schedule gets very hectic sometimes but the animal will rarely be alone since there are other members of my household who are there to give the little tyke an open door so that he/she can go out to do their business as well as a lap to sit on and a toy to play with. I will though be the primary caregiver.
I believe animal shelters provide a valuable service to the community. But hours of operation to view animals should be convenient to a community where most family are a two income family and also a commuter town. FYI this shelter is in an upper middle class neighborhood.
I guess I feel better about rescuing an animal from a pound and saving one little guy from the jaws of death. Plus I just want a mutt. I DO NOT WANT A PUREBRED ANIMAL. This animal will be around too many children so I don’t want to worry about the possible problems that inbreeding has caused to the temperament of the dog.
Sorry about posting advice to perfectly good venting session but…
While the pound is closed on Sunday’s, lot’s of other stuff is open. I notice you’re in LA - I’m pretty sure that the Century City Puppy give away happens on Sundays as well as saturdays. About half of those come from the ASPCA, they fill in with pound puppies. I’ve walked through it a few times, because, you know, with 3 great danes I’m always on the lookout for another dog.
Also, there is the ASPCA shelter in the WestSide Pavilion. Stop by there, and they’ll give you hand outs to about a zillion shelters around town. I know some of them are open on sundays.
While they may require interviews and an inspection of your house, this appears to be flexible. We played with one of the puppies at a shelter for about 10 minutes, and they were willing to waive the inspection for us.
The no-sunday thing almost makes sense; they want people to have a chance to bond with the dog over the weekend, and most people do work monday-friday. But you’re correct; it does suck that some dogs will die because of it.
I’ve gotten three cats and a dog from the local pound. Our pound has no Sunday hours but does open up once a week later so you can stop by after work. They also let you take the animal that day if they don’t find anything wrong with you. The animals also stay there for more than a couple of days before they are put down, I’ve seen some in there for weeks. Also the local pet stores have started keeping a few of the animals in the stores so that people can see them. Those animals though you have to goto the shelter during normal hours to get them, you cant get them that day.
My thoughts exactly! As a matter of fact I was just at our city’s animal shelter a couple of days ago looking for a kitten or two. I saw a bunch of sweet, loving animals who deserve a home and would be extremely greatful to have one. My only regret is that I couldn’t take them all home.
My family adopted a dog from the animal shelter and he lived with us for 14 years until he passed away. He was a wonderful dog and a good addition to our family. We never had a problem with him. You could tell how greatful he was when we first brought him home. Some of these animals are left at the pound by owners who could no longer care for them for one reason or another and instead of letting them run wild or dumping them off somewhere they are left where they will be taken care of and possibly adopted to a loving family.
I would really like to know why you said this Duck Duck Goose. Did you have a bad experience?
Jeezum H. Crow on a crutch with the fucking Easter Bunny hopping alongside!!
What the hell I mean is that animals from the pound generally are sick, traumatized, stressed-out, with weepy eyes, diarrhea, no shots, no spaying, and just generally a bad bargain. I speak from personal experiences in Illinois and Texas. In what golden realm do your city pound animals exist? My congratulations to you, dear, for living in the Emerald City. Must be nice.
We found a cute puppy in the paper, and all I can say is, Be Careful!! While we absolutely love “Paladin”, we were told that he was housebroken…HA! Actually when we took him to OUR vet, he was a little younger than we were originally informed. He had worms, and an intestinal parasite thingie, and it took us three weeks to get him better. I am stressing out majorly because he is chewing everything in sight, and having “accidents” everywhere. Crate training is a joke, and I am counting the days until obedience training starts!!! Not to put a damper on things:( but no matter where you get your pet, just be very cautious. Ask to see vets papers, shot records, and ask if you can contact the vet that currently sees him.
Once again, we love our new baby, and wouldn’t give him up for anything, but if anyone had told me it was going to be worse than having a baby at home, I would have went with a much older dog!
Red
P.S. Duck: yes, I saw that my name was spelled wrong, and I will contact tubadiva to fix it…thanks:):):):):):):):)
I had a similar experience with my cat Dicey. I got her as a kitten from a co-worker. Turns out she had fleas, intestinal parasites, and tapeworm. However, she was housebroken and has no personality problems (other than climbing into cupboards and getting into the kitty treats)
When I got her a little buddy, I went to the local animal shelter. I don’t know why I chose Izzy. He wasn’t cute, his fur was dull and when I picked him up, I could feel his ribs.
The animal shelter had a policy that all adopatable animals are given their shots and fixed. They also give out vouchers for a free vet check-up up to two weeks after the adoption. It cost $65 to adopt him, but that’s pretty much the same amount I spent on Dicey’s vet visits.
He’s great now. He’s fattened up and has a thick, glossy coat. He does have quirks caused from being abandoned, though. He’s needy, flips out when he’s left alone, and gets paranoid when his food dish is empty, but these are lovable quirks.
There were obvious drawbacks to the two methods I used, but I don’t regret either one.
An aside:
A local pet shop had to scramble to get back a litter of kittens after two developed rabies :eek:
I too would be remiss if I didn’t say I loved Chloe (the cat) and Paladin like they were my chidren, but as I sit here typing this, I have to wonder if I have a herd of elephants running through my house. I sometimes wonder that the dog is playing a little too rough for the cat. (It’s pretty scary when you see him put half the cats head in his mouth!)
I guess if I can get through the puppy stage, that rearing children will be a snap!
