No-Kill Animal Shelters and Animal Overpopulation...

Factual Questions
1

In Michigan, where I live, there are these (so-called) “no-kill” animal shelters. I assume they don’t kill, because some people would almost do anything, than give an animal to a pet shelter, that would just ultimately kill them anyways (cf. “cat ladies” [sorry, but it’s true]). I also assume they are found in just about every other state.

I just have one question. How do these shelters deal with the presumably overflowing influx of animals, this policy brings? I mean, I for one, am in favor of animal euthanasia, when necessary. (In my family, we have one simple rule. If the animal is in any terminal pain, we have it gently put down at once.) Actually, I also believe in human euthanasia (well, actually I believe in assisted suicide). But that is a totally different matter we need not get into now.

Again: What do they do with all these extra animals? I really would like to know.

:):):slight_smile:

3

They just don’t take them, leaving them for county shelters or PETA kill vans.

4

Not the best links, but here’s some additional reading:
http://www.sniffoutthetruth.org/issues/openadmitandnokill
Animal Shelters | PETA (biased because they run kill/open-admission shelters)
No Kill Communities vs No Kill Shelters -- and why confusing the two endangers the movement - KC DOG BLOG

That last blog said it best: “That’s not no kill – that’s just making it so that other people have to do the killing.”

5

Having taken some severely injured animals to no-kill shelters in the past, I have to say they will euthanize an animal with non-survivable injuries. But other than that, no, they don’t kill the animals but when they’re full they’re full and the animals either wind up at more traditional “pounds” that do practice euthanasia or just have nowhere to go.

6

They shut their doors to new animals. It’s the only way to make it work.

7

Yep. Having done some volunteer work at a few local shelters, I’ve realized that “no kill” is not automatically a good thing.

ETA: common example would be a 16 year old cat that refuses to use a litter box taking up space for years while a 4 month old cat is turned away.

8

Disclaimer: I have not seen a single easily-digestible argument that explains the mechanism by which no-kill will work on a large scale. There may not be a simple explanation.

However, the no kill movement has attempted to explain its reasoning.

SF Gate article

No Kill Advocacy Center Quick Facts

If my cursory survey of No Kill literature has been sufficient, it looks like the core of their argument is this:

9

The answer is simple - they beg loudly for more donations to expand the shelter.

Unfortunately, the population problem comes from the unlimited supply of new animals coming from outside the shelter system.