No Kill Shelters - The Slaughter of Innocents

Some of you who’ve stumbled across some of my recent posts may have ‘heard’ that my Wife and kids are moving up to a rural area to caretake an animal shelter.

I don’t believe I’ve ever taken the time to adequetately describe the conditions of the place. Even my experience as a writer doesn’t qualify me to even begin an outline. But I must. If I don’t, surely I will explode.

It is an old industrial building. One story, flat. It used to be owned by a phamaceutical company who used it as an animal testing lab. To say it is in disrepair would be a gros understatement. The cracks in the cinderblock walls zigzag from the ground to the gaping holes in the side of the roof.

As you approach the buildings main entrance, you can hear the braying of the dogs, but you can’t see in the dirty windows. There is no doubt in your mind that there are a lot of dogs in there.

You step through a scummy puddle to the front door, open it and step into a dirty 3x3 foyer. Your previous estimate as to the number of dogs doubles with the decibels of barking.

Another muddy glass window gives you access to the shelter proper and almost immediately, your stomach is churning as as the most putrid, acrid stench you’ve ever experienced, punches down your throat with a viscious force that leaves you reeling. The dogs are deafening. You want to put your hand on the wall to steady yourself, but one glance at the crusty cement banishes all thought of ever touching anything in this shelter. Ever.

Right from the first, there are dogs. The first room you come to could once have been a waiting room of some sort. Two dogs live here. Corona and Conrad. The floor is slick with piss and water. Bags of wood chips in the corner are piled almost to the roof. The rats have torn the bottom bags and strewn the contents…

As you progress through the shelter, it only gets worse. The unbearable stench intensifies. Everywhere there is filth. It is a dark dingy maze, each doorway’s glass broken out and replaced with screen and everywhere, dogs. The first room on your right contains two dogs. One of them, “Old Man” is 15yrs old and blind. He’s been there longer than anyone except one or two of the volonteers. He spends his days barking at the walls and limping around his flooded pen. He sleeps on a half rotted, flea infested blanket.

Another dog has half chewed through his own leg. His eye is swollen, pus filled and dripping. His cell mate spends the day running in circles.

Everywhere you turn, there is a hallway or room filled with shit, garbage and dogs and rats. Some dogs leap at you, snarling, others stay in the corners, whimpering. Worse, some look up at you and are friendly. The rats ignore you. You are grateful.

Just as you believe your capacity for horror has been reached, you open a door and find the hallway of pens. You realize the the dogs with rooms are priviledged. The pens are concrete, with rusted chainlink fronts. Some of the doors are held closed with nylon dog collars, because the latches are a corroded mess. Gutters on each side of a narrow concrete path are filled with an indescribable muck. Piss, shit, rotted shavings, dead rats…

Many of the dogs are insane. Most of them are unadoptable… ‘saved’ from previously abusive homes… One room contains three dogs who were born there. They have never seen the light of day. They are too feral. No-one was ever capable of taking them out.

If you’ve ever seen ‘Hellraiser’ and you can remember the insane asylum… you’d be getting close. Or the boiler room on Nightmare on Elm St… Add rotted fibreglass hanging through disintegrated ceiling tiles.

Welcome to our no kill shelter.

See any dog you’d like to bring home with you?

I worked there for two weeks. I cleaned out one of the hallways and built an area for the 80 or so cats that needed housing. ALL of which had feline leukemia. I built a nice, cozy, bright and warm *death row[i/] for these cats. Some of which had feline HIV.

My wife has been doing volonteer work for the last few weeks, shit shoveling. Both of us have been volonteering our time at a house on the property, preparing it to be moved into by people, as the shelter could not maintain insurance without someone living on the premises. That people was/is? us. Who knows? We have a contract, but it’s a thirty day notice thing. If we get notice tonight, we may not even get to move in.

So far, that’s the plan. Pretty bleak, but it’s a plan.

Appalled yet?

Disgusted?

Horrified?

You’d better sit down. Cause here’s the kicker.

The executive director (a phys-ed teacher) gets IMHO a generous salary. Oh, she works for it alright, no doubt about that. As I understand it, her responsibilities included building maintenance, animal management, adoption clinics, volonteer management, a dog training course, liason with all the vets, and a host of other things which she apparently steadfastly refuses to delegate. Her workday ends at four. Sharp. When I worked there, she had 2 paid employees. $9/hour, who left when the doors were closed and locked. At four.

This is a non-profit organization, run on donations alone. To be sure, there are plenty of volonteers. In the time I was there, I saw two or three of them walking dogs from time to time, but for the most part, I just saw them standing around chatting. I’m not saying they never did anything much but gossip… just saying that was mostly what I saw.

Having virtually crawled through the bowels of that place, I can honestly say that if as many people as I actually saw up there worked seriously, in a co-ordinated manner, the place would have been immeasurably better.

But it wasn’t. And the inevitable happened. The whole fucking thing exploded. A dog got sick. Very sick. Lepto-spersomething or other… deadly. Comunicable to humans. Health Canada came into today and killed everything except the rats. I’ll provide a link as soon as one turns up.

I guess wherever you have a cause, you have fanatics. Miaouf seems certainly not to be excempt from that.

Prior to this, a few level headed folk came to realize that the whole shelter was failing miserably. No-kill was clearly not working. The was no organization. Dogs were going sick and hungry and there was no money. Authorities were called in and extreme action was taken.

Among the fanatics, this has caused some outrage. Misdirected thought it may be, it leads on to some extremely slanderous material that has quite serious consequences.

I’m way too angry to continue… you can read it for yourself if you’re still with me.

[http://www.miaouf.ca/]the official miouf website]( [url) currently controlled by some very upset people.

There are allegations (carefully worded) against me personally, my wife, and people who I know for a fact have given more than can be put into words (financial and otherwise) that are so twisted that my blood is boiling. I plan to attend that meeting, and address every single one of them. With full documentation and a lawyer at my side. I wish I could bring a chainsaw.

obviously too freaked out to code.

sorry

http://www.miaouf.ca/

Dewt, I’m with you all the way on this. I give to nearly every animal charity there is, and as a result receive numerous magazines about shelters. Some are merely cinderblock bunkers where the animals are just piled in. Some have a night deposit box where you can simply show up in the dead of night and shove an animal into a slot, not knowing or caring what’s on the other side.

And yet, people still insist on having a “store bought” pet with a pedigree from a “breeder.” Haven’t these people ever seen 20/20 or 60 Minutes?

It breaks my heart that I can’t do more. I’m living in a small townhouse with a postage stamp yard and the pound cat we already have is king of the castle.

I’ve thought hard about being an animal shelter volunteer, but I don’t have what it takes, seriously. I donate money, towels, etc when I can, but the hands-on reality would cripple me. Posts like yours and the one last week about the people bringing in animals because they’re “inconvenienced” by them, etc. just break my heart. My hat is off to you for trying to make a difference. I like to believe the animals are grateful for any kindness you were able to provide. :frowning:

Thanks for your reply. I’m a little freaked right now and thought it’s early am, I’m nowhere near sleep.

This is a nightmare. The evil that these people are perpetrating in the name of ‘good’ is mingblowing. No-kill. Bah. If they had euthanized certain dogs when they really should have, none of this would be happening.

Oh, and thanks for the hats off thing too. Sadly, our efforts are resulting in a pretty bad slander campaign. (not against me specifically, partly)

And fyi, they do appreciate it. Our dog is an adoptee from there. He was there eight years. He’s quiet. Spends almost all of his time on the couch. We let him. He never bounds to the door to greet me (he’s so old, he doesn’t realize I’m home till I say hi) but when he sees me, he kind of smiles and thumps his tail on the couch a few times. It’s a good feeling.

My AIM handle is voguevixen if you want to talk. I may have trouble sleeping myself.

er… AIM? What is this ‘aim’? Thanks for the offer, but anyways I think I should at least try to lie down. I’ve got the both kids tommorrow and two house viewings, though if we do sell the house, I’m not sure where we will go to live anymore. :frowning: (plus lack of sleep is making me kind of emotional) I knew a lot of the dogs that died today.

dewt I’m sorry you had to go through this.

No-kill shelters do have their place. I know a few here in the mid-atlantic that get the job done (some to extremes, the cats are washed after every viewing and 6 home visits are required before an adoption). But all of them have a few things in common:

  1. They’re small, typically in a converted house or small office building. The usually have fewer than 100 animals at any time.

  2. They have an enormous number of volunteers. And no one, from the receptionist to the director, gets paid.

  3. Animals are routinely taken by the volunteers for some home life every month or so.

Mrs Chance and I have stopped going to shelters because we found it impossible to resist adopted an animal every time we went to one. Thus we have adopted (over the last 10 years) 6 cats, 4 dogs, 2 turtles and a mouse.

Nowadays we limit ourselves to rescuing racing Greyhounds. We currently keep two and volunteer for Greyhound Pets of America.

So keep up the good work. We all do what we can. No one can ask more of you.

I wanted to post a link to a news article, but it hasn’t hit the web yet, beyond the link I already gave.

All the animals were killed yesterday. All of them except the rats.

Health Canada swooped in and euthanized every single dog and cat. 170 dogs and cats. Dead. Piled in the back of the van.

If those fuckers on the ‘ethics’ committee hadn’t hidden documents (veterinary reccomendations) and LIED to the board of directors, this would not have happened.

We do what we can. Sometimes it’s not enough.

Dewt, my heart breaks for you and for the animals. I look at the pets we own (2 dogs, four geese, three horses) and I cannot understand, I simply cannot fathom how anyone can be so cruel. How can they live with themselves?

Ack. I feel horrible.

Jonathan, as I went into on the other thread, even good no-kill shelters like the ones you describe are contributing to the problem of abandoned animals. For one thing, every no-kill shelter either turns into the sort of place Dewt described or is lying. They may not be putting down animals themselves (though the humane society here out and out lies), but they are turning animals down (so that they get sent to the pound). There are so many thousands of unwanted animals that no place can afford to take all that are offered and treat them humanely.

What a “no-kill” shelter does is sells a clean concience for a $50 donation. “Oh, I found Fido a good home when he started to get in the way.” If, when dropping Fido off because he was a bother people were told “We do an evaluation and if we deem him non-adoptable, we put him down to free up resources for the adoptable pets,” well, that might make people pause. And when you adopted a dog, if you understood that you could not bring him back in six months and buy a clear conscience, you might think a little more about whether or not this was the right time and place for a new pet. You might get the animals fixed a little more promptly if you knew that there was no “no-kill” place to drop puppies off and that your kids would realize that they were all likely going to be put down.

A policy like this would not increaqse the total number of dogs put down at all–the amount of resources for shelters is finite, and it would contimue to be used 100%. It would simply be more honest about what is happening.

{{{{dewt}}}} I have no words.

That.

Sucks.

Man, that really sucks.

Dewt, my heart goes out to you, man.

** Dewt ** , My heart goes out to you and ** Dylan ** both. There comes a time when it is less cruel to have a suffering animal put down than it is to let them live ill, in pain, suffering in filthy conditions.

Sadly it sounds like this is now all about a power play than real concern about the animals health and living conditions with these MIAOUF folks. If they care so much why aren’t they there shoveling shit and making repairs along side you guys ?

Why are they not pulling their heads out of their asses and their money from their own own wallets long enough to see that there is a vet coming in a few times a week to treat the animals who are ill ? Bunch of idiots !

I hope yourself, Dylan and your boys are tested for this disease. You have been around those poor sick dogs and if people can get it from them it is better to be over cautious.

Dewt, I only had to read about two paragraphs of that website to know what I am sure the vast majority of other people know, too: those people are a bunch of fanatical nutcases. Their capacity for melodramatic language far exceeds their ability to really solve any of the animal world’s pressing problems. ** Don’t let them get you down.**

You do what you have to do. I am a big animal lover; I used to work at an animal shelter, and my husband and I do all we can to support breed rescue (short of fostering–we’re not able to because we live in a condo and lack a fenced yard). Given that perspective, I think no-kill shelters are a nice idea. However, I think in the society we live in right now (with all the f*cking idiots getting pets they don’t train or care for, much less spay/neuter), they’re not realistic. A few work well, and thank god they do. But a lot of shelters have to euthanize, and I think they’re being humane when they do so. Assuming, of course, they have good policies in place.

As a dog owner and a cat owner (lifetime), I can tell you that if it came to this I would much rather see my own animals put down then to see them suffer needlessly. To me, suffering includes not just chronic illness but also the prospect of being caged with limited exercise and limited human contact. My pets were raised to be in homes. If they couldn’t be in one, accepting the love and affection and attention from a dedicated human owner, I’d rather they be sent to the Rainbow Bridge. I don’t see “life in prison” as the better alternative. And when resources are limited, I’d rather see money spent on bringing a few great pets into health and a loving adoptive home than see that same money be spread around to give 100 pets a barely-adequate existence in a hellhole. I am not heartless. I believe in quality of life when it comes to pets. This is something that some animal nuts just don’t get.

Sorry your family is being targeted by these nuts. My eyes started rolling when the music on their website started playing, and it went downhill from there. Take heart that sentient people will see their bluster for what it is: irrational, unhelpful, and overly dramatic.

Wipes his eyes dry

Sniff… Makes me want to go and adopt a whole bunch of kitty cats or even a dog or two.

The inhumane treatement of those animals appalls me. Living in a decent (supposedly) area, things like this really don’t happen that often. When they do, It has sort of an impersonal feel about it.

Your story has shown me a more personal outlook on them, and it breaks my heart. Thanks for the change in perspective. Definately a learning experience.

Oh, and what kind of twisted, sick, and obviously self absorbed asshole lets any animal fall down to that condition. Immediate treatment to animals like that is what is called for. People like that need to be rounded up, tarred and feathered, and then drawn and quartered. (Or at least made to watch Teletubbies for 16 hrs a day)

Amedeus, I think the dilemna that no kill shelters face is that there isn’t money for the immediate treatment of hordes and hordes of animals. Vets are not cheap, and it is not because they are assholes–starting out vets make around 35K a year and owe 75k-100k in student loans. They have to spend at least some of thier time working for paying customers just to eat, and even when they donate thier time for free (which virtually every vet does) they can’t afford to donate the overhead–the drugs and the equiptment, mainly. So the choice isn’t between treating and not treating sick animals. It is between not treating them and putting them down.

One thing that really burns me about (some) no kill shelters is the way they tend to wax sanctimonious about themselves, as if they were morally superior “Oh, we’re not the pound, we don’t kill OUR babies.” To me, the guy at the pound who manages to do a terrible but essential job in a humane fashion, making sure that every animal is as comfortable and unscared as possible, is alot more worthy or respect.

Dewt, my heart goes out to you and yours, and good luck dealing with the fanatics.

Let us know how the meeting goes.

Hi all, thanks so much for your replies and support.

I will come back later this eve and reply more thoroughly.

In the meantime, please come by a message board I set up specifically to discuss this. Every effort is being made to bring as many of the shelter people as possible to that forum. Your opinions would go a long way there.

here’s the link

ahhhh… an hour long nap and my powers of coding have been restored.

Thanks specifically to stoid for signing the guestbook

How can people have no heart like that? I can’t believe that people that have gone there before haven’t complained. Makes me wonder where the SPCA or all the animal rights activists are.

I don’t know too much at all about Canadian law, but is Health Canada going to levy any animal abuse charges against the people that let this attrocity go on?