Giving Up Your Pet?

Apr 30, 2007

Knowing the Differences in Sheltering Can Save Your Pet’s Life

If you need to give up your pet, you are not alone. Thousands of people do so each year, which is why the shelter system is overwhelmed with so many homeless cats and dogs. PAWS Chicago strongly recommends that you begin making plans for your pet as soon as you know that you can no longer keep him or her. 

Unfortunately, if you care about your pet’s life, there are no instant solutions. It is important to recognize that unless a shelter specifically calls itself “No Kill”, surrendering your pet may be a fatal decision for your cat or dog. 

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. 

No Kill Managed Admissions Programs 

Managed admissions is when a shelter takes in only the number of pets they can care for, triaging to ensure the most needy pets are taken in first. No Kill shelters like PAWS Chicago will not kill dogs or cats in the program to make room for more. By managing admissions, PAWS Chicago is committed to finding a home for every single animal admitted. PAWS Chicago prioritizes animals in desperate need. As a result, there can be a waiting list. 

By planning ahead, you are part of the solution by giving your local No Kill shelter enough time to make room for your pet. And you can help even more by re-homing your pet yourself and keeping your pet from entering a shelter in the first place.

Traditional Open Admissions Shelters 

All owned animals are accepted into the program, regardless of space or ability to care for the animals. As a result, animals are often killed to make room for more, although this fact may not be disclosed to the public. As a result, it is important to ask questions to determine if your pet will be saved.

Questions to ask to determine if your pet is safe at a particular shelter:

 

• 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”? 
  • 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 owner surrender 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.