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View Full Version : One of my english papers. comments welcome :)


-okapi-
12-29-05, 02:36 PM
Daniel Smith
English 101
Taunja Thomson
November 10, 2005
Animal Shelters

Almost everyone has a pet, and most people consider their pets to be

members of the family. Pet owners support animal care groups, such as the

SPCA, but often never give their local shelters a second thought. That is very

sad, as animal shelters need the publics support to maintain themselves as

benefactors to the community. Even though most people don’t think about it,

what would really happen if there were no animal shelters?


Every year millions of stray pets are picked up by animal control officers. And

every year millions of pet owners go to their local animal shelters and are

relieved to find their beloved pets there waiting for them. Any lost animal from

dogs to cats to snakes to pigs all find their way to the local animal shelter. All

stray animals brought in by the public or found by animal control officers are held

for a set amount of days (the amount varies from shelter to shelter and from

species to species) before being put up for adoption. This gives the stray pet’s

owner a chance to come and find their pet. Any stray animal that is at an animal

shelter longer than the holding period and has no serious health or temperament

problems is put up for adoption. If there were no animal shelters how many

millions of pet owners would never find their lost pets again? They would have

to be really lucky to find their lost pet, especially if their pet becomes injured or

has a preexisting health problem.


If it weren’t for animal shelters, unwanted animals would never get a second

chance. A lot of people think that unwanted animals at animal shelters have

some kind of a problem, and that’s the reason for their being unwanted. It is true

that animals available for adoption are what shelter personnel term as "random

source", which means shelters accept any unwanted animals with limited or no

history, but all incoming animals are checked for symptoms of disease and

behavior problems. What would happen to unwanted animals if there were no

animal shelters? Many unwanted animals would be dumped somewhere with no

food, water, or shelter. These dumped animals would form feral populations and

spread disease. Many of these dumped animals would be hit by cars, causing

unnecessary pain and suffering.


Everyone knows about animal cruelty and the inhumane conditions of puppy

mills. Animal shelters are the voice of the animals. They investigate animal

abusers and press charges, often prosecuting the animal abusers in court.

Animal shelters also shut down puppy mills, where dogs are kept in small cages

and are bred from their first heat until they can no longer produce puppies. What

would happen to the mistreated and abused animals if animal shelters did not

exist? There would be no laws governing the way animals should be treated.

Animal abuse would not be considered a crime, and puppy mills would become

more and more common. If animal shelters did not exist animals would have no

voice and no protection from evil people.


Every year thousands of pet owners have to have their pets euthanized due

to injury or chronic health problems. It is often not the pet owners fault, even

though much of the public would want to blame them. Many people don’t have

the means financially for the surgery that could save their animals. A lot of

Animal Shelters provide people’s pets with veterinary help when the animal would

otherwise be put to sleep or forced to live with pain. What would happen to

these animals if there were no animal shelters or shelter veterinarians to give

them the care they needed? Even though animal shelters are constantly criticized

by the public for euthanizing animals, shelter veterinarians do much more than

that. If there were no animal shelters unwanted and stray animals would never

receive veterinary care. Lost or ownerless pets that are injured or sick would

never receive help and be forced to live with pain. Without animal shelters raising

money to help people, or offering their veterinary services for free, people without

the money needed for their pets treatment would not be about to save their pets.


A lot of people hate animal shelters, and would love to see all animal

shelters shut down. These people confuse the public with stories of animal

control officers “stealing” people’s beloved pets, and claiming animal

shelters “murder” people’s pets for no reason. They use exaggerated stories and

play on the public’s misconception of how animal shelters are run. They base

their claims on sources provided by those people who have been prosecuted by

animal shelters for animal abuse, no abiding by leash laws, endangering the lives

of animals, etc. Animal shelters never “steal” animals. They pick up stray animals

running loose, or remove animals from owners who have proven they cannot

properly care for their pets. And animal shelters never “murder” animals.

Euthanasia is only used when an animal is beyond medical care or if there is a

lack of space and no one has come searching for their lost pet.


Animal shelters cannot help animals without the support of the public. Many

animal shelters are under funded and under staffed, greatly need the public’s

support. Without donations animal shelters would be forced to euthanize more

and more often. If the public feels so strongly against euthanasia and animal

abuse, why don’t they help the animal shelter in every way they can? A lot of

people argue that money is needed elsewhere. However millions of dollars go to

waste every year. If money is an issue, people can donate their time and

volunteer at their local animal shelters. If time is an issue, then people can write

to their local government explaining that animal shelters need bigger budgets to

better help the community. If more people donated their money, time, or voice to

help animal shelters, then animal shelters would be able to provide better care

for animals and stop animal cruelty in all its forms.


Animal shelters provide pet owners with a place to find their lost pets and

they give unwanted animals a second chance. Animal shelters stop animal

abusers, and provide veterinary care to any animal in need. However they

cannot do this alone. Animal shelters need the support of the public to in order to

help animals. When was the last time you gave your animal shelter a second

thought?

-okapi-
12-29-05, 02:38 PM
Hm... When I posted it, it removed all tabs and the double spacing.

Ok, some-what fixed.

Looking forward to any comments :)

End Times
12-30-05, 06:16 AM
Well said!

I'm an animal control officer as well as an agent with O.S.P.C.A. and you hit the nail on the head there. Especially in regards to the euthanasia issues. People always think we euthanize any animal after it's magical "amount of days are up". In realilty, there is no such number.

Animals are only put down for three reasons: Extreme illness, aggression, or if the shelter has become overun and we literally have no place to put them.

We've often had certain animals in care for periods as long as six months! And their "time" was never up. They eventually found homes. It's funny, the public seems to come up with random numbers, usually a week, or ten days, where they assume that after that point any unclaimed or unadopted animal is put down and this is NOT the case. Where they come up with these "numbers" are a mystery to me.

Potential adopters in the shelter are always shocked when they say, "well, how long has it been here? When will it be put down?" and I answer "Never. It's healthy, has a good temperment, and will be here until it is adopted or placed in a pet rescue agency." They stare like I just spoke a foreign language of unknown origin!

Nice to see you obviously did research on shelters before spewing false facts on paper as is often the case with many people. Well done on showing the truth about animal shelters and their practices.

-okapi-
12-30-05, 10:25 PM
:) Im glad you liked it. I interned at the boone county care and control shelter for 10 months. When they found out I wanted to become a vet they gave me lots of exp to make sure I didnt waste my time in college only to realize that I cant do the job. My plan is to finish my biology degree here in ky then go to florida and get my vet degree, and come back to boone and apply as their head vet. They at this point in time dont have the money to hire one, but in 7 years they might. Either way I will be working there at least a little bit, even if it is volunteer. I owe them alot.

-okapi-
02-15-06, 09:47 AM
Only one person read it? I figured more people would read it than that...