There are misconceptions regarding the purpose of Animal Control Shelters (also known as dog pounds).

Usually they are facilities funded by city or county agencies.  What most people do not understand is that originally, the only purpose for animal shelters was to protect humans from loose, dangerous, sick animals, not care for them.  In the last couple of years many people have formed volunteer groups that help foster and identify rescue groups locally, to get out as many animals from the shelter and into rescue or be adopted. They are not the same as organizations that are dedicated to finding, rescuing, giving necessary, normal medical care, finding safe home for temporary foster care with the ultimate end of finding private loving homes for these animals.

 The history of American animal shelters (dog pounds) is a reflection of our growing human relationship with the animals in general.  I was stunned to learn that until the first American humane society was opened in 1866  (known today as the APSCA), unwanted animals were caught placed in cages and drowned. Why?  My impression was there were so many strays many covered with ticks, fleas, and Rabies would have been a great fear.  This practice was considered normal.

Then along came  an animal lover by the name of Henry Bergh, who decided to dedicate his entire life to the interests of what were considered "dumb animals" due to the harsh treatment and life of the carriage horses in New York City.  In response to this treatment, he formed the Association of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) during a time when he was faced with indifference, opposition, and ridicule, with animal welfare considered a waste of time by most of society. His movement developed today into one of the most beneficial organizations for the care of animals. 
In April 1866, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) was born. Nine days later the first anti-animal cruelty law was approved by the New York legislature. This first law was designed to prevent cruelty to farm and work animals, primarily horses. The humane society later succeeded in passing laws to protect cats and dogs from animal cruelty.

In 1894 the humane society took over animal control duties in New York, and created animal shelters and promoted the practice of animal rescue within the city.
By the time Bergh died in 1888, 37 of the 38 U.S. states had passed animal cruelty prevention laws and humane societies and animal shelters were opening across the nation.¹

It was not until the 1960 and 1970s that animal advocates began developing private shelters. And it was not until this time that strays were beginning to be removed from streets with small attempts for them to be placed in private homes. There began to be less concern over them being a public health risk with more focus over the animals' welfare.²

Sadly for some reason many people still do not understand that many of our Public Animal Shelters in the USA are not staffed or funded to do more than what the original intent was "the only purpose for animal shelters is to protect humans from loose, dangerous, sick animals, not care for them. "  As our attitudes have changed towards our pets in many places the public have demanded more from these shelters and many places now have organized volunteer groups who spend many hours caring, walking, reaching out to the communities around them seeking comfort items like raised beds, food, and safe foster homes, and a thousand other "little" but greatly needed items.
Shelters are just now beginning to reform into "no kill" shelters but only when there is local support to do so... Do you ever volunteer to help out at your local shelter? When animals are taken in, they rarely have a medical history. If there is one available that indicates medical aid or veterinary care has been given; this information is passed on to the new owner.

The Animal Shelter cannot guarantee the health or temperament of an animal adopted from the Shelter. Usually the shelters will contact a breed rescues as soon as they arrive, If it is an owner surrender. If not when the dog comes off the stray hold required by law. Only when dog gets to rescue that anyone is able to care for the dog ² There is usually only public money providing the barest amount of funds available for minimal care. Without  the volunteers and their supports their plight would be even worse. Did you know the Sound pressure levels in some shelters regularly exceed 100 dB, creating a health problem for people and animals? No wonder just being in a shelter can traumatize many of the dogs!  One employee expressed that he did not like having to euthanize the animals, but he knew that it was still better than a life on the streets where the animal could die from disease, being hit by a car, or even being picked up by someone who would abuse them or use them as a bait dog.

In many areas, shelters are being helped by organized volunteers, working towards turning them into "no-Kill shelters, which are trying to raise the adoption rate high enough have the luxury of not euthanizing animals. It is rumored that  some shelters, because they turn away needy ones whom they deem unadoptable cause unwanted pets to be dumped on the street. Many keep waiting lists, Where do these unwanted animals go?  The lucky ones will be taken to clean open-admission facilities that have responsible policies about euthanasia and adoption.

 

Animal shelters vary greatly—by size, purpose, capacity, and their treatment of the animals in their charge. They may be operated by the government, by a local humane society, by private individuals, or by a combination of these. Some are funded by donations alone, while others receive tax money.  Many do not have A/c or heat unless private individuals pay for it, the public money (taxpayer money), may not be available.

The Animals who are accepted into no-kill shelters may be warehoused in cages for months, years, or the rest of their lives, until they find someone to adopt. When there are volunteers, these animals may find their way to local approved foster homes, be provided basic vet care and human love in a home setting.  Where there are not enough homes or volunteers, some of these dogs may be kept at these shelters and becoming more withdrawn, depressed, or aggressive every day—further reducing their chances of adoption. Although the volunteers work very hard to find foster homes and forever homes sometimes there just may not be enough money or volunteers to handle the number of animals in that region.  Or the dog's temperament  or health issues, make them harder to place.

Some public animal shelters around the world, euthanize animals that are not adopted within a set period of time (usually 1 to 2 weeks); others have a policy of only putting down animals that are in distress due to age or illness. Most private shelters are typically run as no-kill shelters. Most shelters will test the animals to see what type of home would be most suitable for living before they are placed for adoption. The last numbers I saw indicated that there were about 5,000 shelters in the USA.

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In 1824, organized dog welfare began in Britain, when the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals was developed. This Royal organization is still in existence today, finding its way to the United States by 1866.

The Canadian Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (now fondly known as Montreal’s SPCA) was the first humane society in Canada, founded in Montreal in 1869 by a group of prominent citizens.

During the early years, the primary concern of the SPCA was improving the treatment of work horses. Beatings, overloading, starvation, lameness, and harness sores were common cruelties inflicted upon work horses in those days.
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Our social media friends  recently responded to a question about supporting local Shelters.Jackie Taylor:  "We don't have any human family, so we always volunteer on the holidays, so most of the shelter staff can take those days off to be with family. And I AM the bleach queen and scrub down some of the empty runs to get them ready for the next critter. "

Linda Barbaro:  "Donna. Please continue to encourage people to volunteer at their local shelter and be active in working for shelter reform."
BTN: "Good point Vicki Greene, these shelters are always in need of paper towels, dog food, cat food, blankets, raised dog beds (made of PCV pipe frames) just ask how you can help. Many keep lists"

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¹Association of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA)

 ²animalshelter.org

Howdy Partners I love an adventure, don't you?  They don't call me an "escape artist" for nothing ya know.... I just have to share my latest adventure.... It was some adventure, it did cause my human family some heart-burn, I really did not mean to cause any distress. But I just had to do do it ... You understand don't you?  Okay so you don't see any humor is this?  Maybe if I share with you my story you'll smile with me....

 I get bored you know, Woof and there is this dip in the neatest place, right under the fence... So naturally that gave me the idea in the first place... I started sniffing around this little patch of dirt and oh that smelt so good... I did what is naturally to us dogs. I started digging to see what was making this smell. Next thing I knew I had a hole.  Yap a nice size hole if I can brag a little.   I was pretty proud of that little hole.

That reminds me of something... Does your human have this annoying thing about sticking a camera in your face? Every move you make, you can't even eat or play, without that little camera being stuck in your face?  Just wondering, if it was just something particular to my humans...They seem to showing these pictures to everyone?

 But anyway, back to my hole  digging, nothing going on in my yard.  My humans were somewhere, doing all the crazy things humans do... So I just sat there under a tree, near my hole, admiring my work. I was wondering what else I could do to entertain myself.

 It was a nice warm Sunday afternoon and lots of time left to fiddle around. Normally I would be watching the humans kids play; with my human mom and dad digging in the flower beds. I could let them know I needed a belly rub, and I had them trained to stop and scratch my back.

But I guess nothing like that today.  Usual practice, would be for me to be  "supervising" the job to make sure all was done correctly. How disappointing, boring today is. Nap time I guess.. I had just settled down to a summer nap, when a sound nearby caught my attention.  OH OH,  LOOK!  What I see, it is one of those irresistible critters with the large floppy tail.  That sassy tease was back again!  It had just sassed its way through the hole I just dug.  Now what dog could resist that invitation! The darn thing stopped just inside the fence in-front of the hole at seeing me, started chattering.  I don't know for sure what it was saying in squirrel talk, but in dog talk, that squirrel was laughing at me! He was teasing me, saying "You can not get me! You could not before, you sure can't now. Your a dumb dog."   That did it! I is was up in a flash and almost had him.  Needless to say, boy did I surprise him, when he scurried under the fence, and I did too. I can believe he could feel my breath on his tail  Woof! Woof! ...A most satisfying thing, chasing and almost catching him as he dashed and darted zig zaggy to the next tree... I would have really liked to catch and shake that rascal, once and for all.

Oh well that was fun, and look at him, cuzzing at me up there, when he knows I can't climb trees. I was thirsty let me... oh, oh looky here, this is new, sniff sniff, oh and look over there, and woof!! I smelt where another dog has been.  I forgot to look for my water bowl, the smells were catching up with me and they were all new, at least to me... 

Hmm. Now even for me, after a while, too many new smells gets tiring .... Now were did they put the water bowl? Hey there is another dog, let me ask him if he is a friend and can help.  I was going to ample over and make a new friend. As I started to approach, it did not take me long to understand, this dog was only interested in Not being a friend, he was just down right unneighborly.

I was in his territory and he chased me. Whew, by the time I got him to leave me alone. I discovered to my dismay I was really thirsty, and my water bowl was no where in sight. I had no idea where I was. I knew I could not go back in the direction I came from, unless I wanted to face that unfriendly dog again. I did not.

This was not turning out to be a casual afternoon outing at all. This was beginning to remind me of a story the humans had told about this amazing dog, named Zeus.   Zeus, was a nine-month old Labrador and Rottweiler mix, took a 13,000 mile journey before making it home after escaping from his yard in Casa Grande, Arizona. A couple driving from North Carolina to San Francisco spotted him on a highway about an hour south of Phoenix. They picked him up and when the shelter they took him to explained that he would be euthanized in three days if his owners weren't found, decided to take him with them. After all, California is supposed to be dog heaven.  Well I do not want to have that kind of adventure  even if these nice people did find the owners!   

 Did I mention that I was smiling with relief in my photo above...I was thinking about how exciting my adventure had been, and mom snapped another photo. Good grief, enough already!

Oh did you wonder how my adventure ended? I just have to tell you it was exciting in more than one way. That is because I was standing looking around trying to get a bearing on which way was home, when a bunch of loud sudden sounds caught my attention.  I observed where headed straight for me was a couple of kids. What the heck now? Looks like they are up to no good, I better scat out of here fast.  The excited kid and his big bother came running at me yelling, waving some kind of sign like they were going to hit me with it.. ... Naturally I took one look at this onslaught of humans running me, and dashed under a couple of bushes, near a house that I spotted just in time.  Grrrr. This was beginning to be no fun adventure at all.  My collar got caught on a branch and I could not get it untangled in time I was nabbed!!!!  As I struggled I managed to cause the large yelling kid to drop me. Ouch! my paw. Limping or not, I was in a full run to get away...

I do not know how this happened, I was running pellmell away from the kids, who were chasing me, running screaming at me to stop or something.  Don't know, I did not want to wait to see, and almost ran into a moving van, that skidded to a stop, just barely in time to keep from squishing me, that much I know.

I was panting hard now, and getting tired, this was not the kind of adventure I had ever imagined.  Not even in my nightmares, which are filled with me chasing giant squirrels up a tree... Anyway the van stopped. People started scrambling out of the vehicle from all kinds of openings, they were chasing me too.  The world was against me, for sure the humans, so I kept on running...  In all this chaos, I heard my name in a frantic voice I recognized.

WHAT? Where? Oh my it was my humans, that were trying to catch me now. Calling to me to stop, wait,  sit and down.. oh?  okay since it was them, and they had stopped chasing me. Maybe it is safe?

Just wait till I get my teeth on that squirrel! It is all his fault....MY Humans, they took me home all happy and smiles of relief, but once we got inside the house did they continue to hug me? Tell me how they missed me? Nope, they shoved me in a crate and ignored me for two hours or something like that, could not see the clock. Finally they started to relax and let me out of my crate. They did not even yell at me. All seemed forgiven. I need to continue my training with them. They have a long way to go. They are suppose to hold me hug, me give me lots of treats, play ball, not ignore me. Its is all that squirrel's fault...

Of course I am already planning another adventure, that is if they don't cover up my hole under the fence...

Recently I discovered that those kids were waving a printing flyer with my picture and description. Apparently when my mom and dad discovered I was not in the yard they, started going door-to-door leaving flyers at neighbors houses, and even mailboxes. I get the impression my adventure must have lasted much longer than I was aware.  They had even taken the time to call all the neighbors and local vets too. They even had a LOST DOG sign on the back of our vehicle while they were driving around.

Oops! did I mention that I had traveled more than a mile from home. Wow! It doesn't sound like much area, but that mile radius could include residential, lots of shopping centers, and close to 200 acres of undeveloped green belt areas. I am sporting something called a microchip now, along with a collar, with my name and a phone number on it. I wonder how all that will affect my next adventure. Yes did they find the hole I dug under the fence. Now I will just have to dream and plan something different... A dog can dream right!

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In addition to microchipping, other forms of pet identification are collars, tags and tattoos. "We think external collars and tags save more lives and prompt more returns than anything else," says John Snyder, vice president of the companion animal section of the Humane Society of the United States.
Preventive Lost Dog Measures
The best insurance policy against losing your dog is to make sure the dog doesn't get loose. Here are steps the HSUS recommends: Keep dogs indoors, especially when you're not home.

• Teach your dog to walk on a leash
• Fence your yard and padlock gates
• Don't let your pet roam free or be visible from the street
• Never leave pets in a car or outside a store to wait for you
• Train your dogs to come when called
• Keep your information updated on your dogs microchip.

COLE and BEAR
I have two gorgeous, Boston dogs named Cole and Bear. Both Cole and Bear have found their way into our lives by chance. With Cole I was only in second grade and I was positive I was getting a puppy for my birthday. My mom or dad hadn't been able to find a good dog and on the eve before my birthday it looked as if I wasn't getting a puppy. My mom was working at a Jewelry Store in the mall, a lady came in saying she found a puppy in the parking lot and was wondering if anyone wanted it. Thankful my mom jumped at the chance and now we have had Cole for 6 years. Four years after Cole's extravagant entrance. I went to the opening of a new aquarium, with some friends. When I returned, my dad acted like my mom was all mad at me, over what I could not figure out. I Knew this must be a trick, when my dad ordered be outside and told me to "fix it now!"  I went outside to see what had upset my mom only to be greeted by our new puppy, Jasper. I tried to explain to them I had no idea where he came from.  In fact, I never was told how that puppy came to be in our back yard, I really did not care....Later we changed his name to Bear because he looks like a big, shy Bear.
Bear rules are, in theory, simple. He wakes up - take him out. There is no bargaining here. He's ready and needs to pee as soon as he finishes stretching. If I wait that long, better get out the paper towels. There is just a little more leeway after eating. Very little. He is still a very young puppy and the pressure of food in the stomach triggers the instinct to empty. I wanted to wait 20 minutes. Ha - try five. And then go out again in twenty. And just because he just peed doesn't mean I'm off the hook. If I decide to add a play session to the outing, I also have to stay out until he at least pees again, even though it can take a while. I can also tell when he is preparing to defecate. First he makes a very straight line, then suddenly stops, backs up, then does an imitation of a new driver trying to learn the three point turn. He goes forward back, turn, forward back, turn, forward, back and squat.

Hello, my name is Tim and I want to tell you about my dog.
My dog's name is Buzz. He is a Boston  mixed breed. He is now one year old. The story behind how I got him is amazing I think. Puppy Rules: One thing to understand when you have a puppy are puppy rules. For example: If you are a puppy and there are ten toys on the ground, each of a different material the correct protocol is to dig out the bottle cap that was overlooked under a piece of furniture and chew on that. It took us about two weeks to name him because we didn't think he was going to live. He reminded me of a Bee buzzing around trying to keep up with me, so that's what we named him, Buzz. He is strong and healthy and very special to me. 

My name is Andrea, I live in Indiana USA.  I will always remember when my dog almost ran away. We let him walk around our backyard without a leash. Then all of a sudden he started to run to the woods. I was very scared. So I ran as fast as I could to catch up to him. I got him right before he went into the woods. My mom was very mad at him. I was out of breath. Thank goodness I'm a fast runner. That was last year (2000). Now we don't let him walk without a leash outside. He is a great teacher!

 

 My  older brother named his dog after a character in the book "The Hobbit". He got lost one day but was wearing his collar with name and phone number. Later their phone rang when he answered the caller asked "Mrs Boffin?" "No" was the reply, "but I think you've got my dog, Mr Boffin!"

 READ THIS  ONLY IF YOU NEED A LAUGH...

An older, tired-looking dog wandered into my yard; I could tell from his collar and well-fed belly that he had a home and was well taken care of. He calmly came over to me, I gave him a few pats on his head; he then followed me into my house, slowly walked down the hall, curled up in the corner and fell asleep. An hour later, he went to the door, and I let him out.
The next day he was back, greeted me in my yard, walked inside and resumed his spot in the hall and again slept for about an hour. This continued off and on for several weeks.
Curious I pinned a note to his collar, 'I would like to find out who the owner of this wonderful sweet dog is and ask if you are aware that almost every afternoon your dog comes to my house for a nap.'
The next day he arrived for his nap, with a different note pinned to his collar, 'He lives in a home with 6 children, 2 under the age of 3 and he's trying to catch up on his sleep. Can I come with him tomorrow?'

 People say "every dog has its day." This means that every person enjoys a successful period during his or her life. To be successful, people often have to learn new skills. Yet, some people say that "you can never teach an old dog new tricks." They believe that older people do not like to learn new things and will not change the way they do things. I do not believe this, my old dog as taught me a lot of new tricks! 

For a while now, Bonnie and I have been working on a new trick. She has a natural ability to fetch and so I've been encouraging her to chase balls, pick them up, and bring them to me. I decided I wanted her to learn to pick up other things around the house as well.
Several months ago I began teaching Bonnie to carry a bucket. We worked on it a little at a time, a few times a week. At first, she wasn't even interested in touching the plastic handle so I started by putting peanut butter on it. Once Bonnie became comfortable with putting her mouth on the handle, the trick became easier.  It's a trick she really likes and it has led to other tricks that we'll show you at another time.  I bet my dog Bonnie is the smartest dog in the whole world! Smarter than your dog...

Daniel

 Does your child have a story they would like us to share? let us know we would love to learn about thier experiences with thier dogs. They do not have to have a Boston we love all dogs....