Why so much?

Once again on Friday, we went through that old conversation with an elderly lady... "If you gave these dogs away, there wouldn't be so many homeless dogs!!!"

I would like to take the time here to address this issue once and for all (and finally for the last time).  People are giving away dogs all the time on CraigsList - that doesn't stop the dogs from becoming homeless, ending up in a shelter somewhere and if not adopted, killed for lack of space, behavioral issues, etc.

We are not a shelter - we are a rescue.  If we were to give away the dogs we rescue from death, we wouldn't have the funds to pay the bailout fees, buy the vaccines, get them spayed or neutered, buy and insert microchips, etc.  All of this is paid for ahead of time by the rescue, and because we are No-Kill, we continue to feed, house and vet care for the dogs in our care until they find their furever home.

We do at least 16-18 loads of laundry a day and go through a bottle of HE detergent every 2 days along with fabric softener, bleach, fabric sheets, etc.   Our weekly food bill runs an average of $250.  Some puppies require special food, other dogs require reduced diet foods to lower their overweight physique and I can't begin to quantify the amount of toys, low-calorie treats, collars, etc. that we go through constantly.  Our electric bill averages over $1,000 a month.

Exactly HOW would we keep open the doors... the lights, A/C & heat on... and care for these dogs if we simply gave them away?

And on a side note?  And this view expressed by me personally and not the rescue... More than one we have given a dog away to a great home to help them get adopted due to special needs, etc.  I can cite numerous examples of how not having a financial investment in the dog, these folks later just 'threw away' the dog because it didn't cost them anything.  I won't embarrass these folks here in public by citing names, but this mindset with people bothers us more than anything else.  

• Recently we were asked to take in a dog from a family that owns a $3.5 million dollar home - with that kind of income, they couldn't seem to find a solution to a small behavior problem the dog was having... bottom line?  The dog was too inconvenient for them to take care of.
• A dog we adopted this year is now kept in a cage all day long because she has developed a biting issue (and she never had one prior to adoption as my foster and with another foster mom - in fact, this dog took on an orphaned pup and raised this pup as her own).  The dog needs a dental as well and I begged the owner to return this dog to us - which she refused to do because she's put out a nonrefundable adoption donation and a small amount in vet bills.   If we are willing to pay her $500 AND give her ANOTHER dog to ruin, they would be happy.... they say they can't afford a dental for the dog, but even that won't change this new behavior of selective biting the dog has supposedly developed.... grrrrrrrrrrrr.
• Great dog adopted for free to a good home - later, the folks bought a new home and didn't want to take the chance of any accidents on their new carpet because the dog was 'incontinent'.  She was returned to us, and although she had not been at my home for over a year, she immediately went out through the doggie door and did her business.  She went to the vet for a check the next to see if she had a bladder infection just in case (she didn't), and months later, this dog has yet to have an accident in my home.

I get it... times are tough and economics are tight.  But just like every one else, times are just as hard --- if not harder --- for rescues as well.  Donations are few and far between as people's extra monies are gone with the economy.  The current condition of the economy does not stop dogs from being thrown away - as a matter of fact, the inbound numbers of dogs into kill shelters has greatly increased!   Do we turn our backs and say we can't afford to save their lives?  Do we turn down pregnant moms or nursing moms because it is a long term foster and expensive to speuter a litter, do three sets of puppy shots, and provide quality nutrition for mom and her pups through the 8-12 weeks they are with us?

Or do we just go ahead and kill the dogs ruined by someone in the general public?  Reed is a small little female we recently agreed to take in.  She is more apt to growl, raise the lip and give you bite signs before she's willing to take the treat you are offering her.

Do we turn our backs on this dog, despite knowing we can save her life and rehabilitate her?   Somewhere along her young life, she's learned that she can't trust humans and if she wants to be left alone, appearing to be ready to bite will cause that human to go away.  Beautiful dog, huh?  Young - very young - and yet so damned sad.  So we take in this dog, we feed and house her through the rehabilitation process, and then bring her up to our adoptable standards.    No, someone already gave this dog away to a shelter to die.... So just 'giving dogs away' is not the answer to the vast amount of homeless dogs our communities are dealing with.

Maybe we can just 'give away' the humans that destroy these dogs by poor dog ownership practices.  After doing rescue for over 30 years now, I am probably pretty jaded by the human nature that just HAS to have that cute little doggie in the window, but is not there for the rest of that dog's lifetime.

Linda

...... from the Director's Chair

We saw a few TLC alumni at Thursday's VCAS Board of Commissioners meeting held at Camarillo last week... Thank you for coming in support of the No-Kill movement... It is GREATLY appreciated...This morning I wanted to share something personal with everyone who reads this blog... Let's call it "What a Rescuer Goes Through From a Personal Perspective" for lack of a better title...

In May of 2010, I had gone to Camarillo to bailout a few dogs we'd been watching and were afraid would be killed on the next list of culling there... Having put things in motion and waiting for paperwork to be done, I took a walk around the kennels... This is ALWAYS a big mistake for me and I KNOW better than to do it... 

Coming around the backside of what I call the "I" building (the one on the far right and straight), I passed numerous Pit Bulls, large breeds and an assortment of dogs over 30 pounds... Almost at the end of the row, I just about passed by one kennel, thinking it was empty... Peering against the sunlight and into the kennel, I just about saw a small, dark bundle huddled up against the wall...

I stopped, waited and tried to encourage the 'dark bundle' to come forward to the front of the kennel run... It did take some time and very slowly, the bundle unfolded itself to reveal not one small Tri-Color Bandit Chihuahua, but two in fact... 

Coaxing in my very best 'Chi speak', after about 15 minutes I convinced one to come forward enough for me to see her size, but I could not get the second one to come forward... She remained huddled in a ball and shaking as the Pitty on one side whined and the crazy Lab on the other continued to bark non-stop... It is SO sad what kennel shock does to all of these dogs...

Hearing my name called over the loud speaker, I had no other choice but to leave and head to the office... Once there, I asked about the two wee ones in that kennel... They were both available but were not 'showing well'... 

I stood at the counter, debating with myself... I had already pulled two dogs above the number of foster slots we had, convincing myself that I'd locate some more volunteers willing to foster once we'd pull them... Pulling two more was simply just above our means to adequately foster... It was a struggle, trying to decide... 

"One is somewhat friendly, so she'll probably get adopted - the bigger one of the two... But the little one? I just don't know..... And ya know?  You can't save them all... " trailing off as the counter person continued processing my paperwork... 

I took the leap of faith I have done so many times... "OK, we will pull the little one that has less chance of getting adopted and see what we can do to rehabilitate her.  If her sister does not get adopted, mark it in the computer to have someone contact me and hopefully we will have an open foster spot"....

And that is the circumstances, "Shirley" (as we will call her) left Camarillo... Her sister, Laverne, was more outgoing and had a better chance to find someone in the general public to love her furever... "

Shirley was indeed scared out of her mind... It took weeks to see her tail come up right and walk like a proud Chihuahua I knew she could be... Approach her and she'd either run away or fall over onto her back and expose her belly in fear... It was heart breaking to see... I tried several foster situations with her and she failed at all of them... Each time she'd come back to me and I'd shake my head, take her back and continue to work with her again...

A few weeks after getting Shirley out of Camarillo, I was working with data of the dogs that had been killed there that month and recognized Shirley's impound number... Because she and her sister, Laverne, had come in together, I quickly looked for that impound number thinking for sure I would see "ADOPT"... 

But seeing the word "EUTH" aside of it, my heart sank and I sat there, staring at the paper unable to believe what I was reading... What happened to calling me before killing her?  Why had I bothered to believe the Camarillo staff person?  I know better, despite what they say at the counter about having 'such a high rate' of adoption as they attempt to console someone who is surrendering a beloved pet for whatever reason... 

I INTENTIONALLY left behind the most adoptable dog of the two for someone in the general public to adopt and save, taking the least adoptable one... Why in the heck hadn't I just pulled both of them and Laverne would be alive today, sitting on someone's lap and loving life as a cuddle bunny?
I think of Laverne many times when I hear the excuses Camarillo spits out about dogs needing to die, or explaining that it is everyone else's fault their kill rate is so high... I can quickly spit out 10 reasons why Laverne did not need to die starting first with the fact neither one had a photo on their website, followed just as quickly that housing 2 3-pound Chihuahuas between much larger (and noisy) dog breeds is going to do nothing else but scare the hell out of them!

But why?  Why give the list of things I KNOW could have saved Laverne's life... It won't bring her back...  No matter how many times I go over and over these things, I don't see Camarillo's mindset changing... I just see more dogs dying, like Laverne...  This is what it is like to be a rescue director in a high kill county...