Why more puppies?

[CindyR]

This older blog is being reposted in honor of all of the people that believe there is NO GOOD REASON for bringing another litter of puppies into the world. No such reason exists. Not while we are euthanizing TONS AND TONS of healthy dogs every year in this country.

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This is an issue that has been gnawing at my soul for 10 years now. Hopefully when it all comes tumbling out, it will make sense. Let's keep our fingers crossed. Before I begin, let me say that I think cats are mighty groovy, but I'm most attached to dogs, so I'll be speaking for them (although this post goes just as well for cats too). About 10 years ago I took a job as a kennel worker at an Animal Control facility in Alamogordo, NM. I THOUGHT at the time I was going to be there for awhile, given my intense love of dogs. Well, I lasted two months. The reason: one of my duties was to help with the twice weekly euthanasia. I'm sure there are a few others here on Scoop that have had the unfortunate task of euthanizing animals. But I'm quite sure that most of you have not. So kindly bear with me as I explain a simply fact. IT IS NOT ONLY OLD OR SICK DOGS THAT ARE EUTHANIZED. In the two months I worked there, we euthanized countless healthy puppies and healthy, vibrant, lovable dogs in the prime of their lives on a weekly basis. How do you begin to explain to a dog, when you're walking him to "the room," that his chances have all expired? Bright eyes, wagging tails, and not enough homes. And then they are gone. And stuffed into black plastic bags and taken to the landfill. It's beyond my comprehension that a world that is so full of good and love and hope would allow this to happen to our companions.

Another simple fact, there are more good dogs than there are good homes for them. Let me reword that, and still have the statement be true: there are more dogs than there are homes for them. Let's not even qualify "good" homes (which all dogs deserve) -- lets just say "homes" period. THERE ARE NOT ENOUGH OF THEM. Please implore your friends, neighbors, family to STOP bringing more puppies into this world.


Here’s my kicker: every person that allows more dogs to be born into this already overpopulated dog world, should first have to assist in the euthanasia of healthy, homeless dogs for a month. If, after a month of euthanizing wo/man’s best friend over and over and over, you can still, without regret, allow more puppies to join us -- then I guess I don’t have much more of an argument. Hold those dogs in your arms as they take their last breaths – for no good reason except that there aren’t enough homes. NO MORE PUPPIES!!!

[Arielle]

Yes, yes, yes! We pull perfectly fine Border Collies and BC mixes on death row from shelters all the time, and we're ecstatic when we find new homes for them!. We're planning an educational program for foster- and adoptive families. I really think education is the best way to go, starting early in the schools. http://www.nmbordercollierescue.com

[Claudia Inoue]

Cindy...I so agree with you...and I've been depressed too. Also, I cannot believe people are still issued PERMITS to breed! Which in turn makes people feel like it's OKAY to BREED. It is absolutely depressing to think about! And then, the people out there who PURPOSELY shop for a dog with PAPERS! They need to go look in the shelters for all the wonderful dogs sitting there and I'd bet you nine times out of ten, a dog from the shelter over its lifetime will be healthier than dogs bred for specific characteristics.
PLUS...there are many breed specific rescue organizations out there! If you want a lab, a poodle, a chihuahua....RESCUE ONE! Don't have another one BRED!
And lest we forget the poor dogs in puppy mills!! I can't even think about that....
Cindy, is your oven big enough for BOTH of our heads? :(

[Lisa]

I know, which is why I also cross posted the gist of it all and your list to my blog. :)

And the best we can strive for each day is to help educate at least one person on it all. Even if we can only change one person a month, it's one person more who will also help educate at least one more person.

[CindyR]

Okay -- even tho I'm at work -- I have to chime in here! ;-)
What BLOWS MY MIND are the (otherwise) responsible/respectable members of our community that BREED ON PURPOSE. This list includes veterinarians. I think a veterinarian would be one of the FIRST people to support "no more breeding" ordinances. In all fairness in trying to understand both sides, I would LOVE for a breeder to chime in here and provide their best arguments FOR breeding.
I know there have been posts here before defending "responsible breeding" (which, in my mind is an utter oxymoron). I don't believe such a thing exists. Not while we're slaughtering millions of dogs each year.

I just grabbed this off of the Animal Rescue League site (in El Paso):
"Each day 10,000 humans are born in the U.S. - and each day 70,000 puppies and kittens are born. Put another way, for every person that is born, 15 dogs and 45 cats are also born. You do the math, there is no way we can find homes for them all. As long as these birth rates exist, there will never be enough homes for all the animals from here to eternity. As a result, every year 4 to 6 million animals are euthanized because there are no homes for them."

I simply don't see how there is ANY justification for this. It's so frickin' sad. Makes one want to stick their head in the oven. :-(
Okay, now I'm thoroughly depressed again.

[Claudia Inoue]

Unfortunately, anything we say or post here at Scoop is preaching to the choir :(

[Lisa]

Yes, I know the type, and yes it breaks my heart each time. The other thing is people who let their cats out all the time and then are indifferent because they didn't come home or such. If you love your cat, keep them in, they'll have a much longer life if you do. And let your dog out in a yard or out only on a leash. So many animals are treated as a possession or a measure of status, in case, a purebred puppy that some fool paid lots of money for.

[Chris Dowd]

That poster is great. It should be in every shtler and vet's office. I was in Clovis several years ago and a woman and her daughter brought in their dog to be killed because he'd been attacked and they couldn't afford the vet bills. As I was leaving I heard the woman tell her daughter "don't worry, we;ll get another dog". I almost lost it, but the shelter worker saw my look and shook her head. It would've done no good.

[Claudia Inoue]

Lisa, yes, that poster says it all!

[Lisa]

by the way, I meant to add this, personally this poster says it all.

[Lisa]

Yes, I too worked in a "shelter", but I didn't last as long as you did Cindy. My lasting time was only a week. I couldn't take it after an older man brought his loving companion in to be euthanized because someone fed it ground meat with ground glass in it and he couldn't afford the vet.
Yes, we need to stop the senseless breeding of pets. Personally I think the counties and cities should pass laws about spaying and neutering that are more strict. And if your pet is picked up and not fixed, it will be spayed at the shelter before you can claim it, and you have to pay the cost of the surgery and the other fees. Just my thoughts here.