The Good: North Carolina’s Robeson Animal Shelter, which has been closed most of this month for quarantine due to distemper, re-opened for adoptions this week.
The Bad: Vaccination upon intake is still not standard protocol at Robeson and I haven’t heard whether they implemented any of the recommended changes from the HSUS evaluation in November 2010. That evaluation cost $5000 and was conducted by two people, one of whom regular readers know as the director of the We Play Dress Up with Drugged Kitties Shelter in Charlotte. The suggestions seem to be sound, especially the parts about not spraying out runs with dogs in them (Hello, Memphis?) and separating sick pets from healthy ones – but the folks in charge at the state level rated the report a meh. And thus, rampant distemper in March 2011.
The Ugly: After being open for a whopping TWO DAYS, Robeson is already marking for death a dozen dogs who rode out the quarantine. They used donated vaccines to vaccinate these dogs and even dewormed them using donated dewormer. Now they are threatening to kill them because they haven’t gotten any rescue calls about them:
You know what happens when you’re a municipal shelter and you open up after being closed for more than 2 weeks? You get a bunch of intakes. (Disclaimer: I didn’t go to Rocket Science School, this is just my layman’s opinion.)
Rescuers have been doing a good job helping to save pets at Robeson. I am hopeful these dogs will be adopted or rescued. Failing that, I guess I hope they “wake up” at the landfill, make a break for it, and find their way to someone who loves pets.
Just when I think I’ve heard it all . . .
Good heavens, please get the rescues in there and the poor dogs out of there!
This seems to be well thought through by the shelter in some werid universe but seriously wake up and get it together! Actually help the animals out!!
Ok, now I think I must have been slipped some shrooms or LSD somewhere, from Dress Up and Kill the Kitteh to Shoot the Chained Dog Even Though He’s 30 Feet Away and I was Investigating a Break in Anyway, to THIS>?>??????????? W…T…F…???
I just went to their PF site. They have one helluva snooty attitude, but beside that, it doesn’t seem like any of the listed animals came in earlier in the month, er or are any of the survivors…any takes on that? And does anyone pull from there?
Is this call for help just on Facebook are did they bother to contact any of the local media and ask for help with a story to get some of these dogs adopted?
don’t know who the hell you think you are but a couple of things: 1. what would YOU suggest the shelter do, non-rocket-scientist? they were closed because their community doesn’t vaccinate and a dog brought distemper in. they got in TWENTY dogs immediately upon reopening. any ideas about where to put them? 2. they do a GREAT job networking. doesn’t do a whole lot of good to contact the “local media” because there basically isn’t any, and there aren’t many adopters there. that’s why they network through FB — gets the word out nationwide, and people from all over come to transport. snd 3. how many animals have YOU pulled from robeson? just a thought: STFU, get off your high horse, and go help, you self-righteous know-nothing.
Robeson has such wonderful
killing apologistssupporters. Fair notice: This thread will not become a Facebook free-for-all. If you want to express your opinion like, you know, a grown-up – feel welcome to do so. But this is the only dumbass comment I’ll be putting through on this thread.Shirley – you are much kinder than I….I would’ve booted their arse from the beginning. Wonder how many dogs “djs” has pulled and helped from Robeson??? Is this ‘person’ doing ANYTHING to help??? Maybe they need to take their own ‘advice’!!!
Erica – Suffice to say there were other comments along the same lines as this one and I am not in the mood to deal with bullshit at the mo. I figured this one could represent all the asshattery.
Robeson is doing a great job! I pulled a mom and 7 pups from there a little over a month ago. Before Sara and Lori I wouldnt have had the chance. I am in Michigan and they helped me find a local vet and gave me leads on transport options. They are listing these dogs as urgent because they have been there the longest therefore are the first on the list for euthanasia. They contact a ton if rescues and really try to get the word out there. But when the kennels are full they have no choice, they have to take in what animal control brings them. Please get both sides of the story before passing judgement. The same things happen at shelters across the world.
Other shelters kill pets needlessly so why can’t Robeson? Really – that’s your argument? Hey, everybody’s doing it – let’s all join in!
That was certainly not my argument. My point was why are you bloging about a shelter that HAS improved, and not one that needs to be brought to light. What are YOU doing to help? I have a mom and seven pups from robeson, and another 3 adult dogs from my county in Michigan. I am 19 have a full time job, and go to college. More people need to foster…that would be a start. Robeson is fighting the county who won’t supply ANYTHING, which is why they send out lists of things people can donate. Again please get both sides of the story before passing judgement.
Sam, seriously – while I applaud your efforts…do you think the rest of us just sit around on the PC ALL day long and do nothing more than blog, post to blogs, etc??? Almost everyone who is a regular on here either works at shelters, does volunteer transports, run rescues, etc. If YOU would take the time to look around Shirley’s blog YOU would note that she blogs about shelters across the US that have “issues” shall we say in regards to how they are run. Do you think Robeson is ANY different from other shelters? There are shelters all across the US with problems. Shirley’s blog brings those problems to light…instead of jumping on here and blasting her for a shelter that may be improving it still does not take away from the fact that they were under quarantine and the animals that made it through DESERVE to be saved! ANY shelter director with half a brain would know that after the shelter has been closed down for a period of time that when they open the doors they WILL have a HUGE influx of animals and will work towards accomodating them.
What was done during the quarantine to try and save the animals that made it through so that when the door reopened they DIDN’T have to kill them all? I’ll tell you form EVERYTHING that I have read the answer is NOTHING. They waited to re-open and THEN mark all the animals that survived as “XX URGENT”….that is poor planning on THEIR part. While it is commendable that they shut down due to the outbreak…they could have still be working on finding home for the animals in their possession for when they reopened.
This isn’t about having BOTH sides of the story…this is about revealing a TRUTH. IF they have improved so darn much then we wouldn’t have had a ton of rescuers and transporters jumping through circles at the LAST minute to save them all.
Robeson certainly is far from perfect, but has definitely come a LONG way from the conditions found there only 6 or so months ago. There are more rescues working with the facility, & community education is being attempted (remember, this is a rural area where many people were brought up in the “old way” of no spay/neuter, maybe getting rabies shots for their dogs, & little else in the way of vet care).
If you think the dogs have it tough, realize that the cats have it worse with VERY limited space (volunteers made & sold calendars to fund new cages & remodel the cat room). It’s a small facility, run by a rural county, which is consistently overwhelmed. As a better-informed local population begins to practice common-sense pet-care techniques (vaccinations & spay/neuter), conditions will vastly improve. So please, YesBiscuit & everyone else, understand that the Robeson facility is a work in progress which depends on volunteers & an improved understanding of pet care by local citizens.
Jennifer Griffith
Durham, NC
I personally think robeson is doing an amazing job considering where it was when Jeff ran the place. These ladies posted daily when animals were put to sleep because of distemper and voiced their sadness.
How do we all expect them to keep dogs when so many are coming in? Maybe we should push for a spay and neuter law as well as a law that forces vaccinations.
As sad as it is that some have to die to free up space, they cannot become a hoarding facility. We are all trying hard to network these babies.
why does this hell hole not have it,s animals vaccinated by a licensed vetinarian????? this hell hole needs to be shut down for good!!!!! and transfer the animals to a nokill shelter that has a full time vetinarian on staff.
Robeson has made vast improvements over the past 6 months and if you can’t see them, then you are not looking. Some facts on Robeson County, it is the largest yet poorest county in NC. It also has one of the highest unemployments rates in the country since the factories that were there closed and moved overseas. The county is mainly farm communities that are very dependant on mother nature for their lively hood and has had several bad growing seasons in a row. You can watch the corn, tobacco, beans, etc. burn up in the fields or they get too much rain and that ruins the crops yearly. Now that I have that out of the way, I will move on to the animals. People there are poorly educated (especially on animal welfare) and think of animals as property. The county went from euthanising about 88% back in 2008 down to around 36% for 2010! Of the 12% adopted out in 2008 only 2% went to local homes, the rest were from out of state adopters/rescues. I wish there was a no kill shelter these animals could go, but there’s not! The volume of animals that goes thru this shelter is outrageous. I know, I have seen it first hand, and yes I have rescued animals from Robeson and currently have 4 @ my house and others have been adopted by family members, while others I have pulled have gone to rescues in other states. I know you have the right to post this, or not, but I hope you do so people can see things are getting better for the animals at RCAS and the people that wish to rescue them!!
Please send a link to Robeson’s stats for 2010. I haven’t seen them and would like to.
It’s the irresponsible public that’s to blame for the killing, not those actually doing the killing.
Robeson “has to” kill for space, it’s not a choice.
Someone ELSE has to stop the killing – a no kill shelter where Robeson’s pets can be sent or even me personally – not Robeson.
Anyone detecting a theme here?
Yes of course it is the irresponsible public that is to blame for the killing. If the public were responsible and spayed/neutered their pets then there wouldn’t be any need for any shelters now would there? I run a dog rescue in eastern NC and I am not too familiar with Robeson but do see their animals listed out and emailed out on many of the rescue boards I’m on. They are definitely getting the exposure. My local shelter has some of the most amazing dogs & cats and they have a 91% kill rate & their animals get zero exposure b/c no one cares enough to even get them posted out there where they would stand a chance. The idea of no-kill shelters is absolutely wonderful and is my dream but it is not reality. Until the public is educated & starts being responsible about their dogs & cats, millions of animals in this country will needlessly be shoved in gas chambers and have the life sucked out of them. It’s truly gutwrenching when you have to go into the shelters and work with these dogs knowing that you are only going to be able to help so very few. But the few that I am able to help, that’s a few more that didn’t get put down and ended up in great homes. Why don’t you spend some time writing to newspapers and the media and pushing people to spay/neuter their pets so that so many others don’t end up getting killed in shelters. The problem is not the people working in the shelters — they have the shittiest job in the world and most suffer long-term mental effects from it so don’t pass judgment on them. They take good care of their personal animals and they don’t surrender their animals to the shelter. It’s the low-life humans that abandon and/or dump their dogs at shelters that are to blame!
Julianne, This is apparently your first visit to the blog. Had you ever read any of the previous posts, you would know that I spend my time railing against every single thing you say here. I’m guessing you, like the other Robeson fans from FB, won’t see this comment or ever stop by again. But I’m leaving you this response for eternity.
Yes, let’s ALL spay & neuter our pets and then there would be no need for shelters! And then what? What happens when all the animals have been spayed & neutered and we have NO MORE animals? Oh, that’s right – we don’t NEED the shelters…
Side note – I DO spay & neuter EVERY animal that darkens MY doorway. But to say that spaying & neutering ALONE are the answer is BS. Because we human beings are not ‘perfect’ there will ALWAYS be a need for shelters. As for the problem not being the people working in the shelters…those with the shittiest jobs in the world….not to be a butt, BUT they do choose to work there. I suffer “long term mental health issues” from all the abused pit bull type dogs I have rescued, but I choose to live with the nightmares and awful images that I see because I know what I am doing is helping. Best part is I’m not killing for space…if I have an animal that needs me I take it in and FIND the space. Mmmmmm…maybe shelters could do the same!
Sorry but I am just in a REALLY rotten mood lately…and some of these morons that keep creeping out of the wood work are irritating the hell out of me with the excuses, finger pointing, and blame games!
Julianne – have you ever even cracked the book REDEMPTION? If you did, you would be singing a different tune. And I have some dogs here in our Sanctuary that in fact came from not “low-life humans” as you put it but from some very “hi-brow humans” who just didn’t give a shit. So, please, read a book, think about what you’re saying. Like Erica, if there is a dog in need and I don’t have space, I make the space. I too suffer nightmares every stinking night, but, I still keep doing it…why is only known to doG.
And after finishing Redemption…Irreconcible Differences is another GOOD one by Winograd.
What world are you people living in? Holy crap! I’m a very open minded person but whoa ya’ll need to live in my world for a few days. First of all, this was my first visit to this blog. Second, I’m not a Robeson fan. As I stated, I don’t know anything about Robeson! However, I am VERY familiar with rural NC, AR, MS, LA, etc. and I have a background extensive enough for me to speak intelligently on the subject. I would be happy to list my credentials in the search & rescue and animal rescue world but that really doesn’t matter here. Would I willingly choose to live in this worthless state where animals are treated like shit. NOPE! But I have to as that is where my job has taken me and I have to work to support my animals & the animals that I rescue that desperately need my help so here I am.
As for the animal control officers with the shittiest job in the world, well they are also working to support their families & their animals. I commend them for actually getting out and working and not sitting on their asses collecting welfare like 10% of the rest of the people in this country. I’m not defending all ACO’s as there are definitely some horrible ones out there (probably actually the majority are horrible) but there are also some great ones who go above and beyond to try to save the dogs but they can only do so much with the funding they are given. I’ve seen an ACO who makes $23,000/yr go spend $1,000 of her own money to buy vaccines b/c the county wouldn’t so don’t tell me that they all suck! I’ve also seen an ACO that loved on every dog and cat giving them treats and hugs and kisses as they were put in the gas chamber and then break down sobbing uncontrollably afterwards. Her comment to me “I wnat to make sure that they know that they were loved.” Now that’s f’ed up! But thank God she was there for them b/c the guys that are there now just drag them down the hall and throw them in the chamber — poor dogs are terrified. I don’t know how she did it as long as she did and when I ask her she says “I needed to feed my family.” Can’t argue with that. Someone’s got to do the job otherwise there would be sick dogs and cats running around everywhere starving to death & diseased. Have you ever seen dogs that have starved to death? Well I have on numerous occasions. You want to talk about nightmares, Erica you may think you have nightmares from the dogs you’ve rescued, but I can promise you you haven’t seen SHIT!!! And Erica if you are willing to take in all the animals that need you then there would be 55 million less dead animals in this country every year. I’m not sure where you’d keep them all but if you are so willing & able then by all means please go rescue all of the animals in every shelter. I definitely contribute WAY more than my fair share to rescuing, rehabilitating and rehoming dogs in need (due to their sorry piece of shit owners dumping/abandoning them) and I’d love to save them all but it is quite expensive and I just can’t see how you could possibly afford to save every animal in need. I know I couldn’t. And by the way, in the areas that do have strict spay/neuter laws they don’t have shelters b/c they don’t need them! Yes it’s true — check it out!
Morgana, I don’t judge people by their social status, race, religion, etc. To me, anyone who abandons, abuses or dumps their animal is a low life scumbag. I don’t care if they are high brow or trailer park trash it doesn’t matter. If you treat an animal bad or abandon it you are a piece of shit! From what I’ve witnessed in my years of dealing with animals, some of the poorest people love their animals more than anything in the world. It’s all they have a lot of times. I would love to read Redemption but unfortunately I don’t have time to read anything right now as any free time I have goes to the dogs. I work full time, run a one person rescue and currently I’m fostering 28 dogs that I interact with and do playgroups with every day! And many of my dogs are former fighting dogs or dogs that were horribly abused, tortured, neglected, etc! I don’t typically get dogs that are “easy” or “adoptable” so it can make it difficult to place them. It sounds like Erica works with some difficult dogs as well. Almost all of my dogs stay in my house or in my garage but a few do stay outside in covered pens with a large play yard. My daily duties don’t leave much time for reading. I will try to read it next time I go on vacation. I am pretty open-minded to things but I’m not a big fan of Winograd just in case you were wondering.
Just a little background, the reason I got into rescue is that in my daily job (as a forester for a large timber company) I would run across dogs & cats almost daily that were dumped out at our company gates or deep in the woods miles from any civilization. People rarely pass through some of these areas so once the dogs are dumped they basically sit there and wait for their owner to come pick them up and rarely leave the spot where they were dumped. Sometimes I find the dogs/puppies in time and sometimes I’m too late. I’ve become an expert at rehabilitating dogs starved to the brink of death not because I wanted to but because I’ve had to. I can’t leave them out there and I can’t take them to my shelter that has a 91% kill rate, stays full and uses a gas chamber. For 10 years I rehabilitated and fully vetted all of these dogs out of my own pocket to the tune of spending over 60% of my income each year on these dogs that were f’ed up b/c of someone else’s irresponsibility. I shouldn’t have to make up for other people’s mistakes but I do b/c it’s not the dog’s fault they ended up with a shitty human being as their owner. I’d be willing to bet that if I just went around checking our gates, I could probably rescue a dog every day from one of our gates or out in the woods but I can’t afford to pay for all of their needs, I wouldn’t have the time or space to have 365 dogs here and I couldn’t possibly adopt out 365 dogs in a year. So what exactly would you do in my situation? What would you do if every day that you went to work there was a different starving dog that you had to walk past? Seriously what would you do? I can’t even do my job without having to look at what low-life assholes have done to these poor innocent creatures. I used to think it was absolutely horrible that people would shoot their dogs (particularly hunting dogs at the end of hunting season b/c they didn’t want to have to feed them all winter long which was a quote to me — think I wanted to strangle someone that day?!) and leave them at our gates. As I get older and see more and more dogs that have starved to death, I’m starting to think that the owners who shoot their dogs are actually doing the much more humane thing. It’s pretty bad when you get to that point! I have sat up all night with an emaciated walker hound dog that was full-grown and weighed 12 pounds (should’ve weighed around 40-50 & I honestly can’t believe she was alive) and I prayed the whole time for God to please take her. I wished I had had something to put her out of her misery. This dog’s back two legs from her foot to above her knees had rotted out and she was full of maggots. She had no meat or fat on her, she was literally just bones. She was cold and wet and shivering when I found her one evening on my way home from work. I picked her up in a blanket and put her on the floor of my truck and started blasting the floor heat so she’d warm up. I fed her very small meals of wet cat food through the night and I sat with her in my lap. She was absolutely amazing. She would walk on her front legs and had her rotten hind legs in the air like she was doing a handstand. That was the only way she could walk. The next morning I took her to the vet’s office to have her euthanized. I would’ve maxed out every credit card I had on this dog if it would’ve saved her life but unfortunately she was in complete organ failure and both of her rear legs would’ve required amputation so I chose to let her go. Those are the kind of things I run into almost daily. I just want to go to work and do my job and come home and take care of my animals and go on with life, but I can’t b/c I have to deal with other people’s irresponsibility. And while other people can drive past these poor animals & not think twice I can’t. I feel like I’m obligated to make up for some other humans mistakes. I don’t mean any harm to anyone on here with my comments but I truly believe ya’ll are removed from reality and are living in a bit of a dream world. I would love to one day have a no kill nation but we are a LONG ways from it! If the shelters were able to be big enough to house dogs long-term who would pay for the massive expansions that will be needed on these shelters, who will pay the electric bills, who will pay for the food, medicine and vet care for all of the dogs? Who do ya’ll think will pay for these things? It surely won’t be the county or the state or the federal govt and you probably wouldn’t get much funding from private citizens either. Anyway, I’ve said enough. I’m done with this chatter for now.
By the way, just so that we can agree on something, I can’t stand Pacelle & his load of crap or PETA.
Julianne: You truly are a saint, and the rest of us know DICK. There, feel better? Girl, you should take that boulder off’n your shoulder and get down to some good ole’ talking with us about the horrors of rescue, of which most if not all of us here know just as much as you do. Blame throwing doesn’t really do much for the animals though, does it? It is far better to talk out one’s own sorrows with others who know what you’re going through, and find a way to carry on than to spew violent hatred at us OR those shitbags who intentionally leave an animal behind. If individual members of the rescue community could stop reviling one another over BS and get down to business, then we’d all be alot better off. BTW, I run a LifeTime Sanctuary by myself, right now have 34 dogs (one more coming in) and 22 cats, bird and herps. I find the time to read a fucking book to keep myself educated on lots of issues when I go to sleep at night. It can be done if you want it. On another note, I AM truly sorry you have to deal with that kind of thing, throwing an animal into the woods to starve to death should be punishable by the same fate, IMHO. Keep on keepin’ on, and please, take your place here as a PEER not a MARTYR to some undefined “they” out there, we can all help one another. Let’s take a vow, everyone, shall we? “I vow from this day forward, to offer a shoulder to cry on, a hand to hold, and an ear to listen to my fellow rescuers who are having a hard time continuing through this tractless swamp of compassionless seas. I will not flame or spit at my fellow rescuers here on YesBiscuit, but I shall endeavor to offer timely and wise advice and help whenever and wherever possible”. Amen.
Oh, and I meant to mention that we do not take the cute and fuzzy, but the ones who slip through the cracks, so I have these till the end of their days. I do alot of hospice care. I know about tears. We all know about tears. Now, how about that vow y’all?
Morgana,
Don’t pat me on the back. I promise you I don’t need you to make me feel better and I don’t have a chip on my shoulder. I’m just as much a saint as you are as we both do the same thing. I’m leaving the sainthood decision up to the man upstairs! However, it’s not about me, it’s about the dogs. I don’t get into who’s who or politics or all of the other BS that most of the rest of the rescue world seem to care about & get tied up in instead of focusing on the animals themselves. I can’t stand drama and attempt to stay away from it (which is why I like living in my own little world). However, I do like a good debate every once in a while. My intent by my comments was not about me at all, it was merely to explain to those who may not see it every day what is really going on out in rural America. I don’t think most people really know what goes on out in the boondocks. When I tell people the stories of dogs that I’ve found that were dumped out they absolutely don’t believe me. I see it every day; I live it. It is my reality and I want to share it so that everyone else can get a tiny idea of what goes on out there. The local animal control rarely ever even picks up dogs anymore in my county b/c if they pick up a stray dog they know they are going to have to euthanize some of the dogs that are currently at the shelter. Then the strays are left to starve to death and eventually the dogs in the shelter are put down as well. It’s a sad and vicious cycle and I’m sure we are in agreement on that!
Not once did I say I know more than anyone else on here (I’ve probably seen more than most people on here but it sounds like you & I run similar types of rescues so you’ve probably seen just as much if not more than me). I’m not on here to argue or fight with anyone, I truly respect the rescuers out there who are truly committed to the animals. I don’t have all of the answers and as far as I know no one else does either. I have not spewed any violence or hatred toward anyone on here and I will forever truly & deeply hate the unknown people who torture, abandon & neglect animals. If I go to hell for that hatred, so be it. Sorry I just can’t find it in my heart to forgive people for some of the stuff they have done to animals. I would love to be able to forgive them and pretend that they didn’t know what they were doing but I can’t. Fortunately what goes around comes around and hopefully they will get theirs one day. I am a peer and I’m definitely not a martyr. And I agree 100% with your vow. I’m not putting anyone on here down but I do think there are some questions & problems that haven’t been answered or explained that will make it difficult to get to a No Kill Nation and I’m not knowledgeable enough on that subject to debate it with you at this point in time. Would I love to get to No Kill? Hell yeah I most definitely would. Unfortunately we will not get there until people start valuing the lives and the quality of life of the animals in this country. People need to care less about themselves and more about others and then we will have a shot at making a No Kill Nation successful. When people care more about what Charlie Sheen is doing today than they do about their own family or friends then we’ve got way bigger issues and problems out there. Reality is a bitch and we can’t change people although I wish we could. Keep up your wonderful and dedicated work and keep your babies showered in love, well fed and warm and I will continue to do that on my end. Life goes on and every day is a new day and I will stay committed to helping the ones I can help. Godspeed!
Julianne – let me give you some info that might help you understand where many of us are coming from. According to the Maddie’s Fund website we have approximately 17 million people thinking of getting a pet. Approximately 3-4 million animals are killed in shelters every year. According to those findings it should be easy to empty the shelter the RIGHT way…by placing them in homes. I don’t know where you found the number of 55 million dead animals every year…care to share a link to that? Because honestly it doesn’t mesh with the other figures that are out there.
“Unfortunately we will not get there until people start valuing the lives and the quality of life of the animals in this country.” When we sit back and allow the same shelters that are here to help the animals – kill them while blaming the “irresponsible” public – that is another part of where an animals life is devalued. Our animal shelters are ‘proving’ that they are disposable by killing them. There are other ways out there.
As for ME taking in all the animals in the world – I would absolutely LOVE to do so…but my heart lies with pit bull types dogs…mainly those rescued from fight rings. To me they seem to be the most devalued dog in our country. I take in the hard cases and work them until they are ready to be in new homes. You think I haven’t seen shit….I have had to sit through dogfights to gather evidence to bust them. You want to talk about “seeing shit” I can tell you stories that would literally rip your heart to shreds. I don’t take in the ‘easy’ cases – I take in dogs that have abused from teh time they were pups. I take in dogs where I have had to pay to have chain collars removed from their necks from them being attached and never loosened. Dogs with wounds so severe that had anyone else had the dog they would have been instantly killed. Dogs that are aggressive towards other animals and over their food. Dogs that have spent literally their entire lives chained, barely fed or given water, and forced to fight and if they can’t/won’t/don’t then they are used to breed litter after litter just so there are enough dogs to ‘train’ the fighters on how to fight! I’ve spent more time than I care to admit hanging out with some of the most horrible scum of the earth just to gather enough evidence to get them busted. Being forced to stand there and watch as they toss a pup in the middle of a ring to be torn to shred before my very eyes. Watching dogs slowly bleed to death after a match they lost. I could go on but I am starting to get upset just telling you about it.
My point in responding to your post is that sitting here pointing fingers at the ‘irresponsible’ public – you are taking the ‘irresponsible’ shelters out of the equation. The shelters that fail to vaccinate, spay/neuter, etc. The shelters that claim to be killing for space – yet their shelter sits there with empty cages. Instead of jumping on here blasting the irresponsible public isn’t helping the problem. Getting your local shelter on board with the No Kill Movement and getting the news out there and gathering support would be the way to go.
There are websites out there with tons of information that you can print and send them or go to your next “town hall” meeting and ask to be put on the agenda. And, since finding time to read is hard – both of Winograd’s books also come on audio tape – they would be some good listening while you are driving or walking the dogs. If your local shelter isn’t getting the animals out there find someone who can volunteer to do it for them, if not yourself. I have found that many other shelters are willing to allow volunteers to do this – takes the responsibility away from them AND gives the animals a better chance…there are transports across the country that would be willing to help move the animals to a place where they would have a better chance at getting adopted.
Something that needs pointed out – Shirley blogs about the problems to raise awareness of them and in many cases it results in saving lives. Instead of jumping on the lies and BS spewed forth from HSUS and/or PETA is not helping the animals….and it isn’t ALWAYS the irresponsible public to blame for the problems. Many places don’t have programs in place for free/low cost spay/neuter and vaccines. Many places that do have the programs don’t promote them and as a result they are under utilized. AND additionally there are people that lose their jobs & homes and have NO place to go and they think that putting their animals in a shelter gives that animal a chance at life rather than being left to roam the streets. There are many other factors – with things like pet retention couseling, food pantries, and lists of resources available for people that don’t know about them.
My point is that there are proven successes in the No Kill Movement…but you have to have a shelter that supports all the parts of the equation. We all have our “world” that we live in and see similar things to what you see. We aren’t narrow minded or uneducated on the subject…each and everyone of us have seen very similar things to what you describe. While I applaud your efforts you need to understand that we ALL do our part, in our own way. You sounded very condescending when you talk about us being narrow minded and not knowing about what is going on around the US.
Julianne: Well, that sounded a bit better. I think we all feel the same about people who abuse animals. I am happy that you can take that Vow. I too live in the boondocks. I try to NOT let my anger get under my skin, and my point was that we all need to share our sorrows to defuse the anger so that it doesn’t get in our way. That’s why I encouraged you to stop and share, rather than what read like a rant and flame. So. Welcome Home. You can contact me at my website listed somewhere below if you need to. AND: Who else is going to take this vow?????? Step up now…
I believe this Facebook posting was merely a wake up call from Robeson staff. They are alerting rescues and adopters that dogs must be pulled ASAP. I have rescued many dogs from that shelter through 3 different managements. I must say…. Lori and Sara are the first ones I have experienced dealing with that truly care about the animals,(aside from Steve, but he was not a manager). Let’s seriously not shoot the messager here. They are at least giving a heads up to the rescue world! Let’s network these dogs and get them saved!
Er, so far, I have asked does anyone pull from there, as I have never dealth with them and was willing to help with these animals. And it doesn’t sound like anyone IS helping. I don’t do FB because of a million and one reasons, so I can only get that info from here. Does anyone know if the quarantine dogs GOT OUT???
Hi Morgana,
Yes… there are people who pull from Robeson. I belong to a group called Franny’s Friends & have now fostered 10 dogs from Robeson….9 have gotten forever homes. I started volunteering there just about a year ago & as I said in my earlier post, since Lori Baxter became the Shelter manager, Robeson has made a complete turn around. The animals are loved & cared for properly. The quarantine happened not because of any error on the part of Robeson, but because of the lack of caring on the part of the general public in getting animals vaccinated against horrible diseases like parvo & distemper. I’m not sure how many of the quarantined animals got out, but there were some that survived the distemper. Robeson is not a rich County & many people think that the County should pay for vaccines. This will never happen, but many kind hearted caring people have generously donated vaccines & it is making a huge difference. Negativity is never going to go away & many people continue to make negative comments about the shelter. If they would only work with Lori & their staff & keep positive thoughts it would help immensely. Can’t quote the date right now but they are going to have a yard sale & a vaccine clinic in the very near future. I really think it would behoove you to get a facebook page … it’s the main communication tool for many rescues/pullers/fosters etc so that they can get as many animals out of the shelter as they can. Also, I’m not sure where you’re located, but if you’re in the vicinity you could actually go there & see for yourself how far the shelter has come in the last few months, since Lori has become the manager. There is a painting party in the works, so that the inside of the shelter can be painted & brightened up. More people are volunteering & are there various days of the week & also on Saturdays to help clean & care for the animals. Please use your newsletter as a positive tool & help make Robeson the shelter that many of us pray for. I drive 2 hours on Saturdays to go there & help (I wish I could be there more often but because of the distance & commitments to my rescues I can’t get there every week) There are a lot of people that for some reason want to create drama & see failure, which only means that the animals suffer in the long run, BUT there are many more that are dedicated & want to see those animals get out & into loving forever homes. It’s working & only positive thoughts are welcome… Thank you!
Robyn Wilcox
Thanks Robyn…I have pulled from many a southern shelter (we are in upstate NY), but not Robeson. I am happy to hear that there are positive things going on there. I cannot do FB – I used to have a page, but I was overwhelmed with cute furry faces begging me to save them, and I just got sick (literally) over every one of them. Staying off of FB keeps me at the (in)sanity level I can maintain! lol. If there is a specific animal you want me to look at, send it through here or go to our website http://www.welcomehomesanctuaryinc.weebly.com and send in a note. Blessings!
I’m happy to report that ALL of the quarantine dogs have been rescued! Screen shot THAT one why dontcha? :)
As I said in the post, rescuers have been doing a good job saving pets from being killed in Robeson and as I said in the post, I hoped that would happen for these dogs too. I’m very glad to hear that you won’t be killing these dogs Lori.
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=113037338775013#!/note.php?note_id=209588809067352
Robeson just put this out.Free or VERY low cost s/n for county residents.
While I see it on FB – are they advertising it in the media? Not everyone has FB accounts….
Could you put a link to the listing of available pets? Is it only on Facebook?
Never mind. I found it. Sorry to be so slow.
morgana-well said. Throwing blame is not going to help the animals and no ones knows it all -that is why we have a network of rescue people working together to save lives!
Thanks Tonya. I really mean that.