The Medina County Animal Shelter in Ohio gasses cats. Apparently they don’t have enough cats to gas already so the staff is actively getting more – by setting traps in the shelter parking lot. Here is a portion of the MCAS kill log for July 2013, obtained via FOIA request:
Neither of these cats were held so that their owners, if they had any, could reclaim them. Neither of these cats were offered for adoption or to rescue groups. They were trapped by the agency that is supposed to be sheltering them and then taken directly to the gas chamber. The MCAS staff is battling local animal advocates who want the gas chamber dismantled. But nobody WANTS to kill animals.
***
This cat was found by someone in Medina Co (identifying information redacted by me) and brought to the shelter. The finder indicated the cat was good with children and paid the shelter $10 to take care of the cat. Instead of advertising this cat online or reaching out to rescue groups, MCAS took this friendly cat to the gas chamber, claiming the cat was “wild”. But nobody WANTS to kill animals.
***
In December 2012, MCAS impounded a cat named Lou and another named Skinner from the County Home.
The Medina County Home has a website which states:
Situated on approximately 80 acres of scenic rural property, the Medina County Home is a 60-bed facility which provides primary custodial, rest-home-type care. It is owned and operated by the Medina County Board of Commissioners with funding provided through the County’s General Fund.
MCAS gassed Skinner and Lou to death instead of advertising them online or reaching out to rescue groups. The Medina County Board of Commissioners is directly supplying cats for the MCAS gas chamber via their County Home and, unlike caring members of the public, the commissioners are not charged the $10 fee to surrender cats. The Medina County Board of Commissioners is currently being lobbied for shelter reform and an end to the gas chamber. So far, they have been resistant to change. But nobody WANTS to kill animals.
Horrible, disgusting people!!! May their evil deeds come back to haunt them.
This is the shelter that’s supposed to be a safety net for our community.
They are fighting so hard to KEEP the gas chamber, too. We’re the ONLY shelter in Ohio gassing cats, but hey, we do it really, really well! It’s all the PRACTICE, you know.
Reblogged this on Sherlockian's Blog.
We got rid of our gas chamber about 4 or 5 years ago when we had a permanent veterinarian on staff. It was a horrible deed to go gas the animals but it had to be done. Why can’t you people actually read the euthanasia log? The cats were wild which makes them unadoptable. It’s not like they were kill happy and went out to set traps in the surrounding property to trap and kill more. They probably had a huge amount of ferals out there and they were just trying to thin out their numbers.
Actually, William, it doesn’t “have to be done”. You’re clearly very new to this blog if you think that.
And at Medina County Animal Shelter, every cat in a trap is labeled “wild”, whether they are or not. It’s a little thing they do to skew their numbers. What happens is when people find out that there’s a surrender fee, they just dump their cats and run. Or when they find out that the shelter is only open 10-4 on weekdays, they dump their cats and run. So cats end up getting dumped around the shelter all the time – friendly, tame cats who are freaked out about being dumped in a strange place.
Those two cats were most likely dumped pets. Possibly even dumped by someone not their owner. We’ll never know, though because they went straight into the gas chamber…
“Good with children” does not equal “wild” in these here parts. IDK how they do things in fancypants Medina Co though…
Our children are very sturdy.
Even IF the cats were wild, that doesn’t mean killing them is the solution. There are actual options for feral cats, including TNR, which over time will reduce numbers, and offering them for adoption as mousers. Wild doesn’t have to mean a death sentence unless the shelter deems that it should, which again makes it a CHOICE. The shelter is CHOOSING to kill.
wild is the word cat hater shelter workers use to justify the kill. I know as i go into the local shelter where I live. If we didn’t have some legit ferals who are trap neuter vaccinated and returned. we would be overrun with rodents.
William, it sounds like you haven’t had much experience with “shelters” and cats. Even the most well-socialized and friendly cats can become so stressed and fearful (usually with very good reason) that they become difficult to handle. It’s the environment and the change (cats generally don’t handle change very comfortably). I believe the folks at this place figure “wild” is a good reason to kill them. It isn’t. It never is.
And if these cats are truly “feral” then doing TNR is the very best option for everyone.
Medina is in the dark ages with regard to their policy with cats, at least. To me, they seem comfortable living there because they strongly resist all change to become a true “shelter” or to allow the cats to take their chances (which are greatly increased) on the streets. OR there are some true cat haters in charge (or in charge behind the scenes).
I realize that it is important to change the shelter policies….but what other avenues are being pursued? Are there active TNR groups and cat rescue groups in the area that are offering to address the cats so fewer cats face being taken to the shelter? And what about a group taking the cats that are dumped after hours, thus not giving the shelter a chance to trap and euthanize those cats? If the shelter is digging their heels in…..then reduce the number of animals that the shelter can euthanize while fighting to change their policies.
KT, the shelter doesn’t get a vote on whether or not they want to do their jobs. Catching cats and putting them straight into the gas chamber is abhorrent. Suppose they were in the parking lot because of a bitter divorce situation where one spouse took the other’s cats and dumped them?
Stray hold times, humane treatment, marketing cats – all of these things the shelter should be doing and isn’t. It’s not up to rescue groups to try to make up for the shelter’s many failings, the shelter needs to change.
a while back Yes biscuit did a blog on the county i liived in about the local “humane society”, dumping door dumps at the pound. I saw all those cats and they were far from feral yet killed none the less, they were scared ex pets of somebody who thought they would be safe leaving them at the no kill yea right. none of them stood a chance. they did not come in , in traps btw, and they sent out one to have it’s head decapitated for rabies test
Casey Post- I’m supporting you…my letter to Stephen Hambley went out; I will write 20 letters if I have to. If the cats are feral, why don’t they leave them alone? I hope people know not to take any cats there. Let us know what else we can do.
Thanks, Jeannette! Your support is VERY appreciated! The Commissioner’s Meeting is this morning and the shelter is slated for the discussion section (after I speak, again). Let’s hope that the commissioners are ready to step out of the dark ages today…
I say put those people in the gas chamber and gas them! FEEL THE TERROR!!!!
they need to stop this place, they are barbarians, is there a petition for people to sign ?
William-
You have a lot to learn. I hope you do take it upon yourself to learn that there is no thrill in the kill.
And those that do justify killing are nothing more than murders.
Who stand up in their self righteous indignation spewing out excuses for their inhumane selves to anyone ignorant enough to listen while they grind their jackboots into the necks of those they want to control.
Unfortunately Medina Ohio is just an evil place run by evil, cruel, ignorant people. I hope the good citizens wake up and kick them to the curb.
Several years ago I had lost my best friend, my cat to old age of 21 yrs. Very heart broken for several months while at work at the hospital, outside taking a break I saw a cat walking out of the woods. We knew we had wild cats hanging around the place and the kitchen people were feeding them. I thought this cat was wild also, but I krouched down and called to it knowing that it would run in the opposite direction, but it didn’t. The cat came to me as if it knew me out of the woods without a bur, leaf or twig on him. He is a long haired Main Coon. I boxed the cat and called my husband to come get him and bring him home. Here I guess you would consider him a stray, no collar and no chip. Knowone posted him as missing and he has been with us ever since. Perhaps someone just dumped him somewhere cuz they didn’t want him anymore. He wasn’t wild or unrulely. We have had several cats along our journey and this one is the best cat in the world and very smart. So you see, not all that’s found is wild. Some people my dump the animal somewhere else hopefully to find itself a new home rather than take it to a shelter. We all know eventually shelters will euthanize animals after being there a while cuz they don’t have money to feed all the animals as common excuse. I wouldn’t take a million dollars for my found stray. He is my best friend.