The Arizona Humane Society, which some of you may remember as the place that killed a beloved kitten named Scruffy then lied to the owner to try to cover it up, charges $60 to surrender an animal, with a “discount” available to low income individuals who meet the facility’s requirements.
A local resident who lived on property owned by his mother had 13 adult pitbull mixes and 4 puppies living outdoors and authorities received a tip the dogs were being neglected. Police responded and the man said he was unable to afford the surrender fees to take the dogs to the pound. He claims that he was not the owner of the dogs but that he would toss food over the fence for them since they lived on his property. He surrendered the dogs voluntarily to the Arizona Humane Society:
On Thursday, the Arizona Humane Society sent a report to Chandler police on the condition of the dogs. The dogs were described as fearful and difficult to handle and some suffered from sarcoptic mange, a serious condition that is contagious to humans and other dogs. All of the dogs had hair loss as a result of conditions including skin mites, malnutrition and filthy living conditions, according to the report.
Gee, malnourished dogs living in isolation who had food thrown over the fence to them were fearful and difficult to handle after being seized by pet killers? Anyone see that coming? Some had sarcoptic mange, a common skin condition which can be treated very cheaply. Sounds like these dogs needed some TLC and protection. What they got was the Arizona Humane Society. The Arizona Humane Society killed every last one of the adults, treating only the puppies. The man who was living on the property with the dogs has been charged with 13 counts of animal cruelty. Yay?
It is absolutely tragic that these dogs were better off with the person who would do no more than throw food at them periodically than they were with the Arizona Humane Society. At least then they were alive. Where there’s life, there’s hope. They could have possibly been rescued a truly humane society – small h, small s. One that sees dogs as individuals, even if they have suffered emotional abuse and neglect, whose lives have value. Instead, they fell into the hands of monsters and now all hope is lost.
(Thanks Arlene for sending me this story.)
Yep, so much easier to kill them than help them. Beware, it’s not only “shelters” who don’t shelter. Too many “humane” societies that are anything but humane. RIP pups, you surely did not deserve to die. Hope there is an outcry from those who care about the animals and live there.
Absolutely disgusting, bully management at it’s worse, rest in peace betrayed fur babies may St. Francis exact revenge on those murdurous bastards that did this to you!
So…he didn’t own the dogs, yet they accepted him surrendering them. Then they killed the dogs and charged HIM with cruelty? Who gets charged with the killing of the dogs? Oh right, no one. Okay. Got it.
And if he’d paid $60 per dog to surrender them, would they have let the dogs live? No? Would they have not charged him with cruelty? No? Maybe his mother should sue them for theft and destruction of her property…
I’m not affliated with the Arizona Humane Society, but I am part of the rescue community in Phoenix and I have to say I am sad to see you shaming AHS like this. Are they a perfect organization? No. Just a year ago, I used to think of them as the place that cats go to die. But this year, their new leadership has made a lot of positive changes including increasing the number of free spay and neuter surgeries they offer to low income areas, opening a kitten nursey, doing 2 for 1 kitten adoption specials, creating a working cats program for hard to place cats, and moving to admissions by appointment. They send out alternative placement requests to other rescue organizations daily. I have always felt that people are like animals, they respond to positive reinforcement. I wish we could encourge them to continue on the positive path they have been exploring rather than pointing out only their failings.
Also, Arizona law states that if you keep and care for a cat or dog for six or more consecutive days, you become the the owner. To me it sounds like he owned the dogs. If they weren’t his originally, he should’ve taken them to Maricopa County Animal Care and Control when their original owner abandoned them on his property. Then he could have surrendered them for free as strays. Heck, an Animal Control Officer would’ve come to his house and picked them up for free, if he had just called when they were abandoned! If he had only asked for help sooner rather than half-assing it until the dogs were in such bad shape that the police had to step in.
The guy could have done a bunch of other things. But didn’t. The point is that when the so-called Humane Society stepped in, the dogs were under their protection. Except they didn’t protect them. They did the opposite of that. I’m glad they’ve done some good things. You know another organization that also does some good things? PETA. Doing some good things does not mean anyone gets a pass on killing animals.
If I understood correctly, it was the Arizona Humane Society that sent people earlier this year to the site where Steve Markwell had taken the Olympic Animal Sanctuary dogs; the AZHS representatives examined the dogs and made determinations about their condition.
I recall that during the long thread here about OAS about that time, AZHS’s expertise was seemingly assumed by at least one commenter. But I’m thinking we should be glad the OAS dogs were not surrendered to them.
God bless the animals everywhere. They need protection from people. Animals count on us to help them, not kill them, not abuse them, not neglect them. At least the man was trying to throw them some food. What did the organization do? Kill them!!! They should be out of business!
I have donated to the AHS .. NO MORE!
OH, and they WERE in my will .. NO MORE!
This is awful. Southern and Westetn states do not appreciate animals like they do in other parts of the country
Northern and Eastern states aren’t all peaches and cream, either. Bad shelters exist all around the country. I particularly hate people trying to be all “high and mighty” about the Northeast shelters who actually import animals from the “awful South” while killing animals that are already in their shelters
Absolutely! Our local humane society brings in puppies and young dogs via The Rescue Wagon while the local animal control kills nearly half of the animals they have. I don’t get it! There are also good facilities in all parts of the country.
AHS seized and are to my dogs, after I called and called them to “H E L P” get my dogs out a house where we got scammed AND ultimately evicted from that house! The police agency that was there ,locked us and our dogs outside with less than enough water for only two dogs, let alone my family! And I am there target! Just 6weeks before,AHS helpless us move into that house, but in “trying to help” move us a AHS EMT,R.Jesus put a pole around my dogs neck, and must not have known what she was doing,cuz SHE KILLED HIM,I got him to that house my dog was choking and and in two minutes he died in our arms! I called AHS TO TELL them what happened and the was it I was there New target! And because we didn’t leave asap (because,we couldn’t we just two days before,$2400) (and we have our bank statements to prove it), when the PD like they told us to… We were now on that target list as well, And when they Locked us out at 109 degrees+ our dogs were left in that yard alone, cuz the constable and a locksmith Dave grabbed my throat and my breasts pulled me into the and THROUGH me out of the front door and my dogs went nuts, and for 3 1/2 -4 hour’s those two agencies let them,( and we COULD NOT AND WOULD NOT LET ME HELP OR COOL THEM DOWN THEY JUST LET MY, INSIDE ONLY DOGS, FIGHT AND EVENTUALLY KILL THREE DOGS WHILE I COULDN’T BE ON PROPERTY! All we (my daughter and myself) could do was listen to our dogs drying!!! THE VERY WORST DAY OF OUR LIVES…… GOD HELP ME, SO I THOUGHT! Until they charged me the a bus and there deaths!!? And I JUST went to COURT thinking ,thank God, I finally will have my day in court, but not so fast, cuz I just An hour and a half- 2 hours to get any of our evidence out into the evidence for MARICOPA COUNTY JUSTICE COURT, NORTH WEST,IN SURPRISE AZ, AND GREAT THING WAS MY DAUGHTER HAD THE PRESENCE OF MIND TO RECORD ALL ABOUT 4 hours of that day! And that was in front of a PRO-temp that was switched with the regular JUSTICE court judge just minutes before ,and I voiced concern about it to clerk of the court ,but my concern landed on totally deaf ears! And almost 90 percent of my evidence was not even seen or looked at ! oh yeah, and that 4 hour video NEVER even got seen, why cuz our North West court was being heard in the Manistee court room at 3pm ! God PLEASE help my wonderful loving dogs safe please hear my prayers, they took them away from me today, that PRO-Temp gave them to AHS! And just 1more thing, which I have “TRIED” since Monday, to bring her up charged, as I went back into the court room, I walked in to all AHS and GLENDALE police talking to the Pro Temp in the courtroom without me knowing or being there,so they thought! I think they call that ex parte communication AND the two other people who saw this (and didn’t even know them) Said that is just wrong, and illegal as he’ll, so here is our cell phone numbers… BUT,GOD HELP ME, CAN MY, WILL MY DOGS SURVIVE BEING IN THE CARE OF THE AHS….. IF YOU KNOW ANYTHING, OR YOU CAN HELP US PLEASE DO SO. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME