I think my point of view has been missed or just misunderstood. Based on that article I am one of those people that 'cant work here'. I really and truly could not work in a place that goes round pens ordering the death of healthy animals daily. I wasnt burying my head ignoring it, as I am aware it has happened in some rescues. I just dont like to read about it and the article appears to be trying to justify themselves by saying they are helping to control the situation. I dont know the answer to controlling numbers of animals needing rehoming either but like many rescue places I am familiar with, I would have to refuse to take any more in rather than pts one to make space.
The sad fact of rescue is these decisions have to be made.......I have had to go through the upset of having to have pregnant ferals spayed because it is the right decision. It is not easy on any of us..........I adore animals and it breaks my heart and I have been in tears so many times, we are human and we love animals as much as anyone else. From another point of view and it's taken me a long time to accept it........if an animal is turned down by a rescue, what happens to it??? Could you have that on your conscience that an "owner" might well do the deed themselves but not half as humanely as a vet would do. Every time I turn a cat down, this goes through my mind......what if they do something to it to get rid??? I would rather an animal be pts humanely than dumped and left to suffer somewhere. I personally wouldn't take an animal to be pts just because I had no room but I can see why large organisations make this decision.......this is the reality and sadly there is nothing that can prevent it unless all animals were spayed and neutered and there was a loving home for each and every one of them. So many times I have taken cats in because the "owners" have said they will dump them at the side of the road or get rid of them themselves
For a large organisation, this must happen numerous times on a daily basis, my post isn't trying to justify it..........this is the reality and until people realise that by letting their pets breed, these people are the one's adding to the problem and causing all these poor babes to have their life ended for nothing. I was in the vets the other day, a woman was going on about her Bishon Frize that she want's to breed........I pointed out how many healthy animals die through breeding, and how she is putting her health at risk.........her response was that her pups won't end up in rescues, she will find loving homes for them. This woman can't afford vet bills and how is she going to know what becomes of her dogs. This same woman was with her sister in law who dumped 2 cats to live outside because she didn't want them and I ended up having to rehome them
They also had a dog with them that was underweight and full of tumours, and surprise surprise, she'd never been spayed and of course they had no money for treatment for her
These sadly are the type of people adding to the problem of homeless, unwanted animals. Every pup/kitten born is at the expense of another as there is one less home or one more to rehome whichever way you want to look at it.........the older ones tend to get overlooked and a rescue is more likely to save the life of a kitten because sadly these are the one's that are likely to be rehomed first. Not all rescues run a euthanasia policy and as someone who loves animals, I don't agree with it but from their point of view.........what other solution is there?? There are hundreds of animals out there that need help, but sadly there isn't hundreds of placements and homes for them..........it's an awful situation but until people realise what they are doing when breeding, it's going to sadly continue and this policy shouldn't be blamed on rescues, it's down to people's ignorance and not having their pets spayed and neutered