Re: These stats will shock you

kpwlee — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 00:59:53 GMT

sigh these are terribly similar to the Wake County Animal Shelter although they don't list 'given to research' as a category. The SPCA had a meeting about a month ago as the county shelter is about to start taking animals from two more areas despite failing all their inspections, killing 72% of the animals (82% of cats) and releasing unspayed/neutered animals back into the area. The SPCA which is beyond fantastic is apoplectic and asking people to write to their county commissioners to try and get it reversed. The SPCA & the county shelter agreed a contract in 2004 that the county hasn't met on any one condition. The animals are kept in squalid conditions and the place is disease ridden. I have never felt so sad, angry and energized than I did leaving that meeting. I have written letters to the paper. my commissioner and upped my fund raising for our dog walk. In this county the SPCA is the only safety net the animals have.

I have been a strong proponent of adopting animals and despite my desire to have a dog that is stable and a known entity I just don't think I'll ever buy a dog after seeing the facts. I just can't in good conscience.

Re: These stats will shock you

Liesje — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 00:12:34 GMT

Ugh, Montcalm. The dog I pulled from a shelter and helped get into a rescue was dumped just over the border. Ionia told me they get lots of dumps like that, b/c people know that Montcalm sends the dogs for research. Personally, I think it's ironic someone would dump their dog but be choosy about where...

Re: These stats will shock you

cakana — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 21:14:51 GMT

and - it sickens me to read stuff like this. How do these people sleep at night?

Re: These stats will shock you

shadowsgin — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 20:58:58 GMT

That just blew my mind. Seeing it in black and white is very disturbing.

These stats will shock you

Jewlieee — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 18:38:31 GMT

http://www.michanimalnews.com/Montcalm_Killing_Fields.html

From the beginning

Petfinder.com and pets911.com appear to be an indicator of whether an animal shelter is merely a place to house animals before they are killed. Refusal to use the free internet pet adoption services is indicative of a poorly run operation that is not trying to find homes for the animals housed at its facility. Montcalm is such a shelter. Even though citizens have volunteered to do the work, take the pictures and load them onto petfinder.com or pets911.com, the shelter has refused to participate. This means that even highly adoptable purebred dogs and cats have little chance at finding new homes, since no one knows they are at the shelter. Well, almost no one, but more on that part of the story later.

Many shelters rely on rescue groups to reduce the number of animals needing homes. Montcalm is not a rescue friendly shelter. Rescue groups are required to pay the same amount as the general public, $70. Rescue groups cannot count on the shelter holding animals past the stray hold date, even if they alert shelter staff that they wish to assist with a certain animal. Roadblocks for rescue groups are another sign of a shelter that is not interested in saving lives.

A Bad End for Dogs and Cats

The odds are not good for dogs and cats entering Montcalm's animal shelter. In 2007, 75% of the dogs and cats that entered the “shelter” were either killed in the CO2 gas barrel or given to USDA Class B research dealer R & R Research.¹ Not exactly an example of a governmental agency striving to do great work. Overall, from 2004 through 2007 84% of the “shelter” animals were either gassed or given to R & R Research. R & R Research in Howard City purports to have a contract with Montcalm County that allows R & R to take any animal it wants in return for gassing the animals as requested by staff.²

2004 through 2007 shelter statistics

Dogs Cats Total

Admitted: 4109 3926 8035

Returned to Owner 550 6 556

Adopted 431 99 530

Given to Research 519 297 816 ³

Killed by Gas 2271 3382 5653

The shelter reports reveal that no attempt to save animals lives is made by the Montcalm County Animal Control Shelter. Less than 10% of the dogs and cats are returned to their homes or adopted. Research dealer R & R took 14% of the shelter animals and gassed the remaining 70%.⁴ If the shelter adopted just the 816 dogs and cats given to R & R, $16,000 in revenue would have been generated for the shelter.

Animal Control Director Resigns under Fire

Given the abysmal record of the Montcalm Animal Shelter it shouldn't have surprised anyone when Director Kevin Weaver resigned under fire. Besides the horrible adoption statistics, he is accused of animal abuse by a shelter employee. Supposedly, the Montcalm County Sheriff Department is investigating the allegations of wrong doing. The Montcalm County Administrator Chris Hyser is charged with overseeing the operation of the Animal Control Department, he has not returned phone calls before publication of this article. Currently, the county is searching for a new animal control director, however, local activists do not believe much will change since there are not any qualified individuals wiling to undertake a shelter where county policy dictates that animals are either gassed in a barrel or given to a research dealer.

Coming this week: Learn Who Had a Key to the County Animal Shelter, What Happened to the American Eskimos, Why Did Six Year Old Cocoa Suffer for Days with a Severe Injury, Six Lakes House of Death and Where Does the Montcalm County Animal Control Department Go from Here.

Annual Shelter Reports

DOGS

	2004	2005	2006	2007	Total
Received	1038	1015	1021	1035	4109
Returned to Family	104	116	177	153	550
Adopted	58	71	216	215	519
Given to Research	162	192	178	187	519
Killed by Gas	705	636	450	480	2271

CATS

	2004	2005	2006	2007	Total
Received	878	886	994	1168	3926
Returned to Family	1	2	3	0	6
Adopted	10	9	46	34	99
Given to Research	94	49	87	67	297
Killed by Gas	774	826	858	924	3382

Are You Mad as Hell?

Activists urge you to get involved and make a difference. Jeannie Urbanski from Montcalm County suggests that the Montcalm County Commission is the place to start since the Commission is responsible for animal shelter policy. Write or email the commissioners and let them know that you are not satisfied with what is happening at the shelter. Remember that threats or nasty language will not be helpful in getting your point across.

Jethro's Place Animal Sanctuary in Ferndale Michigan is calling for a boycott of all Montcalm County businesses. They are asking animal lovers to drive right through the county without stopping for even a stick of gum, hoping that loss of economic activity will have some impact.

Contact United States Senator Debbie Stabenaugh and ask that she keep the Pet Safety and Protection Act in the United States Farm Bill. The Pet Safety and Protection Act will stop Class B Dealers from selling shelter pets. Finally, contact your Michigan Representative and ask him/her to support HB 5263 which will prevent shelter from giving or selling animals to research dealers or institutions.

General Chat

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These stats will shock you