Everything Matters : Shelter Pets
- 00:05:14
- YouTube
Everything Matters : Shelter Pets
Please spayed or neutered your Pets. Donate to NO-KILL Shelters in your community Adopt shelter pets Don't support puppy and kitten Mills Stop The inhumane treatment and intentionally inflicted cruelty of animals...Please The phenomenon of overpopulation in companion animals refers to the large, growing number of of homeless domestic cats and dogs. In the United States alone, between 3 and 4 million cats and dogs are euthanized each year for lack of homes to adopt them, according to the Humane Society of the United States. As a result, most humane societies, animal shelters and rescue groups urge pet owners to have their pets spayed or neutered to prevent the births of unwanted and accidental litters. Pet overpopulation can be an ecological concern as well as a concern over animal welfare, with overpopulation occurring when there are more domestic cats and dogs than there are people wanting them as pets, independent of ecological carrying capacity. It is also a financial problem: Capturing, impounding and eventual euthanasia costs taxpayers and private agencies millions of dollars each year, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association. Although the term overpopulation is a generic term, true overpopulation means that there are actually more pets available than there are homes available. If one examines the numbers of homes which are seeking pets (as an example) and finds that 100 of those homes want pets which are, say, 1yr old and of a pure breed under 25 pounds, then to say that overpopulation exists simply because not all of the animals in a shelter will meet the desired criteria (1yr old/purebred under 25lb) is not exactly overpopulation. The fact that some shelters elect to kill animals is not necessarily indicative of overpopulation, as there is no standard for shelters reporting, tabulating, counting or categorizing their numbers/stats nationwide; in fact, it is not even known exactly how many animal shelters exist in the United States. Overpopulation, then, is often used generically to refer to those pets that are not finding homes for reasons such as breed, temperament, age, health, or size. It does not necessarily mean there is no owner who desires a pet, but that there is no owner found which necessarily wants that particular animal at that time. The welfare organization IFAW claims that where there's pet over population, particularly in developing countries, dogs and cats suffer from neglect and abandonment, deplorable living conditions, insufficient or nonexistent veterinary care, and substandard practices. Such animals are victims of inhumane treatment, not only because of intentionally inflicted cruelty, but also because of poverty, lack of pet care knowledge, the absence of animal welfare legislation and enforcement, apathy, and unsubstantiated beliefs.
YouTube | February 12, 2009
