Local
rescue shelter struggles with overpopulation
Sean
Comstock, posted Sept. 28, 2006
With
the recent disease outbreak at the Carthage Humane Society
resulting in the untimely death of 74 dogs according to the
Missouri Department of Agriculture, the public eye is once
again witness to the severely overpopulated and under-funded
conditions many animal shelters are currently experiencing.
The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
reports that within the United States, there are roughly 5,000
operating animal shelters. However, with no national organization
appointed to the monitoring of these shelters, it is virtually
impossible to ensure that all of these operations are in compliance
with the federal mandates of animal care and handling.
Overpopulation is a constant problem in many open
shelters across the U.S. Open shelters differ from private
ones in that they accept any animal that is surrendered to
them including strays. The Central Missouri Humane Society
is the only operating open shelter in the Columbia area. The
shelter accepts animals from 20 different municipalities in
the mid-Missouri area. This causes a frequent surplus in numbers
and an increased threat of disease outbreak according CMHS
Shelter Relation Coordinator Heather Duren.
The increasing population at the CMHS consequently entails
more animals being euthanized. The veterinarians at the CMHS
base their decision to euthanize on the health and temperament
of the animal. There exists no set quota that the shelter
must abide by in terms of population due in large part to
the constant stream of animals that arrive daily. At the end
of the day, the shelter must have a certain amount of empty
spaces capable of housing the drop-offs for the following
day.
According to ASPCA, nearly eight to twelve million pets are
admitted to animal shelters each year nationwide. Of these,
approximately five to nine million are euthanized. “You
can only protect so many animals to a certain degree from
getting diseases,” Duren said. While no stray or untested
animals are kept in the same cage, there is no definite method
of ensuring an environment free from disease when dealing
with excessive numbers and easily transmitted diseases.
The incident in Carthage was due to an outbreak of Parvo.
Parvo is a deadly viral disease found in dogs that attacks
the inner-lining of their digestive system, killing white
blood cells said Janet Tobiassen Crosby, DVM. Duren said what
happened in Carthage is nothing unique as incidents like this
are all too common. “It could really happen anywhere,”
Duren said.
