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Charice Taylor Professor Melissa Helquist English 2010 11 February 2014 Unnecessary Euthanasia in Animal Shelters I became interested in animal euthanasia when I discovered that there were thousands of animals dying every day in shelters around the world, and some of them were being euthanized simply because there was no room for them. I always loved animals but I never really thought about animal shelters or what happened in those shelters. I always assumed that animal shelters like the Humane Society of Utah just sheltered animals that didnt have homes, but there is much more to the story than that. The Humane Society is humane in the way that it will take in and shelter any animals, but the inhumane thing is that the Humane Society is euthanizing animals when they dont have room for them in their shelters. The Humane Society isnt the only shelter that has this problem. Over 9,000 healthy and treatable cats and dogs are euthanized every day in shelters across America (Best Friends Animal Society.) This is why I wanted to focus my research on unnecessary euthanasia: because like me a few years ago, people are not aware of what is really happening in animal shelters across America, and around the world. I want to help inform people about what is happening in these shelters, but I also want to let people know of some ways they can get involved and help make a difference. Thankfully there are organizations like Best Friends Animal Society that were made to have a strict no-kill policy, and are working to end the inhumane euthanasia in shelters.

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Best Friends Animal Society was founded in 1984, and is the only organization that was founded for the single purpose of ending the killing of dogs and cats in shelters across America. In 2013, Best Friends Animal Society conducted a national phone survey of 1,700 adults ages 18 and older to see what Americans new about the euthanasia in animal shelters. When asked if they knew how many cats and dogs die every day in shelters throughout America, 50 percent of those surveyed estimated about 500 a day. In reality, more than 9,000 die in shelters across America every day. Another question asked in the survey was what Americans thought happened to the animals in shelters. 48 percent of those surveyed thought that shelter animals all eventually get adopted and find homes, are found by their owners, or were transferred to rescue groups and organizations, but most of the animals that go into shelters, are euthanized there (Commander pars. 1 & 2). Diane Leigh and Marilee Geyer, former animal shelter workers, wrote a book called: One at a Time: A Week in an American Animal Shelter. For writing this book, Leigh and Geyer spent a week in an American animal shelter in northern California and focused on one specific group of animals. They wanted to not only show how many animals die in these shelters, but they wanted to show that it happens one at a time, that each animal is special in its own way. Leigh and Geyer wanted to focus on one animal at a time because they said that taking the stories and lives of animals one at a time is a way to help us understand that the statistics are more than mere numbers: they are real lives, and they are utterly and completely at our mercy. Leigh and Geyer start their story by talking about their first day at the shelter. On a Monday night, all the kennels in the shelter were almost full and the shelter already had 238 animals they were caring for. The next morning before the shelter opened, there was a line of people at the door with their animals waiting to give them to the shelter, along with strays that were also being brought in

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throughout the day. 35 animals were added to the shelter on just that one day and by the end of the week another 125. Leigh and Geyer spoke of animal shelters and what people really dont realize about them: Eight to ten million animals pass through these facilities each year. They have about a fifty percent chance of getting out alive. Four to six million of them will be euthanized- around half-million a month nationwide, 575 each hour, one every six and a half seconds. Euthanasia in animal shelters is the leading cause of death of healthy dogs and cats. It is hard to imagine that every six minutes, healthy dogs and cats are being euthanized because there is no room for them in shelters. Thankfully, there are things that are being done to help with this problem. When Best Friends Animal Society was founded in 1984, 17 million animals were dying in shelters each year but now, that number is down to about 4 million (Commander par.7). Best Friends also started a No Kill Los Angeles initiative in January of 2012 in Los Angeles. Before the initiative started, 17,400 healthy and treatable dogs and cats were being euthanized in Los Angeles shelters. Within one year, the number was reduced to 13,400 and in 2013 the number decreased even more to 9,075 (Sathe, Polis pars. 2, 3, &4). The Humane Society of Utah posted a goal on their website that in 2014 they want to have a placement rate of 90% by 2016. That would mean 10,000 animals a year would be placed back in homes after going to the shelter. Since their goal was announced, the Humane Society has placed 2,208 cats and dogs back into homes as of April 24th, 2014. Along with their goal, the Humane Society celebrated their 5th year in a row of no adoptable dogs being euthanized in their shelter. Goals like these can help shelters across America lower their euthanasia numbers, but it is also important for individuals to know how they can help. Best Friends Animal society has outlined a plan on their website to Save Them All which anyone can get involved in. The plan includes: donating to local shelters and no-kill

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initiatives, adopting, spay and neutering the animals, volunteering at a local shelter, and spreading the word. The animal welfare No Kill Network and American Humane Association website also provide education and information on how and where people can help jump start the end to killing in animal shelters. The No Kill Network helps people find places in their area where they can volunteer, and also ways they can help make a difference in their local animal shelters. The American Humane Association has various programs, and classes which are dedicated to educating people on what they can do to make a difference. Through the help of organizations like Best Friends, and through the much needed help of individuals, America can reach the goal of no animals killed in our shelters.

Works Cited:
AmericanHumaneAssociation.org. American Humane Association, 2014. Web. 14 Feb. 2014 Bestfriends.org. Best Friends Animal Society, 2014. Web. 12 Feb. 2014 Commander, Kristen (2013, September 19). Half of Americans Uninformed about the Thousands of Shelters Pets Killed Every Day. Best Friends Animal Society Journal. Retrieved from http://www.onlinepressroom.net/bestfriendsanimalsociety/ Leigh, Diane, and Geyer, Marilee. One at a Time: A Week in an American Animal Shelter. California. No Voice Unheard. 2003. Print. Nokillnetwork.org. No Kill Network, 2014 Web. Feb 9. 2014 Utahhumane.org. Humane Society of Utah, 2014. Web. 14 Feb. 2014

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