~~~ Did You Know? ~~~
Number of cats and dogs entering shelters each year: 6-8 million (HSUS estimate)
Number of cats and dogs euthanized by shelters each year: 3-4 million (HSUS estimate)
Number of cats and dogs adopted from shelters each year: 3-4 million (HSUS estimate)
Number of cats and dogs reclaimed by owners from shelters each year:
Between 600,000 and 750,000 -- 30% of dogs and 2-5% of cats entering shelters (HSUS estimate)
Number of animal shelters in the United States:
Between 4,000 and 6,000 (HSUS estimate)
Percentage of dogs in shelters who are purebred: 25% (HSUS estimate)
Average number of litters a fertile cat can produce in one year: 3
Average number of kittens in a feline litter: 4-6
In seven years, one female cat and her offspring can theoretically produce 420,000 cats.
Average number of puppies in a canine litter: 6-10
In six years, one female dog and her offspring can theoretically produce 67,000 dogs.
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
This is really hard to read.
The NC Coalition for Humane Euthanasia sent this to me via Myspace:
It's really hard to read... but I feel that this has given me the proverbial kick in the ass to get something going on with the project:
From: How Many Kitties?!?
Oh, how sad what this young man is faced with! For many of us in the rescue community, Friday is our least favorite day - you know why! Friday is often PTS day, and many of the urgents we have been cross-posting like crazy, and saying prayers for, are now only sad memories. But, that is nothing compare to the horror this beautiful young soul deals with on his Fridays.
If anyone, after reading this awful account of his Fridays, can still say that spaying and neutering are cruel surgeries that take away an animal's natural right to breed, think again - and remove me as your friend! What is more cruel - a quick surgery that prevents overpopulation, or the gruesome way too many animals are forced to die?
From: Debby
Date: Apr 17, 2007 4:23 PM
My Husband Found This On Craig's List...HORRIFYING!!!!!!!!!!
This was on Craig's List:
The Gas Man
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reply to: see below
Date: 2007-04-16, 3:01PM EDT
Yes, I Gas Dogs and Cats for a Living.
I'm an Animal Control officer in a very small town in central North Carolina.
I'm in my mid thirties, and have been working for the town in different positions since high school.
There is not much work here, and working for the county provides good pay and benefits for a person like me without a higher education. I'm the person you all write about how horrible I am.
I'm the one that gasses the dogs and cats and makes them suffer. I'm the one that pulls their dead corpses out smelling of Carbon Monoxide and throws them into green plastic bags. But I'm also the one that hates my job and hates what I have to do.
First off, all you people out there that judge me, don't. God is judging me, and I know I'm going to Hell. Yes, I'm going to hell. I wont lie, it's despicable, cold, cruel and I feel like a serial killer. I'm not all to blame, if the law would mandate spay and neuter, lots of these dogs and cats wouldn't be here for me to gas. I'm the devil, I know it, but I want you people to see that there is another side to me the devil Gas Chamber man.
The shelter usually gasses on Friday morning.
Friday's are the day that most people look forward to, this is the day that I hate, and wish that time will stand still on Thursday night. Thursday night, late, after nobody's around, my friend and I go through a fast food line, and buy 50 dollars worth of cheeseburgers and fries, and chicken. I'm not allowed to feed the dogs on Thursday, for I'm told that they will make a mess in the gas chamber, and why waste the food.
So, Thursday night, with the lights still closed, I go into the saddest room that anyone can every imagine, and let all the doomed dogs out out their cages.
I have never been bit, and in all my years doing this, the dogs have never fought over the food. My buddy and I, open each wrapper of cheeseburger and chicken sandwich, and feed them to the skinny, starving dogs. They swallow the food so fast, that I don't believe they even taste it. There tails are wagging, and some don't even go for the food, they roll on their backs wanting a scratch on their bellys. They start running, jumping and kissing me and my buddy. They go back to their food, and come back to us. All their eyes are on us with such trust and hope, and their tails wag so fast, that I have come out with black and blues on my thighs.. They devour the food, then it's time for them to devour some love and peace. My buddy and I sit down on the dirty, pee stained concrete floor, and we let the dogs jump on us. They lick us, they put their butts in the air to play, and they play with each other. Some lick each other, but most are glued on me and my buddy.
I look into the eyes of each dog. I give each dog a name.
They will not die without a name.
I give each dog 5 minutes of unconditional love and touch.
I talk to them, and tell them that I'm so sorry that tomorrow they will die a gruesome, long, torturous death at the hands of me in the gas chamber.
Some tilt their heads to try to understand.
I tell them, that they will be in a better place, and I beg them not to hate me.
I tell them that I know I'm going to hell, but they will all be playing with all the dogs and cats in heaven.
After about 30 minutes, I take each dog individually, into their feces filled concrete jail cell, and pet them and scratch them under their chins.
Some give me their paw, and I just want to die. I just want to die.
I close the jail cell on each dog, and ask them to forgive me.
As my buddy and I are walking out, we watch as every dog
is smiling at us and them don't even move their heads.
They will sleep, with a full belly, and a false sense of security.
As we walk out of the doomed dog room, my buddy and I go to the cat room. We take our box, and put the very friendly kittens and pregnant cats in our box. The shelter doesn't keep tabs on the cats, like they do the dogs.
As I hand pick which cats are going to make it out, I feel like I'm playing God, deciding whose going to live and die.
We take the cats into my truck, and put them on blankets in the back.
Usually, as soon as we start to drive away, there are purring cats sitting on our necks or rubbing against us.
My buddy and I take our one way two hour trip to a county that is very wealthy and they use injection to kill animals.
We go to exclusive neighborhoods, and let one or two cats out at a time.
They don't want to run, they want to stay with us. We shoo them away, which makes me feel sad.
I tell them that these rich people will adopt them, and if worse comes to worse and they do get put down, they will be put down with a painless needle being cradled by a loving veterinarian.
After the last cat is free, we drive back to our town.
It's about 5 in the morning now, about two hours until I have to gas my best friends.
I go home, take a shower, take my 4 anti-anxiety pills and drive to work.. I don't eat, I can't eat.
It's now time, to put these animals in the gas chamber. I put my ear plugs in, and when I go to the collect the dogs, the dogs are so excited to see me, that they jump up to kiss me and think they are going to play.
I put them in the rolling cage and take them to the gas chamber. They know. They just know. They can smell the death.. They can smell the fear.
They start whimpering, the second I put them in the box.
The boss tells me to squeeze in as many as I can to save on gas.
He watches. He knows I hate him, he knows I hate my job.
I do as I'm told. He watches until all the dogs, and cats (thrown in together) are fighting and screaming. The sounds is very muffled to me because of my ear plugs.
He walks out, I turn the gas on, and walk out.
I walk out as fast as I can. I walk into the bathroom, and I take a pin and draw blood from my hand. Why? The pain and blood takes my brain off of what I just did.
In 40 minutes, I have to go back and unload the dead animals. I pray that none survived, which happens when I overstuff the chamber. I pull them out with thick gloves, and the smell of carbon monoxide makes me sick. So does the vomit and blood, and all the bowel movements. I pull them out, put them in plastic bags.
They are in heaven now, I tell myself. I then start cleaning up the mess, the mess, that YOU PEOPLE are creating by not spay or neutering your animals. The mess that YOU PEOPLE are creating by not demanding that a vet come in and do this humanely. You ARE THE TAXPAYERS, DEMAND that this practice STOP!
So, don't call me the monster, the devil, the gasser, call the politicians, the shelter directors, and the county people the devil. Heck, call the governor, tell him to make it stop.
As usual, I will take sleeping pills tonight to drown out the screams I heard in the past, before I discovered the ear plugs. I will jump and twitch in my sleep, and I believe I'm starting to hallucinate.
This is my life. Don't judge me. Believe me, I judge myself enough.
It's really hard to read... but I feel that this has given me the proverbial kick in the ass to get something going on with the project:
From: How Many Kitties?!?
Oh, how sad what this young man is faced with! For many of us in the rescue community, Friday is our least favorite day - you know why! Friday is often PTS day, and many of the urgents we have been cross-posting like crazy, and saying prayers for, are now only sad memories. But, that is nothing compare to the horror this beautiful young soul deals with on his Fridays.
If anyone, after reading this awful account of his Fridays, can still say that spaying and neutering are cruel surgeries that take away an animal's natural right to breed, think again - and remove me as your friend! What is more cruel - a quick surgery that prevents overpopulation, or the gruesome way too many animals are forced to die?
From: Debby
Date: Apr 17, 2007 4:23 PM
My Husband Found This On Craig's List...HORRIFYING!!!!!!!!!!
This was on Craig's List:
The Gas Man
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reply to: see below
Date: 2007-04-16, 3:01PM EDT
Yes, I Gas Dogs and Cats for a Living.
I'm an Animal Control officer in a very small town in central North Carolina.
I'm in my mid thirties, and have been working for the town in different positions since high school.
There is not much work here, and working for the county provides good pay and benefits for a person like me without a higher education. I'm the person you all write about how horrible I am.
I'm the one that gasses the dogs and cats and makes them suffer. I'm the one that pulls their dead corpses out smelling of Carbon Monoxide and throws them into green plastic bags. But I'm also the one that hates my job and hates what I have to do.
First off, all you people out there that judge me, don't. God is judging me, and I know I'm going to Hell. Yes, I'm going to hell. I wont lie, it's despicable, cold, cruel and I feel like a serial killer. I'm not all to blame, if the law would mandate spay and neuter, lots of these dogs and cats wouldn't be here for me to gas. I'm the devil, I know it, but I want you people to see that there is another side to me the devil Gas Chamber man.
The shelter usually gasses on Friday morning.
Friday's are the day that most people look forward to, this is the day that I hate, and wish that time will stand still on Thursday night. Thursday night, late, after nobody's around, my friend and I go through a fast food line, and buy 50 dollars worth of cheeseburgers and fries, and chicken. I'm not allowed to feed the dogs on Thursday, for I'm told that they will make a mess in the gas chamber, and why waste the food.
So, Thursday night, with the lights still closed, I go into the saddest room that anyone can every imagine, and let all the doomed dogs out out their cages.
I have never been bit, and in all my years doing this, the dogs have never fought over the food. My buddy and I, open each wrapper of cheeseburger and chicken sandwich, and feed them to the skinny, starving dogs. They swallow the food so fast, that I don't believe they even taste it. There tails are wagging, and some don't even go for the food, they roll on their backs wanting a scratch on their bellys. They start running, jumping and kissing me and my buddy. They go back to their food, and come back to us. All their eyes are on us with such trust and hope, and their tails wag so fast, that I have come out with black and blues on my thighs.. They devour the food, then it's time for them to devour some love and peace. My buddy and I sit down on the dirty, pee stained concrete floor, and we let the dogs jump on us. They lick us, they put their butts in the air to play, and they play with each other. Some lick each other, but most are glued on me and my buddy.
I look into the eyes of each dog. I give each dog a name.
They will not die without a name.
I give each dog 5 minutes of unconditional love and touch.
I talk to them, and tell them that I'm so sorry that tomorrow they will die a gruesome, long, torturous death at the hands of me in the gas chamber.
Some tilt their heads to try to understand.
I tell them, that they will be in a better place, and I beg them not to hate me.
I tell them that I know I'm going to hell, but they will all be playing with all the dogs and cats in heaven.
After about 30 minutes, I take each dog individually, into their feces filled concrete jail cell, and pet them and scratch them under their chins.
Some give me their paw, and I just want to die. I just want to die.
I close the jail cell on each dog, and ask them to forgive me.
As my buddy and I are walking out, we watch as every dog
is smiling at us and them don't even move their heads.
They will sleep, with a full belly, and a false sense of security.
As we walk out of the doomed dog room, my buddy and I go to the cat room. We take our box, and put the very friendly kittens and pregnant cats in our box. The shelter doesn't keep tabs on the cats, like they do the dogs.
As I hand pick which cats are going to make it out, I feel like I'm playing God, deciding whose going to live and die.
We take the cats into my truck, and put them on blankets in the back.
Usually, as soon as we start to drive away, there are purring cats sitting on our necks or rubbing against us.
My buddy and I take our one way two hour trip to a county that is very wealthy and they use injection to kill animals.
We go to exclusive neighborhoods, and let one or two cats out at a time.
They don't want to run, they want to stay with us. We shoo them away, which makes me feel sad.
I tell them that these rich people will adopt them, and if worse comes to worse and they do get put down, they will be put down with a painless needle being cradled by a loving veterinarian.
After the last cat is free, we drive back to our town.
It's about 5 in the morning now, about two hours until I have to gas my best friends.
I go home, take a shower, take my 4 anti-anxiety pills and drive to work.. I don't eat, I can't eat.
It's now time, to put these animals in the gas chamber. I put my ear plugs in, and when I go to the collect the dogs, the dogs are so excited to see me, that they jump up to kiss me and think they are going to play.
I put them in the rolling cage and take them to the gas chamber. They know. They just know. They can smell the death.. They can smell the fear.
They start whimpering, the second I put them in the box.
The boss tells me to squeeze in as many as I can to save on gas.
He watches. He knows I hate him, he knows I hate my job.
I do as I'm told. He watches until all the dogs, and cats (thrown in together) are fighting and screaming. The sounds is very muffled to me because of my ear plugs.
He walks out, I turn the gas on, and walk out.
I walk out as fast as I can. I walk into the bathroom, and I take a pin and draw blood from my hand. Why? The pain and blood takes my brain off of what I just did.
In 40 minutes, I have to go back and unload the dead animals. I pray that none survived, which happens when I overstuff the chamber. I pull them out with thick gloves, and the smell of carbon monoxide makes me sick. So does the vomit and blood, and all the bowel movements. I pull them out, put them in plastic bags.
They are in heaven now, I tell myself. I then start cleaning up the mess, the mess, that YOU PEOPLE are creating by not spay or neutering your animals. The mess that YOU PEOPLE are creating by not demanding that a vet come in and do this humanely. You ARE THE TAXPAYERS, DEMAND that this practice STOP!
So, don't call me the monster, the devil, the gasser, call the politicians, the shelter directors, and the county people the devil. Heck, call the governor, tell him to make it stop.
As usual, I will take sleeping pills tonight to drown out the screams I heard in the past, before I discovered the ear plugs. I will jump and twitch in my sleep, and I believe I'm starting to hallucinate.
This is my life. Don't judge me. Believe me, I judge myself enough.
Viewing tonight.
Unfortunately, our interview with Dr. Mizrahi at Cape Fear Spay and Neuter Clinic fell through at the last minute yesterday, and as we could not find anyone to fill her place this morning, we wont have too much to show today except some B-roll footage that we collected today. BUT-- we do have some exciting interviews set up for this week and this weekend. There is a spay-a-thon at the New Hanover Co. animal shelter, and we have gotten permission to film some surgeries then, as well as we hope to reschedule with Dr. Mizrahi, as she is running the only program in the county that offers specifically low cost options to people who need to sterilize their pets. We went by to see if we could catch her before they opened, and was unexpectedly greeted by a huge line of people waiting for the doors to open. they were all there with either vouchers from the rescue group/shelter that they adopted from, or were there for low-cost sterilizations. We talked to a really nice girl who had had her dog for 18 months, but had just now decided to spay her because she didnt want to have her go into heat again... another guy had a male cat that he was getting fixed because he didnt want him spraying the house anymore... ANOTHER reason to S/N... it seems really selfish to say that they wanted to get it done to convience the owners, but as long as the pet gets to experience the benefits of reduced cancer rates, and healthier lives (as well as the obvious non-reproductive benefits) I guess it's whatever works.
Thursday, April 12, 2007
At the animal shelter today!
Brittany and I got up early and headed down to the 'ol equipment check out to grab a camera and sound stuff last minute for an interview at the New Hanover Animal Shelter. When we got there, we were suprisingly warmly greeted and given a full tour of the facility. I was expecting some kind of resistance, considering that the shelter is arguably the last resort for an animal, and the project that we're doing does show that we are trying to save animals from living in this kind of shelter. But, the lady that we talked to was in agreement, saying that she hates to see so many animals be processed through the shelter system. We brought up the statistic of low income families, and how if they had better access to low cost or no cost sterilizations for their animals, how the number of euthinazations might fall. I wasnt expecting her answer: she holds college students accountable for a lot of the admissions. The transient nature, combined with the lack of responsibility, she said usually turns into a situation where they would rather dump the pet on the shelter than go through the trouble of taking care of their companion. It seems to make sense in our college town, but these college kids also fall into the "low income" bracket as well. They are just as incapable of paying for rabies vacc, spay/neuter, yearly check-ups, etc. as families who are living in section 8 housing.
Basicly, she said in her opinion, if someone in New Hanover County was really looking for a free option for spay and neuter, they would have access to it. She holds people's apathy and laziness accountable for the growing numbers of strays and feral cat colonies that are living on the streets. Makes a lot of sense. Which is why I hope our project can get through to people who feel that sterilizing their animal is not a priority.
Basicly, she said in her opinion, if someone in New Hanover County was really looking for a free option for spay and neuter, they would have access to it. She holds people's apathy and laziness accountable for the growing numbers of strays and feral cat colonies that are living on the streets. Makes a lot of sense. Which is why I hope our project can get through to people who feel that sterilizing their animal is not a priority.
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