Doing more

To elaborate more on Cornbread's euthanasia yesterday, I'll copy another volunteer's response to the news:

The best way to prevent sad news emails is to constantly work for improvement and change. Whether that is pushing for more proactive programs to reduce stress on the dogs so they don't go kennel crazy, marketing the dogs and the shelter so TLAC becomes people's first option for getting a new pet, increasing rescue and foster placements so dogs with health or behavior issues have the time to heal or improve so they are adoptable, promoting spay/neuter of pets, introducing an off-site adoption program, etc., etc.. We can't relax and we can't become resigned to the killing as just something inevitable that happens. Just looking at adopt a running buddy and how the adoption rate for the featured dogs increased (5 dogs in 6 days) when we had a newspaper article, flyers in more locations, and a booth at the Farmer's Market, tells me that hard work and increased exposure can make a huge difference in the outcomes. We may not be able to save every animal this year or next year, or maybe ever, but every animal that dies in our care that wasn't terminal or dangerous when it arrived should be viewed as a failure of the system. That's the only way to learn and improve. For ideas that have helped increase the save rate to as high as 92% in communities that have adopted them wholeheartedly, try this link.

I would like to see staff return to giving warning before the dogs are killed. TLAC may not have been the right place for Lefty or Cornbread, but how do you know there wasn't a volunteer out there who really cared for one of those animals and who could have provided a foster home where they could recover? Or a rescue group that might have been able to take on the challenge, perhaps supported by a donation from volunteers who were willing and able to help in that manner? You don't have to say we're about to kill so-and-so, but a simple message saying a particular dog is deteriorating at the shelter and needs rescue, foster, or adoption immediately, with a deadline, would suffice.

This email sums it all up. These are the kinds of things we've been asking to do for years and we've never been allowed to do them. We've still had no response from staff on this email. I will definitely post something if we get anything.