St. Thomas Dog Blog

The Dalewood dog is found and at the City animal shelter.  His name is Bear.  His  is a story more of sadness and desperation than thoughtless cruelty.  It sounds like a desperate man took what he thought were his only options.  For whatever reason, he had to be ‘dogless’ by the next morning (moving? an apartment?  I don’t know).  He didn’t have the $50 for the pound surrender fee.  So he fed Bear a good meal, and took him to Dalewood and left him.  Then he called All Breed Canine Rescue and told them what he’d done.  People went looking for Bear, and they found him.

I can’t be angry at this man anymore.  I am saddened and frustrated.  I wish he’d phoned ABCR first.  But maybe he feared he’d be refused again unless he could pay.  Maybe he figured desperate action would get him the result he wanted – a good home for his dog.   It’s still Bear who paid the biggest price.  He still wandered around alone, looking for his person, wondering how he’d lost him.  Bear is a Lab/Shepherd cross.  I don’t know much about Labs, but I do know Shepherds will not lose you easily.  No matter what they’re doing, they will always do their best to also keep track of you.

There’s another new dog at the pound with an equally heart-breaking story.  Now called Bosco because no one knows his real name, this old dog was left outside the pound in the parking lot.  He was found by staff coming to work.  He has a flea infestation or other skin problems.  I don’t know if that’s why he was dumped.  Possibly his people didn’t have the money for vet care.  Maybe they knew about the surrender fee and couldn’t afford it.  I’ll not judge them harshly.  At least they dumped him where they knew someone in the business of ‘stray’ dogs would find him.  I’m not usually a Lab person, but that sweet, sad old face makes me want a third dog.

I hope Bear and Bosco have happy endings to their stories.  If you have room in your heart and home (and wallet) for either of these survivors, please contact the St. Thomas Animal Shelter or All Breed Canine Rescue.

There has to be a better way of dealing with unwanted and stray animals without making the animals pay the price of abandonment.  People are discussing ways of reorganizing the management and operation of the City shelter.  I don’t know all the details – Linda Spencer of STDOA can give you more information.  The idea, in essence, is to involve the city’s animal rescue groups in the administration of the pound along with the City.  What’s needed is a focus on education and actions to reduce the number of animals needing the services of the pound and finding homes instead of euthanasia or refusal to accept animals.

This type of thing is being talked about in City shelters across the country.  Calgary has a very good model which has been very successful.  I wrote in an earlier post (Giving Shelter) about the manager of the St. John’s Animal Control Shelter who had created a pound environment very different from the usual cages of dogs and cats left essentially alone.  Change must be made in our Animal Shelter.  It is doable and it’s urgent.  With job losses, the number of animals needing the help of the pound and rescue groups will increase.  That is on top of the normal levels of strayed and abandoned pets.