Corruptness at our local Animal Humane Society?

Question

What can I do?

I have come to this conclusion over the past month. See I found these two Springer Spaniels. I tried to find their owners, Reported them to the Sherrif's office, Humane Society, got on the local radio station, ect. No one has called.

The local Humane society doesn't have a shelter so I have let the two Springers stay with me and my Labs.

Anyway, 3 days after I found them (they were found on a Friday afternoon and the radio and such are closed over the weekend) the HS called and wanted to get them spayed/neutered for adoption. I expressed that they hadn't given enough time for the owners to find them. They said they would come by and take pictures of them and put up posters all over the Valley (small towns) in hopes that someone would recognize them. So 2 weeks after finding the dogs, they sent someone by.

to be continued...

I haven't seen ANY of these posters. They even told me where they had put them...the grocery store (there's two in the whole valley), the post office (only one), the Feed stores (two) and the video store (one) I asked about this and was told that “people probably took them down.” Plausible enough yes, but I know it’s not true. There’s still posters from last year up on those boards. Most of them are about animals for sale, animals found, ect.

They also claimed that they posted their pictures on Petfinder, and also been calling the radio and stuff. They haven’t done that either. (I’ve listened to the radio and checked petfinder…I really don’t appreciate being lied to!!!)

Well, I came to find out that they charge $250-300 for “apparently purebred dogs” (mutts are $0-$75 depending on medical needs) and I’m starting to think that they just want these Springers to make money!

to be continued...

My suspicions were fired even more yesterday. The female went into heat so I asked if one of the volunteers could come and pick up the male. (I breed and compete with Labradors so I have an ample supply of doggy diapers) He’s not house trained so I couldn’t send him over to my in-laws or keep him in my extra rooms like I usually do. I’m also pregnant so I didn’t want to be cleaning up after his poops.

The lady asked if I wanted her to take both. She wanted to put them both in the back of her vehicle TOGETHER. I said no (we plan on spaying her and keeping her anyway). I’m beginning to wonder if all the “apparently purebred dogs” that come into HS foster care pregnant didn’t REALLY come that way. If I had let her take the female and she had gotten pregnant, would they have claimed that it had happened in my care? (they have a policy to not spay pregnant dogs) and then “adopted” out the resulting puppies for $300 each?

I honestly think our HS is corrupt and in this for the money, not the animals! What’s more sad is they’ve been getting grants and stuff. They even got voted the Non-Profit Organization of the year by the Star Valley Chamber of Commerce.

Is there ANYTHING I can do?

She has been in heat for a week. I told her this. I couldn't get a hold of anybody last week as it was Thanksgiving.

And as I said....they have a policy to not spay pregnant animals. I was also told yesterday that "They couldn't spay a female in heat" which I also know is a lie.

I was given this newsletter of theirs that says they got a $10,000 grant to spay/neuter pets and that they've done (a whopping...lol) 57 in the past 6 months. I don't know where you live, but it only cost me $75 to neuter a 150 pound Rottweiller that I acquired last year when a family member had an issue and couldn't keep him, a (underweight) 25 pound spaniel can't cost much more.

I understand that some shelters do charge a hefty fee to adopt purebreds. My point isn't that, it's that they haven't even tried to find the real owner and lied to me about all the steps they have taken to do that. So my suspicion is that they want the $500-600 and possibly the funds they will get if the female were to have puppies

Why are they not altered yet? Hmmm...

Good question. The HS keeps telling me they'll make an appointment (have been telling me this since day three) but so far they're all talk and no action.


On a side note:
Since we're keeping the female, we finally gave in and made her an appointment to be spayed ourselves. I'm not going to pay the shelter an adoption fee for her either. I've been paying for everything so far (including newspaper adds to try and find their owner) and now I figure I've done all I could and finders keepers. And since I've paid for everything, why should I pay THEM? She'll be a very happy hunting dog along with my other girls. :)

Answer 1

WOW, what a trip!!!!!!!!!!!! I believe a call to the local paper, community paper, radio station, and t.v. stations are in order!!! It sure does sound like they are in for some explaining!!! And I can almost guarantee, they would have blamed the pregnancy on you or claiming she was pregnant when she was found, I doubt they would take that blame!! It sure is a shame, because most all shelters are great, and rescues are a God send!!! But I will say my local shelter is even worse than yours, it is just plain terrible the way the dogs were taken care of when I have been there visiting!! I adopted one dog, a Chihuahua, that was on death row, He was being put down because he was unadoptable, because he nipped at one of the girls that worked there, when she picked him up. When I took him to get his check up, the doctor did an x-ray and found heart worms and a broken rib! Now I am not saying they broke his rib, but they were putting him down because of the broken rib!! In other words, if they had investigated him a little more they probably would have discovered the reason he was in soooo much pain, it didn't take me a day to figure it out, and he was there for months!! And the reason he nipped at the girl, is because she hurt him when she picked him up!! He does not nip, growl, yap, and he is not viscious!! He is the love of my life, and he is so appreciative of everything I do for him!! Well, sorry to go on and on like this, but I can relate in some way how you feel!! I wish you all the luck with taking care of these dogs and getting to the bottom of the shelter issue! I just hate that they got the other dog, you probably could have found a better home than they can, because you care about the animal and not the money!! KUDOS to you for being so kind to those two dogs!!!!!!

Answer 2

We charge $200-300 for purebreds also. We make NO money on them either. The spay alone costs about $150-200. Then there is the vaccines, HW test, worming, flea treatment, behavior screening,room and board....there is not a lot of money to be made at all. On many dogs you LOSE a lot.
They probably did not care about putting them together either since
1. they were going to be altered soon
2. If she just came into heat she would not be breedable for days.

I do agree that there is a level of corruption in MOST non-profit organizations! I have not found one that does not have sone "shady" dealings!!!
But really....could you pluck a dog off the street and for $300 get it everything it needs medically? Probably not. Yes, they get grants and a lot of state and federal funding, but costs are high also. Take a mix of the same size as the Springer. Do you think that for what they charge for adoption of mixed breeds you could get all the vet care done?? NO WAY!!!! You lose money on many dogs, make a little on a few.

Answer 3

i dont think the price is unreasonable, thats what the human society in my area charges and i know they dont make a profit and they try their best, but with so many animals to deal with, they can only do so much.

if there was a case of abuse or neglect, then I would do something. But honestly these people along with animal cops and other shelters, they are overwhelmed, just like social workers, you know? I wouldnt give them extra stress to deal with over this, since its the animals who will pay the price. Unless they were really ripping you off, which i dont see. i just see some sloppy work probably due to being overwhelmed and overworked. You can write a complaint. thats all i'd do if it was me though. I would have put up fliers myself since i found the dogs i guess.

but you're saying they havent spayed her yet, and also saying they didnt do a good enough job to find the owners (imo, the dog should be spayed anyway without owners consent....)
If you dont suspect theyre overwhelmed with dogs, which you must be in a really nice area then lol..then i guess you can do what others suggested..i just wouldnt do it to any shelter that was overwhelmed and crowded unless there was abuse or neglect or real fraud and scams.

Answer 4

Some years ago I was assisting someone in searching for their lost 10 mos old Samoyed. One of the things I recommended was that she personally check out the shelters and Humane Societies as Sams are often mismarked as white chow mixes, huskies etc...

While visiting a HUGE humane society in a neighboring city (less than 36 hours after he had gone missing) she asked them about Samoyeds and asked to see all dogs brought in. After looking she was disappointed.. saw another door labeled "quarantine" and asked to check there when she heard a bark that sounded like her boy... they refused.. she took a trip to the restroom and snuck in to the quarantine area and found her dog. The shelter had no explanation for why they had no record of an incoming Samoyed or why the dog was in the quarantine area... he was the only dog in that area.

Of course, this is the same facility I was 86'd from for attempting to brush a Sam during a temperament test when I was screening the dog for a possible adoptive home I had. Apparently only groomers are supposed to brush Sams... lol.

Answer 5

I think "profit" is not the correct term here, as it indicates some sort of renumeration in excess of expenses. And we all know the humane societies in general don't have that.

That being said, there is probably some level of corruption, as another answerer said, like in most non-profits.

I imagine it would be very easy to become jaded and very tired of all the neglect and abuse an Animal Control officer sees...but that gives them no excuse whatsoever to become the near-vigilantes with badges some have earned the reputation of being.

Answer 6

you are right. There is one guy in Texas whose got ties with a judge taking purebred dogs from homes and their own owners because he claims they were mistreated. In turn the sell them at a high cost and move on to the next person. When people go to the court to hear their case, the judge favors the HS guy. it's sad actually.

Answer 7

You might try talking to the City Manager, as they would be the one that has ultimate authority over city employees.

Note to rscanner: HSUS does NOT operate shelters, or have anything to do with local shelters or humane societies. They are basically a money raising and political organization largely controlled by PETA. Please do not confuse either of these organizations with ones that truly care about animals.

Answer 8

This isn't really surprising...I've seen it in several animal rescue scenarios, especially those that are privately controlled (i.e. no 501 c designation or outside funding).

There was a group that operated through my local PetsMart who raised funds for 2 years in order to build their new "shelter facility" -- including advertising and selling "Husky Puppies" (in fact, Siberian mixes) for $300 each. Their new facility was busted and shut down over the summer for over-crowding and poor conditions.

It's tough -- these peoples' hearts start out in the right place, but they get desperate for funding and become no better than the puppy millers they hate.

If this is "the only game in town", I'm not sure there's much you can do...other than trying to avoid dealing with them in the future.

Answer 9

spay and neuter and them in the vehicle together. As long as they were spaying the pups are aborted. Done all the time.

But You have had them over two weeks WHY ARE THEY NOT ALTERED!!!

The price Yes there are hundreds of "rescues" out there that are still trying to make a buck off the critter. We have one rescue that goes out to the puppymill auctions and "rescues" them. She gave them money and I feel like all she did was pay the puppymill to breed dogs for her. SICK!!

Answer 10

Yes. I may hurt your feelings. STOP taking in strays, period. Report them and move on. Don't pick them up and then try to pawn them off to "caring" facilities such as the HS. They have their hands full. One more animal is one too many. You suffer from co-dependency plus a kind heart. Take it from a former co-dependent with regards to strays. It's financially expensive. Emotionally expensive and leaves you at a dead end every time. Rule of thumb I follow now: (1) I see a stray, (2) I call the police and report it, (3) I don't pick it up, period.,(4) I go about my business. Good luck.