Oh Nos! Calgary Humane Society Overloaded!

[Bertuzzied]

Wow capacity is 400 animals and they currently have over 700! People are surrendering 20-30 animals a day. What kind of crap ass owner does that?

http://metronews.ca/news/calgary/301...to-calgarians/

Because the Humane Society is an open admissions shelter, it can never turn an animal away – regardless of how little space is available.
Thompson said they wanted to avoid resorting to euthanasia to create some much-needed space.
“Euthanasia hasn’t increased at this point, but that’s what we’re trying to avoid,” she said.
Your furry friend could be first on the list to receive the toxic injection if you bring them to the shelter right now, Thompson warned.
“People need to realize that when they are bringing their animals to us that [euthanasia] is a very strong possibility at this point.”

[Bill Bumface]

That is pretty sad. When I adopted my cat they were having troubles even getting the kittens out the door

If you can't handle a pet, don't get one?

They should make fostering a dog/cat mandatory before you actually buy or adopt one.

[Huntingwhale]

FFS people, get your pets neutered!!!

I found two lost dogs yesterday.

Managed to get a hold of one and she had a licence, called animal control and they picked her up (they had already got a call from the owner...) and took her home. The other one was skittish and I couldn't get a hold of him. Told the officers where I last saw him so they could tell the owners (they were both from the same home... they were hounds) and they could try and look for him last night.

So if you're by the Sandy Beach dog park and you see a brown and black hound dog wandering around, grab it.

I was noticing that with the increase fireworks these weeks, there were a few ads on Kijiji saying their dogs bolted with the noise.

[OilKiller]

Originally Posted by hulkrogan

If you can't handle a pet, don't get one?

Sure, but that's not always what's up. Things happen. We have a cat and a dog and we deal with issues with them. We bought them and we are committed, but at the end of the day, sometimes people have no choice.

My cat is simply destroying the carpet at our rental right now. I know I'm going to have to pay for replacement when we move out. I thought about trying to find a home for him and then possible Humane Society if not, but I'm not doing that, but I could see how some people use it as a last resort. I really can't afford to replace the carpet, but I couldn't live with myself taking my cat to the HS. I could see how some people might get put into a bad position and not have a choice though.

[Northendzone]

^ is getting the cat declawed an option?

I guess the point of the thread is think long and hard about getting a pet.

Friends of mine recently got a third dog - and she then complained how much work an extra dog is - I was sort of stunned at that comment.

My kids have wanted a dog for a while now, but my thought is that we leave the hosue at 7 am to go to work/school/daycare and we usually don't get back home until 5pm. Getting a dog does nto seem to make sense for our family, or the dog.

[OilKiller]

Originally Posted by Northendzone

^ is getting the cat declawed an option?

I guess the point of the thread is think long and hard about getting a pet.

Friends of mine recently got a third dog - and she then complained how much work an extra dog is - I was sort of stunned at that comment.

I don't think they do that anymore. It's pretty inhumane actually.

And you are right, many people get a pet and then don't realize how much work it is. I always tell people, it's like having a 2 year old that never grows up.

[Lithium]

Originally Posted by Northendzone

^ is getting the cat declawed an option?

I guess the point of the thread is think long and hard about getting a pet.

Friends of mine recently got a third dog - and she then complained how much work an extra dog is - I was sort of stunned at that comment.

My kids have wanted a dog for a while now, but my thought is that we leave the hosue at 7 am to go to work/school/daycare and we usually don't get back home until 5pm. Getting a dog does nto seem to make sense for our family, or the dog.

Cat declawing is probably similar to somebody using plyers to remove your finger and toe nails.

And I agree with you on the dog, if your house is empty for 10+ hours a day that isn't fair to the dog at all.

[Cowperson]

Originally Posted by OilKiller

Sure, but that's not always what's up. Things happen. We have a cat and a dog and we deal with issues with them. We bought them and we are committed, but at the end of the day, sometimes people have no choice.

My cat is simply destroying the carpet at our rental right now. I know I'm going to have to pay for replacement when we move out. I thought about trying to find a home for him and then possible Humane Society if not, but I'm not doing that, but I could see how some people use it as a last resort. I really can't afford to replace the carpet, but I couldn't live with myself taking my cat to the HS. I could see how some people might get put into a bad position and not have a choice though.

Wrap your cat in a towel, pull each paw out one at a time and clip their nails with a nail clipper.

Problem mostly solved.

You'd do that if your cat is entirely an indoor cat, which it should be anyway. Average lifespan of an outdoor cat - 2 years. Average lifespan of an indoor cat - 11 years.

Cowperson

[OilKiller]

Originally Posted by Cowperson

Wrap your cat in a towel, pull each paw out one at a time and clip their nails with a nail clipper.

Problem mostly solved.

You'd do that if your cat is entirely an indoor cat, which it should be anyway. Average lifespan of an outdoor cat - 2 years. Average lifespan of an indoor cat - 11 years.

Cowperson

Yes, I do try to trim his nails as much as possible. He still seems to find a way to wreck the carpet though. And our cat is an indoor cat. I don't agree with people who let their cats roam the neighbourhood. It's illegal for a reason.

[Old Yeller]

Tried softpaws Oilkiller?

[Bring_Back_Shantz]

Originally Posted by OilKiller

Sure, but that's not always what's up. Things happen. We have a cat and a dog and we deal with issues with them. We bought them and we are committed, but at the end of the day, sometimes people have no choice.

My cat is simply destroying the carpet at our rental right now. I know I'm going to have to pay for replacement when we move out. I thought about trying to find a home for him and then possible Humane Society if not, but I'm not doing that, but I could see how some people use it as a last resort. I really can't afford to replace the carpet, but I couldn't live with myself taking my cat to the HS. I could see how some people might get put into a bad position and not have a choice though.

I think that's the problem right there.
People aren't using the shelter as a last resort, they're using it as an easy out.
I'd be willing to bet the vast majority of pets in shelters are from people who didn't think the decision to buy a pet through properly and now don't know how to/don't want to deal with the ammount of work a pet actually takes.

The reality is, for the most part if people are responsible/commited owners, they are much more likely to find a differnet solution. It's the people that can't be bothered that are filling up the shelters.

That being said, I obviously don't have any numbers to back this up, but I'm willing to bet the vast majority of people agree with me.

[keenan87]

Well the only option left is to put them all down and start again. You ain't getting that many pets out of there.

However, after this, you should need to get a license and then face a heavy fine if you decide to not keep it, or even mysteriously lose it.

[Lithium]

Rub orange peels on the part of the carpet that your cat claws up, cats hate citrus.

Also if you don't have a scratching post, get one. Cats need to have something to claw up, that is how they keep their claws short and sharp and prevents them from growing in circles back inside of their paws.

[username]

Originally Posted by OilKiller

I don't think they do that anymore. It's pretty inhumane actually.

Some vets will do it, some won't. Just depends upon which one you go to.

Many of the older "old school" vets will still do it but I think you'd have a hard time finding a younger vet to do this; as you said, it's quite inhumane.

[Locke]

Ship 'em to Vancouver. Those people seem to have tons of time on their hands.

[FlamesAddiction]

Cats are semi-trainable, but people often don't try hard enough or assume there is no point.

All it took was a few times for me to yell; "HEY!" and stomp my foot, and she caught on as to where should could and couldn't scratch. You just have to start when they are kittens. I also give her treats by her post to make her know that it was a good place to hang out.

Every once in a while she has a lapse in judgement and after I yell, she stops and goes to her post.

[OilKiller]

Originally Posted by Old Yeller

Tried softpaws Oilkiller?

Nope. What's that?

[OilKiller]

Originally Posted by FlamesAddiction

Cats are semi-trainable, but people often don't try hard enough or assume there is no point.

He is trained fairly well, but there are some things that he just does. He's an ass that way. He knows it's wrong. He has quite the personality actually.

[Raekwon]

Originally Posted by OilKiller

Nope. What's that?

I have never heard of it either http://www.softpaws.com/index.html

I'm going to try this.