As fashionable as it is at the moment to berate the MHS for euthanasia rates, when this storm passes, we’ll still be here, just as we have been. When you’re no longer impassioned by poor journalism or Fox2 news “investigations,” we’ll be here. Our doors are open and have been for the last 120 years. While others post and blog, we’ve a functioning rescue hotline, Rescue Drivers seven days a week, risking their lives to pick up dogs that have been hit, fought, left, starved. We’ve Cruelty Investigators in the field 6 days a week, in the heat and the subzero freezes, busting dog fighting rings, educating pet owners and writing arrest warrants. When you need to call to file a cruelty complaint, we’ll be there. When you find a litter of puppies or kittens that somebody has dumped, we’ll be here. When surrounding cities nix their animal control positions and you find a stray, we’ll be here. When breeders home vaccinate and their litters contract parvo virus, we’ll be here. When private veterinarians turn away parvo virus cases, we’ll be here. When your animal has an emergency and you need a payment plan for veterinary care, we’ll be here. When the time comes for that your pet needs to be humanely euthanized, we’ll be here. When you fall upon hard times and need help to keep your pet, we’ll be there then, too.
We’ll not turn you away, even when you spit upon us. When your “no kill” rescues have animals that they cannot adopt, but don’t want to euthanize, we’ll accept them. When “Rescue” groups, whether legitimate or illegal, are full, we’ll be here. We’ll not turn them away in spite of their actively bashing us or soliciting donations for the animals which we house on their behalf. Bear in mind that animals removed by non-professional rescues are often illegally removed and thus must be held for extended holds to comply with Michigan state laws. We’ll foot that bill. If your animal becomes lost and is turned into our shelter, your pet will be held for a minimum four day stray hold, to give you a chance to find him/her. We will not take strays to suburban “foster homes,” negating the rightful owner’s chance of ever being reunited. We will scan every animal that comes to our shelter. We will not send our animals to questionable rescues. We know how many hoarders with which we’ve had lifelong cases call their hoard “Rescues.” We have learned proper protocol for effectively working with hoarders and for assisting them in their lifelong battle with mental illness. We will not exploit/criminalize hoarders that are seeking help.
We will not put life alone above quality of life. The word “Humane” does not simply mean “alive.” Per Miriam Webster, it is; “marked by compassion, sympathy, or consideration for humans or animals.” Humane euthanasia is exactly that. Nobody more than the staff that treats, feeds, bathes, walks, and, yes, holds that animal while they pass, want to see more animals go into permanent homes. Regardless of what the public has read about CEO salaries, the front line staff is not living a lavish lifestyle. Most of us are lifers, most of made more money before we came here, and most of us cannot leave because we believe in what we do. You cannot look into the eyes of animals who come into the shelter dying and believe euthanasia is always wrong. I’m thankful that we are here when nobody else is to help the animals pass with dignity and kindness.
