Original Article: https://blog.theanimalrescuesite.greatergood.com/texas-pet-deaths/
Facing an overwhelming shelter pet population, and in many cases turning to euthanasia as a solution, Texas is the top U.S. state for animal shelter deaths for the second year in a row.
A report from the animal welfare organization Best Friends Animal Society shows that Texas ranked second for shelter deaths in 2019 but reclaimed the top spot in 2020 and 2021. Best Friends created the report using data from more than 4,000 brick and mortar shelters, state and local coalitions, government websites, and FOIA requests.
About 596,730 animals entered shelters in Texas in 2021. Those shelters marked a save rate of almost 81%, with 482,330 of those animals finding positive outcomes. However, close to 61,245 dogs and cats were killed in Texas shelters in 2021.
The prior year, Texas shelters marked an 81.6% save rate.
A 90% save rate is the benchmark for“no-kill” shelters in the U.S., according to Best Friends. The 10% buffer is representative of cases in which humane euthanasia is the best option for the animal. When pets enter shelters with serious injury or inoperable disease, for example, extending an animal’s life may likewise extend its suffering.
Best Friends Animal Society is working toward moving Texas to an entirely no-kill state by 2025.
“Unfortunately, the setback in lifesaving is largely due to the historic decreases in pets entering shelters in 2020,” Julie Castle, the CEO of Best Friends Animal Society, said in a statement. “As shelters began to reopen in 2021 in increasing numbers, so did the number of pets entering their facilities. Throughout 2021, shelters saw an 8.1 percent increase in intake, and sadly, the number of pet adoptions could not keep pace with the increased intake.”
“A 90 percent save rate is the nationally recognized benchmark to be considered ‘no-kill,’ factoring that approximately 10 percent of pets who enter shelters have medical or behavioral circumstances that warrant humane euthanasia rather than killing for lack of space,” Castle added.
“While the shelters are doing very well in terms of save rates, they are feeling overwhelmed,” Brent Toellner, Senior Director, National Programs, Best Friends Animal Society, told the Houston Chronicle. “Most of them are running at 50 percent or so above capacity, particularly for dogs and it is creating a big drain for those folks that are trying to find positive outcomes.”
Many shelters experienced fewer intakes and subsequently fewer reasons to employ euthanasia during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown in 2020. As restrictions were lifted and people adjusted to a new normal, adoptions slowed and intakes started to increase rapidly, USA Today reports. A rise in evictions after COVID relief stopped and pandemic pet surrenders are just two of the many reasons why.
The result is overcrowding at local shelters and animals with nowhere else to go, the Houston Chronicle reports.
This isn’t just a problem in Texas.
The number of animals killed in shelters across the US increased from 347,000 to 355,000 in 2021. US shelter systems are seeing a setback in lifesaving for the first time in five years.
“If the trend continues, then a lot of the positive gains and save rates are going to obviously go away,” Toellner said. “If they (local shelters) continue to take in animals at a faster pace than they are able to find live outcomes, at some point that is going to reverse that positive momentum that those shelters all have.”
Euthanasia is never convenient for a pet, but when pet owners no longer want the responsibility of caring for their pet, they put the responsibility on veterinarians who must then make these hard decisions. A categorical ban on convenience euthanasia would save the lives of countless pets, and help veterinarians focus on helping animals that truly need their help.
Join others in making convenience euthanasia a thing of the past by asking the American Association of Veterinary State Boards to help change state policies for licensing veterinarians. Click below and make a difference!
Source: The Animal Rescue Site Blog
