Sheltering Society’s Most Vulnerable
“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.” ― Mahatma Gandhi
According to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) – the nation’s leading advocate for animal welfare – 6.5 million dogs and cats enter US animal shelters every year. That’s 3.3. million dogs and 3.2 million cats. Lost, sick, abused or abandoned, these are animals at their most vulnerable. So how can you help? You already have.
By purchasing your mandatory pet license, animal shelters receive the funds they desperately need to provide quality care to vulnerable animals.
Shelters: stepping up when others have been let down
Like many organizations that rely heavily on volunteers and charitable donations to operate, (in the US there is 1 staff member for every 14 volunteers), animal shelters are often underfunded, understaffed and overworked – yet the scope of their work keeps increasing.
Shelters are responsible for the animals’ medical care, vaccinations, spay and neutering operations, behavioral training or rehabilitation, exercise, enrichment, adoption, advocacy and community engagement.
For staff, the work can be physically and emotionally exhausting. For the animals, time at a shelter can be highly stressful – the longer the stay the greater the risk to their health, welfare and behavior.
Licenses: clearing the path to forever families for every animal
The length of time a dog or cat spends in a shelter can depend on many factors. The ideal number of days in a shelter? As few as possible. The valiant efforts of shelter workers across the country are reducing shelter stays to a brief stop-gap on the way to a happy home, but every new animal that enters the shelter puts a strain on resources. When licensed pets become lost they are much more likely to bypass the shelter system. A pet license, especially one linked to a Lost Pet Service like HomeSafe™ is insurance that your pet will be returned to you easily and quickly – and not become a burden to those animals who are still waiting to find a loving home of their own.
For every stray dog or cat that is returned to its owner, another one is looking for its forever family.
About 710,000 animals who enter shelters as strays are returned to their owners. Approximately 3.2 million shelter animals are adopted each year (1.6 million dogs and 1.6 million cats). About twice as many animals enter shelters as strays than the number that are given up by their owners. – Pet Statistics, ASPSCA, Shelter Intake and Surrender
Shelters are dedicated to animal welfare – whether it’s through active care, adoption or community outreach – when humans neglect their duty of care, it is often shelters that can turn a potential tragic story into a happy one. Pet licensing helps funds the important work shelters do which means as a DocuPet member, you too are a part of every animal’s story. Because in a true humane society, everyone gets the chance to be loved.
Thanks for reading!
