12 replies to this topic

[muck]

[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XTrhQd9GHlE[/media]

Funny, sad, etc.

If you support finding homes for homeless/displaced pets, don't give money to the Humane Society, give it directly to your local shelter.

Edited by muck, 25 April 2012 - 09:40 AM.

[matt770]

I'm confused by the statement that they don't run animal shelters.  I guess there must be a distinction between the US Humane Societies and the local entities?

We adopted Pork Chop from the Atlanta Humane Society and I was stunned by how well-run the place was.  We walked into a huge room with maybe 50 dogs and there was no detectable smell.  Each kennel was spotless and the staff was meticulous about how the dogs were handled.  Puppies were not allowed to touch the floor outside of their own kennel.  All the animals looked clean and healthy.  PC's shots were up to date, we were given his medical records and schedule for his next shots.  They gave us Frontline and Heart Guard, 30 days of free pet insurance, and free vet visits to screen him for every possible disease, parasite, etc.  They had a store selling food, toys, leashes, collars, etc., and they gave us a big bag of Purina One puppy food for $1.00.  All of this for an adoption fee of $150.  His shots up to that point, plus neutering and microchipping would have cost me $500+, easily.  Tomorrow I'm taking him for his last round of shots and I have a discount, so it will cost me about $60 I believe.  Then we're done.  And this is the best quality pup we could ever hope to own, honestly.  He's just awesome in every way.

So, that facility is clearly getting some good funding from somewhere.  The building itself is behemoth and in a high-end area and looks to be less than 5 years old.  I would be curious to know if HSUS gives them any money or if they somehow raise it all locally.

[muck]

The Atlanta Humane Society is (iirc) NOT affiliated with the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS).

http://www.atlantahu...rg/who/faqs.php

As noted in the video, the HSUS only gives 1% of it's revenue to help homeless pets.  They're basically PETA with soap and shampoo (and at least as many lawyers).  They want to do away with all animal husbandry (including cows, pigs, chickens, etc.) -- all dogs should be freed from their evil masters and the nasty scary breeders (who, in many cases, pour thousands (if not tens of thousands) of dollars into their preferred breed or two each year).

[matt770]

Interesting, I never would guess that the national organization were a bunch of whackballs while the local people do an incredible job.  Good to know.

[muck]

I find it quite telling just how much distance the Atlanta Humane Society tries to put between them and the HSUS...

[Crazysight]

While true about local shelters, the Humane Society has done a lot of work and made progress in industry animal welfare practices over the years, as evidenced by this article on yahoo news just today: http://finance.yahoo...-130714888.html   The HSUS ads are misleading though.

Obviously if you want to support your local shelter, you should just give to your local shelter.  If you want to aid abandoned or mistreated would-be pets an even better way would be to foster.

Edited by Crazysight, 25 April 2012 - 04:04 PM.

[Square]

I heard they are a tactical arm of Planned Parenthood.

[tosberg34]

Square, on 25 April 2012 - 04:33 PM, said:

I heard they are a tactical arm of Planned Parenthood.

I hear they give free abortions to all the bitches.

[detlef]

While you're at it, don't assume "no kill" shelters are any better than ones that do have to put animals down.  The vast majority of "no kill" shelters stay that way by turning away animals once they have a certain amount.  They send them to the shelters who can take them, which is nearly always one that does put unadopted animals down to make room for ones who may find homes.

No shelter looks forward to having to kill animals, it's just that someone has to do it after a point.

[Yukon Cornelius]

Square, on 25 April 2012 - 04:33 PM, said:

I heard they are a tactical arm of Planned Parenthood.

[Yukon Cornelius]

detlef, on 26 April 2012 - 08:57 AM, said:

While you're at it, don't assume "no kill" shelters are any better than ones that do have to put animals down.  The vast majority of "no kill" shelters stay that way by turning away animals once they have a certain amount.  They send them to the shelters who can take them, which is nearly always one that does put unadopted animals down to make room for ones who may find homes.

No shelter looks forward to having to kill animals, it's just that someone has to do it after a point.

+1

[dug]

As someone who runs a rescue, the HSUS does nothing to help us take care of dogs. They do have a CEO that makes a lot of money and I still have no idea what they do...

We are not subsidized. We do not receive any money from the government or any other large non profit like the HSUS. We do it all through personal donations and adoption fees (which have just about non existent with the current economy).

Regardless, we have a number of dogs to take care of and do that out of pocket.

So yes- if you want to help, donate to the actual rescue. Do not give to any National "umbrella" organization and expect your money to go anywhere but the CEOs pocket.

[BeeR]

This seems to be true of other "national chain" type charities and I have to wonder how far it goes.  United Way and Susan Kormen for a few examples that have come under fire for inflated salaries/etc and becoming too "corporate," incurring costs for the sake of "building the organization" at the expense of keeping the funds maximized to the cause.  Yay corporate America strikes again.  Anyway props muck for bringing this to light.  Most people hear "human society" and automatically assume it's all good.

Edited by BeeR, 03 May 2012 - 08:50 AM.