DEFINE SHELTER

Animal shelters. Gov't sponsored animal shelters. Like the Humane Society of Toronto and the OSPCA in Newmarket. It's where we take pets that are lost, hurt, abandoned. It's where we go to adopt a pet. We look to these organizations to protect animals, we support them fiscally to care for the animals we cannot. But how good are they, really, at this job

Earlier this year the Toronto Humane Society came under fire for its euthanasiation policy. Most publicly funded animal shelters kill .. let's call it what it is .. animals. We're told that this is done when the animals are hurt beyond repair but they are also killed when the shelter simply runs out of space. It seems that the THS was killing animals a little too freely. Euthanisation if it's done at all, should be an entirely last minute, no other choice option, this is what we are told. But the THS was killing animals who's health status did not warrant being put down. It's director, Tim Trow, was actually arrested for cruelty to animals ... and it seems this is not his first time

Now, who hired this guy to look after our animals?

Yes, we put our trust in the faceless bureaucracy that is our government.

Today I read a story about the Newmarket Humane Society. Seems like a case of ringworm got into their shelters. Now a few hundred animals will be put down. A few hundred. I know stuff happens, animals must be coming into these shelters in all levels of sickness. But you should know that, right. And these societies have vets on staff. You'd think they would be looking for these things.

A few hundred animals. Are you scared? Are you pissed? I know I am

Here's the other part: How these problems just seem to "pop up" out of nowhere where clearly, they must have been going on for some time. And once the problems are exposed, the people involved spend as much time and effort denying as they do trying to fix things.

Denial seems to be a pattern in these shelters. I have personally known several people who have adopted dogs from public shelters, dogs that are given a clean bill of health, only to later find that their new pet is ill, terribly ill, and has been so for some time. Again, these shelters deal with hundreds or thousands of pets and clearly, some things will slip through the cracks. But in a couple of cases I know, the new owner's vets inform them that it would be damn near impossible for a shelter not to have known about the animal's condition.

Sounds like a need to clear these shelters. Before the animals are killed

If you have an animal you need to give up, or you are looking to adopt an animal, there are alternatives: No kill shelters, rescue organizations. In Ontario, there are rescue organizations devoted to different breeds, they take in unwanted animals and foster them into a home where the animal lives in a healthy family environment until they are adopted

And for god's sake, never ever ever ever buy a dog from a pet store. My vet has told me that every dog they've ever seen from PJ's Pet, for example, has giardia, a serious canine illness.

Think about where your money and support goes. Think about the kind of government you have in your city, your province, your country. You know, that government that lies, bungles your money, covers up scandals, has their hand in the cookie jar ... you want to trust them with a pet?

Sheltering an animal should not be just store housing. It shouldn't be extermination. If they aren't, we have to do something about it.