Dear Editor:
Outrage over a policy that would help prevent dogs from being caged indefinitely at the Ashland County Dog Shelter is badly misdirected.
Shelters should be temporary safe havens for lost and homeless animals, not storage facilities that confine animals in cages for months, years, or the rest of their lives.
Dogs and cats need more than food and shelter.
They are social beings who need exercise, mental stimulation, and regular companionship to thrive.
Stored away like old shoes, animals become withdrawn, severely depressed, hyperactive, or aggressive — and less adoptable with every passing day.
The solution to animal overpopulation, homelessness, and the resulting need for euthanasia is not warehousing dogs and cats.
The solution is prevention.
People who care should focus on stopping the problem at its source by working to pass spay/neuter laws; making low- and no-cost sterilization services available; and ending unregulated breeding and sales of animals by pet stores, breeders, flea markets, and puppy mills.
Becoming “no-birth” is the only humane and sustainable way to become “no-kill.”
Sincerely,
Teresa Chagrin
Animal Care and Control Issues Manager
Cruelty Investigations Department
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA)
Norfolk, Virginia