The Last Meow

The Last Meow is dedicated to all the pets who died or became seriously ill due to the Menu Foods Pet Food Recall, and the fur siblings they left behind.

Thursday, February 28, 2008

Dumb Owner = Dead Dog

I don't know what it's like in other parts of the United States but in South Mississippi if you are STUPID enough to turn your pet over to the Humane Society they will kill it immediately or after a very short time and they WILL NOT notify you first. Please if you have a pet you can no longer keep, find a loving home for it yourself.



Why did Marley have to die?

In August, I went to the Humane Society and found a beautiful black lab puppy. I immediately fell in love with her and brought her home. She was soon housebroken and growing up quickly. She was lively, but completely lovable and she loved everyone. I had her trained by a local trainer, and she was a joy to have around.

In February I suffered a stroke and had no one to take care of her. My son drove from Tampa to help me since I would be in the hospital for a long time recovering. We knew I couldn't leave her alone. After a very tough decision, we agreed we had to take her back to the Humane Society so she could find a loving home. I was sure that because she was trained and had had all of her shots and was so beautiful she would soon be chosen by a good family.

My son took her back to the Humane Society and told the person there about the situation and that we had no other choice. He gave them his name, address, and telephone number and asked that they contact him if she did not find a home within a short period of time. He told them that if necessary, he would drive back from Tampa and pick her up.


Two days later, I called and was completely stunned to be told that they had immediately put her to sleep. I could do nothing but cry. I was heartbroken. Marley was ready and trained to be a loyal household pet. Instead, she was killed. If my son had known they would kill Marley, he never would have left her there.

They told me that she was aggressive toward people. However, when under my care she had never shown any aggression toward me or any of my neighbors. I could even put my hand in her food bowl and she would never do so much as growl.

I am sure that our neighbor who gave money to build the beautiful Humane Society facility would turn over in his grave if he knew this had taken place. Please tell me why.

MRS. DENNIS HOLSTON Gulfport

The answer of course is most people want kittens and puppies. Since there is an over abundance of kittens and puppies older dogs and cats do not stand a chance, and The Gulfport Humane Society is notorious for putting pets to sleep with no effort to contact the owners.

A lady I know was on vacation when her dog escaped from her home due to the negligence of the pet sitter she had hired to take care of the dog while she was away. The dog catcher who picked him up knew who he belonged to, as he often saw her walking him, and slid a note under her door when no one came to the door. Since she was away she didn't get the note until she returned. The dog had been put down the first day it was brought in even though the dog catcher told them that the owner would pick it up, even though it had been spayed and even though it had the name of the owner on it's collar and was micro-chipped. The ONLY person who apologized to the lady was the dog catcher who said that IF he had know they were going to put the dog down he would have just put the dog back in the lady's fenced in yard (even though he isn't suppose to do that).

2 comments:

Angel MoMo and Charlotte said...

Unfortunately this is the case in a lot of places, especially with older animals. That's why I ONLY support no-kill shelters.

Alastriona, The Cats and Dogs said...

I wish we had a no-kill shelter down here. As far as I know we don't. The YMCA used to have a no kill pet shelter, but when the price of real estate went up they couldn't afford to stay in the building.

The Spay & Neuter Alliance where I got Scylla & Charybdis operates out of peoples homes. And I am not sure if they take pets. I belive they mainly rescue feral cats and dogs.

It's so sad. I wish I could adopt all the unwanted cats and dogs.