Ten Animal Shelters in Michigan Accounted for More Than Half of the 13,031 Cats and Dogs Killed in 2018

The recent proclamation that Michigan is a “No-Kill State” by Michigan Pet Fund Alliance has bothered many people in the animal rescue community. These animal advocates, who work or volunteer at animal shelters and rescue organizations, feel that the general public will not understand how the phrase “no kill” is defined in animal welfare circles. Generally speaking, the animal welfare community has decided that no kill means that 90% or more of “adoptable” animals are saved. This idea has been accepted by groups such as Maddie’s Fund, Best Friend’s Animal Society and many others. The headlines across Michigan should have been about the 90% save rate and not the “no kill” title.

An important thing to know about save rates is that every shelter has its own definition of what “adoptable” means. The criteria is usually whether an animal is too sick, injured or aggressive to be adopted out but, even those decisions are subjective on a shelter-to-shelter basis.The animal welfare community usually calls the 90% number a “save rate” instead of concentrating on actual euthanasia numbers. Pet Friends Magazine has always counted euthanasia numbers when going through the shelter reports from the Michigan Dept. of Agriculture. There are problems using save rate numbers in Michigan when there are issues like transfers from shelters to rescues being recorded as adoptions in the shelter reports. This is what the Dept. of Agriculture asks the shelters to do. By doing a save rate like Pet Fund Alliance, they have no idea how many adoptions were really transfers to rescue groups. If the pet is adopted by a rescue group who is a Michigan registered organization, one pet will show up in the shelter reports as being adopted twice.

Pet Friends Magazine decided to take a deep dive into the numbers reported by the Michigan Department of Agriculture. The registered shelters provide this information to them every year. My reporting about these numbers is as honest to you as possible, using common sense on which pets the shelter is really responsible for, either by finding adopters or deciding on euthanasia.

Beware of Vaping Products Around Your Pets – A Devastated Pet Owner Shares her Story

A woman named Katie Baars in Coleman, Wisconsin lost her Saint Bernard puppy in June and went on Facebook to share her story to warn others…

“I know most of us have dogs and other pets and I wanted to post this to help save lives of pets so people are aware of the dangers of vaping equipment and pets. I just lost my Saint Bernard puppy yesterday. She had eaten a Juul pod and chewed a bottle of vape juice. I did not even know we had these items in the house. My 17-yr-old snuck them in and attempted to hide them under the couch.

Macomb County Groups Work Together to Provide Safe Haven for Pets of Domestic Abuse Victims

Story reported by Michigan Pet Fund Alliance 

I Heart Dogs Rescue and Animal Haven has been working in partnership with Turning Point, Inc. another non-profit group located in Macomb County. Turning Point, Inc. provides programs and resources that enable victims/survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault to regain control of their lives.

I Heart Dogs Rescue and Animal Haven is able to provide safe haven to the beloved pets of these victims/survivors, while they begin to rebuild their lives. I Heart Dogs Rescue and Animal Haven is one of only 3% of animal shelters in the United States that provides shelter, food, medical attention and companionship to these animals free of charge, while providing peace of mind to their owners.

A Coalition of Animal Rescuers Brings Dogs Who Need Homes in the South up to Michigan

The pet over population problem in the south is very bad because of poverty conditions and no resources for low cost spay and neuter. The video linked in this story tells the story of one area in Louisiana – St. Landry Parish. St. Landry Parish Animal Control usually holds 250-300 dogs, 60-100 cats, 15 horses, 20+ poultry and other animals. They are an open intake shelter that takes in all animals. Most of the dogs that come in are never vetted and often pregnant. Because there aren’t many people in the area to adopt these dogs, they need to get out of Louisiana to find loving homes.

A collaboration of people from the Bissell Pet Foundation and Animal Rescue Corps came together for “Rescue Road” a pilot program that brought 67 dogs up to Michigan to the following rescue groups: Detroit Dog Rescue, Harbor Humane, Hearts of Hope, Humane Society of West Michigan, Little Traverse Bay, Muskegon Humane and SPCA of Southwest Michigan.

Please watch the video here.