Rescue Myth vs. Fact
Rescue Myth vs. Fact: Animal rescues are professionally trained
Animal rescues are volunteers with a passion for animals We’ve talked before about the amazing people that make up animal rescue organizations across the country. These rescuers are passionate about animals and ingenious about finding new ways to stretch a dollar. But a common misconception is that the volunteers that work for and make up animal rescue organizations have professional training and resources to be up to speed on the latest best practices and that’s not usually the case. Myth: Animal Rescue organizations receive training for their operations We’ll start this out with our normal disclaimer that we are not […] Read more »
Rescue myth vs. fact: Animals are property with limited to no legal rights
We have come a long way in the last decade towards recognizing the importance of our pets to our family. The laws around protecting our furry friends have gotten better, but they still do not recognize the true sentient beings that they are. Fact: Animals are property with limited to no legal rights Did you ever stop and think about the legal rights your dog or cat has in our society today? Just like with humans, animals are involved in accidents with cars (either from being in an accident while inside them or hit by them) and unfortunately not all owners […] Read more »
Rescue Myth vs. Fact: Animal rescues save only dogs and cats
Whenever there is an animal rescue taking place in the U.S., it’s usually for dogs, cats or sometimes horses. The number of 501(c)(3) non-profit charities dedicated to rescuing these animals might lead you to believe that they are the only types with dedicated rescuers. You’d be wrong. Myth: Animal rescues save only dogs and cats The largest number of animal rescue organizations focus on dogs Animal rescue organizations come in all shapes and sizes and we have discussed in other blog posts the requirements or lack thereof to become one. They focus on many different aspects of animal welfare. […] Read more »
Rescue myth vs. fact: Animal rescues do not spay or neuter their animals before adoption
When it comes to preventing the unnecessary killing of companion animals in the U.S., effective spay and neuter is the only solution that has long-term sustainability. So it might surprise you that there are examples of animal rescue organizations that are not regularly employing these standard methods to prevent unnecessary killing. Myth: “All” animal rescues spay or neuter their animals before adoption As we have discussed in other myth vs. fact blogs, the absolute in this statement is the biggest problem. In the U.S. there is no national or universal law requiring an animal shelter or animal rescue organization to […] Read more »
Rescue Myth vs. Fact: No-kill is a universal term in animal rescue
If you want to incite a heated debate at an animal rescue conference, ask a group of people what they think about the term “no-kill.” Be prepared for a discussion that will bring out passionate opinions on both sides of the equation. But why is this term so contentious? And is it a universally accepted term in animal rescue? Myth: “No-kill” is a universal term in animal rescue The label of “no-kill” was a term that gained notoriety from the work of Nathan Winograd. A passionate animal advocate himself, he was disgusted with the killing of animals that was taking […] Read more »
Rescue Myth vs. Fact: Animal rescues obtain their animals from breeders
Partially true: Animal rescues get their animals from breeders In the U.S., the problems and solutions for companion animals have changed over the years. Decades ago, tens of millions of companion animals were euthanized in local animal shelters to reduce the population. This tactic was not effective and when more progressive leaders in the industry introduced spay/neuter as a long-term strategy, the numbers euthanized annually started to reduce. Today, in the U.S. the estimates are that between 1 million and 1.5 million otherwise healthy companion animals are euthanized. This is still far too many animals killed annually. Yet while we […] Read more »
Rescue Myth vs. Fact: Animal rescues do not have a physical facility
Myth: All animal rescues do not have a physical facility Many of our fact versus myth posts are difficult to write because the truth about the topic in question lies somewhere in the middle between two extremes. We cannot say that all animal rescues do not have a physical facility. We can say that the vast majority of animal rescues (90%+) operate out of a foster home network, instead of a central facility. What is an animal rescue? What is an animal rescue group? The term “animal rescue” is a generic term that is used by a lot of different […] Read more »
Rescue myth vs. fact: Animal rescues are licensed and rated
Myth: Animal rescues are licensed and regulated at a national level Animal rescue groups do a lot of advertising to help promote their rescue animals and to raise funding through donations and fundraisers. There must be a government agency at the state or national level that is regulating these organizations and licensing them so you can ensure your donations are being properly utilized, right? Unfortunately not. There is no national entity focused on animal rescue licensing and there are many loopholes that you need to be aware of when choosing who to work with. Partially true: Animal rescues are licensed […] Read more »