Hi everyone,
Long story coming, please bear with me! Has anyone else had any bad experiences with their local humane society?
On Monday, my daughter and her boyfriend found a stray cat on the porch of her boyfriend's off campus apartment. They were told by a neighbor that the cat belonged to another neighbor, but the second neighbor said the cat wasn't hers but had been living on her porch for the last few weeks. The cat was very thin but friendly and non-aggressive. I thought that she had been a house cat. They called me for advice, so I told them to get a box and line it with an old blanket or towel and leave some water, and they could take it to the local humane society in the morning. One of them was putting water out and the cat dashed inside and made herself at home, literally. I have pictures of her splayed comfortably on the couch as though she owned the place.
Needless to say, they both fell in love with this cat, but took it to the humane society the next morning. They were told to call back on Thursday and if the cat was available for adoption they would get priority.
Yesterday afternoon my daughter called me in hysterics. The humane society deemed the cat unadoptable and were going to euthanize her. Her FeLV and FIV tests were negative, but they said that she scratched and tried to bite one of the techs who was trying to perform another test that involved her mouth--I don't know if they were trying to deworm her or what. Something about it didn't sound right, so I called the humane society myself and got pretty much the same story. They also told me that the cat threw up her food the night before and was dehydrated because she hadn't had any water for 2 days. They said she was food aggressive--if the cat is hungry, IMO that's to be expected! When I asked if 1.5 days in a shelter in a stressful environment was enough for them to determine whether or not a cat was adoptable, I was told that they don't have the time or the resources to waste on an animal that wouldn't cooperate. The lack of empathy and compassion from the girl on the phone infuriated me to the point where I texted my daughter to go get the cat. (My daughter lives at home.) My daughter paid no adoption fee even though they did vaccinate her, and will take her to my current vet for an evaluation.
My daughter arrived with the cat last evening and I'll be quite frank IMO the people at the humane society are idiots. The cat is of course separated from my two resident cats and will remain separated until after her vet appointment, and my other cats so far have displayed nothing but curiosity as to what's on the other side of that door. They're not upset at the scent of another cat. The new cat hissed initially when one of them got too close to the door, but that subsided in a couple of hours. The cat is very thin and malnourished, but really, very sweet. The first thing she did was drink water and eat. She hasn't thrown up her food and has used the litter box. I went in the room this morning and she was stretched out on a blanket under the desk, relaxed and grooming herself. She came right over to me, meowed, and let me pet her. My daughter got a nuzzle and a leg rubbing.
I'm not seeing what's so unadpotable about this cat. She's eating and drinking normally, not growling or hissing much less scratching and biting. As long as her vet visit checks out--and I warned my daughter that she needs to be prepared if the cat is not healthy or can't be treated--I think she'll make a great addition.
My daughter says she will never, ever take another animal to that location again. I'm flabbergasted, too. This cat needs love and affection and a good home. They were ready to just give up on her after only a day and a half and it makes me wonder how many other animals have been needlessly put down there.
Long story coming, please bear with me! Has anyone else had any bad experiences with their local humane society?
On Monday, my daughter and her boyfriend found a stray cat on the porch of her boyfriend's off campus apartment. They were told by a neighbor that the cat belonged to another neighbor, but the second neighbor said the cat wasn't hers but had been living on her porch for the last few weeks. The cat was very thin but friendly and non-aggressive. I thought that she had been a house cat. They called me for advice, so I told them to get a box and line it with an old blanket or towel and leave some water, and they could take it to the local humane society in the morning. One of them was putting water out and the cat dashed inside and made herself at home, literally. I have pictures of her splayed comfortably on the couch as though she owned the place.
Needless to say, they both fell in love with this cat, but took it to the humane society the next morning. They were told to call back on Thursday and if the cat was available for adoption they would get priority.
Yesterday afternoon my daughter called me in hysterics. The humane society deemed the cat unadoptable and were going to euthanize her. Her FeLV and FIV tests were negative, but they said that she scratched and tried to bite one of the techs who was trying to perform another test that involved her mouth--I don't know if they were trying to deworm her or what. Something about it didn't sound right, so I called the humane society myself and got pretty much the same story. They also told me that the cat threw up her food the night before and was dehydrated because she hadn't had any water for 2 days. They said she was food aggressive--if the cat is hungry, IMO that's to be expected! When I asked if 1.5 days in a shelter in a stressful environment was enough for them to determine whether or not a cat was adoptable, I was told that they don't have the time or the resources to waste on an animal that wouldn't cooperate. The lack of empathy and compassion from the girl on the phone infuriated me to the point where I texted my daughter to go get the cat. (My daughter lives at home.) My daughter paid no adoption fee even though they did vaccinate her, and will take her to my current vet for an evaluation.
My daughter arrived with the cat last evening and I'll be quite frank IMO the people at the humane society are idiots. The cat is of course separated from my two resident cats and will remain separated until after her vet appointment, and my other cats so far have displayed nothing but curiosity as to what's on the other side of that door. They're not upset at the scent of another cat. The new cat hissed initially when one of them got too close to the door, but that subsided in a couple of hours. The cat is very thin and malnourished, but really, very sweet. The first thing she did was drink water and eat. She hasn't thrown up her food and has used the litter box. I went in the room this morning and she was stretched out on a blanket under the desk, relaxed and grooming herself. She came right over to me, meowed, and let me pet her. My daughter got a nuzzle and a leg rubbing.
I'm not seeing what's so unadpotable about this cat. She's eating and drinking normally, not growling or hissing much less scratching and biting. As long as her vet visit checks out--and I warned my daughter that she needs to be prepared if the cat is not healthy or can't be treated--I think she'll make a great addition.
My daughter says she will never, ever take another animal to that location again. I'm flabbergasted, too. This cat needs love and affection and a good home. They were ready to just give up on her after only a day and a half and it makes me wonder how many other animals have been needlessly put down there.
I felt so awful for this poor cat. She really is a sweetie and it just blows my mind that the Humane Society of all places would treat an animal that way. The lack of resources I can understand, but not the callousness. These are people who are supposed to love animals, after all. I had both of my other cats spayed by the Humane Society (different county and location) and I didn't have any issues with them then.
