Many open intake shelters across the country have went to “managed intake”,   The concept behind this is to control the number of animals and the time that they come into the shelter by determining the urgency of the animals being surrendered.   As we all know, if a government shelter gets full, it normally results in animals being euthanized for space.   In order to prevent this, interviews ( either on phone, on line and/or in person) take place to see when a space is available, why the animal is being surrendered, if there is any help available for the people surrendering to keep the animal longer ( this could be supplying food, vet care, etc), working toward keeping the animal safe and finding a new home for them.

When one first hears of this, it sounds great.   Possibly vetting and food for an owner, and they may get to keep their beloved dog/cat.   While this may work some of the time, it is not the norm for most of these animals.

Once a percentage was placed on live release rate to be considered “no kill”,  some shelters began to play the numbers game instead of being concerned about the welfare of the animals.    A shelter is considered  no kill if the shelter has a 90 percent live release rate.    If one controls the number of intakes, which animals they take in,  then it suddenly becomes easier to achieve that goal.  But here is the problem, what happens to those animals that are not taken in?    Let’s take a closer look at this variable.

The 90 percent live release rate may sound impressive until you realize that it only pertains to the animals that are chosen to be admitted into the shelter and bears no relation to the number that actually need help.  The many that are turned away and their deaths are not counted, nor the fact that those deaths may be by starvation, dehydration, predation, or other intense prolonged suffering.  For a local rescue that is foster based to have more animals than the shelter, speaks volumes.   Achieving 90 percent live release rate should not be more important than the animals themselves or their quality of life.

A desperate person goes to their local county or city run shelter.   They cannot no longer keep their dog/cat for whatever reason, but they are immediately told the shelter will not take the animal. Another desperate person picks up dogs to keep them from getting run over in a busy road.  They go to their local shelter, only to be told the shelter will not take them.   The phone call that comes in with starving dogs out on their own, needing help, and the call is ignored because the dogs do not fit into the managed intake that day.  The dog that has been abandoned, running loose in a neighborhood where residents are afraid they will get bit.  What happens to these animals?  Many times, they are released right down the road from the shelter, or dumped across state lines to fend for themselves.   These animals and their needs should not be ignored.

The other part of the equation is adoption and/or rescue to move the animals out the front door so there is room for more to come in.  Operating hours that allow working people to come to adopt, social media presence, friendly and helpful staff,  on site and off site adoption events, partnerships with rescues, all of this is a huge part to get dogs out the door and allow space for others  in need.

Do I think managed intake can work?   If you just cut intake out all together to solve a full shelter, with no regard to the circumstances of each animal in need, then you are worried about numbers, not the welfare of the animals.    You cannot ignore dogs who have been dumped out to fend for themselves, nor can you expect people to care for dogs that randomly show up in the areas where they live.   If you manage intake, but continue to take in those that have no other solution, then yes, I think it can work.

At the end of the day, focus on the welfare of the animals, not how the shelter looks on piece of paper.

Clifford’s Army Rescue ( and many other non profit dog rescues) run truly on blood, sweat and tears ( both happy and sad ones)  along with generous donors and lots of fundraising.  Most of us are foster based which means we rely heavily on our volunteers to open their hearts and homes to help those with no voice.  Many of us have multiple fosters and have reached the limit on the number we can properly care for.   So what happens when no one steps up to foster?

Like most rescues, we post desperate pleas for fosters, begging for help.   We cover all expenses, have a huge network to help with any questions, problems, or issues you may have as we want your foster experience to be a great one so that you will want to foster another dog in need once your foster goes to his/her forever home.   When you foster, you actually save three lives, the one you are fostering, the space you emptied at possibly akill shelter, and the space you created for one of the other fosters to take another dog.

We hear  reasons such as, ” I work a full time job”.  Most of the dogs in rescue are just very happy to be in a loving and caring home.  Many have lived their lives not having hardly any human contact  so you going to work is no big deal.    We hear, ” I will want to keep them all”.  Seeing the happy endings when your foster dog gets adopted is so gratifying, and knowing you can help save more makes it so worthwhile.  While it is hard to let them go, you are letting them go to a very good family and opening your home for another in need dog.

So what happens to the dog(s) in need when we cannot find fosters and have no choice ( because our regular fosters are already doubled and tripled up) but to say no?   Most of the dogs we are asked to take have not had vaccines, are full of intestinal worms, many are heart worm positive, some injured needing surgery, some sick, and some with behavioral issues.    When we say no, those dogs do not get the medical attention they need, the emotional support, the love and safe haven from a human.   When we have to say no, many times these dogs may be left to fend for themselves.  When a rescue has to say no, there is no magical wand that is waved to help those dogs in need.  Many will never get to the vet for treatment, much less find a home to be loved.  Many will die a cold, lonely death and be discarded like trash.

It is very hard for those who have been directly involved with rescue to not be able to find a place for the dogs in need.  It is not out of sight, out of mind for those of us who have witnessed animals on death’s door, emaciated to the point they look like a skeleton with skin over the top of the bones, to the point they cannot get up and walk, have to learn to eat again, are terrified of  every noise and even the human touch because someone has abused them.   The photos we post begging for fosters are embedded in our minds as we scramble to find a place for safe haven for those in need.  If we fail, we  know the end result may be very tragic.

You may say, find a no kill shelter or take them to the local county shelter whether it is no kill or not.    County shelters who have achieved 90 percent live release  are considered no kill.   Dogs still die due to health issues, behavioral issues.    Many county shelters in our state and others still kill for space.  Once all the kennels are taken, dogs die to make room for more.    The ones that are doing their best to be no kill have to manage intake.  While we are very glad our local shelter manages intake and no longer kills for space, it leaves more dogs for rescues to try to help.  Some people will dump their dogs out, some will reach out to rescue but at the end of the day, rescue tries to help so that these dogs have a chance at the live they deserve.    Healthy dogs do not deserve to die because of lack of space and healthy dogs do not need to be dumped out because there is no space at a no kill shelter to fend for themselves and who knows what happen to them.

So what happens when rescue has to say no?  Dogs suffer, some ultimately paying with their lives.

If you would like to consider fostering you could truly be a lifesaver.

How many innocent lives have to be lost? How many innocent lives have to suffer? When will humans, who are supposed to be the most intelligent animals on the planet, start to respect other animals with no voice?

Above is a photo of Louie. Louie was found outside, cold, alone, covered in lice, by a person looking at a rental property. Louie was only days old, and now Louie is dead. He never got to run and chase a ball, have a child, have a best buddy, or snuggle with his special human.  Instead, he was born only to die as a puppy. Who knows where Louie’s mom is? Dogs do not leave their puppies, which leads us to believe something happened to Louie’s mom.

Who was Louie’s Mom’s human? Why was she not spayed? Why was she left to wonder and her pup left to die? If her owners were responsible and caring, none of this would have happened.

This is Blade who we rushed to our vets and tried to save him.  He was literally starved to death, a skeleton with skin over the top of the bones.  His body temperature was low, his blood sugar almost non-existent, full of parasites, and who knows what else. We rushed him to our vets, stayed with him, helped with fluids, warming his body, and gave him meds. No matter what all we did and how hard we tried, we lost him. The neglect was too much. This sweet boy never knew what it was liked to be loved.

Here’s Shorty, a senior, dumped at a shelter to die. He was with us for a bit before cancer got the best of him and he was such a sweet boy. He was well mannered, house trained, and a love bug, but yet, someone dumped him out in his old age, to die alone.

How would you feel as you get older if your family did this to you? How can you take a defenceless animal and dup him/her without care? How can you open your door and let your dog run out into a road and not know if they got hit?  How can you let an unaltered female run loose only to get pregnant and then dump them?

These babies are only three of the many animals we take in and we do everything possible to save them, so that they may have the life they deserve.  Until humans value their lives, we are fighting a losing battle, but you can bet we will continue to fight.

Dogs (and all animals) require commitment. They are for their entire lives on this earth, not just until you’re tired of them. They are not toys to dispose of when humans get tired of them or when they get old.  They are living breathing creatures who love us unconditionally. You would think we could learn from them and love them as they do us.

Next time you think you want a dog, please think about the commitment you need to make, and if you are willing to let them be part of your family, provide medical treatment including spay and/or neuter, keep them for their entire life, love them as they love you, then go for it.  If you are going to tire of them, chain them in the yard, neglect feeding them, neglect the care they need, then please go by a stuffed animal out of the toy department