Racine's primary animal shelter euthanized 1,281 animals last year, while adopting out 456 animals. Another 269 animals were reclaimed by their owners, 222 were transferred out of the shelter and 87 were released to rescue.
Countryside euthanized 53.3 percent of the animals that were brought, though owners surrendered 213 animals to the shelter to be killed. Taking that into account, the shelter had a 'live-release rate," a standard measure used by the Humane Society of the United States, of 51.4 percent in 2009.
Countryside's euthanasia rate is roughly equal to the national rate. The Humane Society of the United States estimates 6-8 million animals enter shelters every year. Of this number, 3-4 million are euthanized and 3-4 million are adopted.
Also, many animal rights groups, including PETA, support the use of euthanasia as a preferable, peaceful end to the lives of unwanted, or uncared for, animals. PETA also speaks against "no-kill" shelters because they tend to cherry-pick the best animals and turn away or ignore animals that are less likely to be adopted. PETA writes:
Open-admission shelters are committed to keeping animals safe and off the streets and do not have the option of turning their backs on the victims of the overpopulation crisis as "no-kill" shelters do. No one despises the ugly reality of euthanizing animals more than the people who hold the syringe, but euthanasia is often the most compassionate and dignified way for unwanted animals to leave the world.Here's a closer look at Countryside's euthanasia numbers ...
Breakdown of why animals were euthanized at Countryside last year:
Outcomes of how live animals leave the shelter:
- Bite case - 24
- Feral - 173
- Health - 401
- Injured - 37
- No Room - 4
- Not Housetrained - 17
- Surrendered for Euthanasia - 213
- Temprament - 356
- Wildlife - 56
Most animals brought into Countryside in 2009 were strays. Here's a breakdown of how animals showed up at the shelter:
- Adopted - 456
- DOA (dead on arrival) - 67
- Reclaimed - 269
- Released to Rescue - 87
- Transferred - 222
- New System Carried Over - 21
The city of Racine accounted for two-thirds of Countryside's "Field Activity" in 2009, including pickups, trappings, complaints, revisits and E-calls. Here's the county's breakdown by percentage:
- Abandoned - 44
- Rescued - 6
- Returned - 40
- Seized - 42
- Stray - 1,357
- Surrendered for euthanasia - 246
- Surrendered - 668
- City of Burlington - 2.08%
- City of Racine - 66.08%
- Town of Burlington - 2.63%
- Town of Dover - 0.64%
- Town of Norway - 1.25%
- Town of Raymond - 1.83%
- Town of Waterford - 1.44%
- Town of Yorkville - 1.31%
- Village of Caledonia - 9.51%
- Village of Elmwood Park - 0.19%
- Village of Mt. Pleasant - 8.97%
- Village of North Bay - 0.1%
- Village of Rochester - 0%
- Village of Sturtevant - 1.31%
- Village of Union Grove - 1.76%
- Village of Waterford - 0.51%
- Village of Wind Point - 0.38%
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