Shelter forced to kill 1,000 dogs and cats
Pastor Dale Morgan
Shelter forced to kill 1,000 dogs and cats*
POSTED: 1701 GMT (0101 HKT), February 16, 2007
Story Highlights
• Las Vegas animal shelter hit by outbreaks of diseases in dogs and cats
• About 1,000 pets euthanized in what's said to be largest cull in Las
Vegas history
• Animal rights activists say outbreak and mass cull were preventable
• Shelter now changing the way animals are cared for
LAS VEGAS, Nevada (AP) -- An outbreak of contagious diseases at a
shelter where officials admit they kept animals for too long without
destroying them has forced the killing of about 1,000 dogs and cats,
officials said.
Visiting inspectors from The Humane Society of the United States
discovered the outbreak of the diseases -- distemper and Parvovirus in
dogs and panleukopenia in cats -- Lied Animal Shelter spokesman Mark
Fierro said.
"We caused the animals pain, and that is something we are committed will
never happen in our shelter again," said Janie Greenspun Gale, board
chairwoman for the Animal Foundation, which operates the Lied Animal
Shelter, according to KTNV News in Las Vegas. (Watch scenes inside the
shelter that became riddled with disease Video)
During a Thursday news conference, a tearful Greenspun Gale acknowledged
that the shelter hadn't followed Humane Society policies, and though the
animals were immunized, "we were using the wrong immunizations," KTNV
reported.
The shelter staff didn't want to euthanize the animals simply because
they'd been there too long or because the shelter needed more space,
Greenspun Gale said, but the misguided effort backfired. Humane Society
officials said as much when they visited the shelter.
"Instead of congratulating us for trying to save lives, instead of
telling us how wonderful we were that we didn't want to put animals down
for time and space, they told us we were causing animals to suffer,"
Greenspun Gale said, according to KTNV.
The mass culling, which began February 9, is believed to be the largest
in the city's history and has prompted shelter officials to change their
methods of caring for animals.
Animal rights activists said they were outraged by the killings.
"It's unforgivable in light of the fact that it was absolutely
preventable," said Holly Stoberski, legal counsel for Heaven Can Wait
Sanctuary, a group that has worked with Lied to find homes for impounded
animals.
"They were not properly vaccinating the dogs and cats in a timely manner."
Shelter officials vowed to adopt new policies when it reopens Friday,
including euthanizing animals after 72 hours at the shelter -- as the
Humane Society recommends -- and improving conditions for the animals,
including vaccinating them when they arrive.
Not all of the 1,000 animals were infected. Some were put down because
they had gone unadopted for more than 120 days and were contributing to
overcrowding that Humane Society officials said helped spread the diseases.
Lied Animal Shelter officials have said they did not realize animals
were infected until the Humane Society team noticed animals with
intestinal and respiratory problems.
The foundation contracts with Clark County and the cities of Las Vegas
and North Las Vegas to handle abandoned, neglected and stray animals at
Lied. The shelter annually adopts more than 7,000 dogs, cats, rabbits,
gerbils, guinea pigs and other animals.