COMMUNITY CALL FOR ACTION The Humble Animal Shelter, in conjunction with Texas Litter Control, piloted a community cat program in January to combat the area’s growing number of feral cats. While statistics from that program are not yet available, Humble Animal Shelter data from Jan. 1, 2018-Feb. 15, 2022 shows the live-release rate was below 83%.
andwhen they become sick, it spreads to everybody,” she said. Stray dogs In Humble, while the problem of stray dogs is not as widespread as feral cats, Hartis said the most common issue the shelter runs into revolves around residents who avoid seeking out services because they think they cannot aord them. “If you live inside the city and we know that you need help, we will spay, neuter, microchip and vaccinate your dog [for free],” she said. “If we eat the cost [of xing them] now, it’s going to help us out in the long run when these animals aren’t running around producing extra animals for these people to provide for.” Just south of Humble, the 14-square-mile area in northeast Houston dubbed the “corridor of cruelty” has long been teeming with stray dogs for years, many of which were abandoned by their owners, according to Beth Lovell, board chair of Corridor Rescue, a nonprot dedi- cated to helping animals in the area. “If you drive through that area at any given time, chances are you’re going to see many strays,” Lovell said. “You will see dead dogs on the side of
the road that have been hit by cars. You will see dogs with broken legs that have been hit by cars, trying to survive on their own. It’s a terrible issue in that area.” According to data provided by the BARC, nearly half of the roughly 6,000 animals that were brought to the BARC animal shelter by animal control in 2021 were strays. Lovell noted many residents in the area simply do not have the resources to eectively take care of their ani- mals. In many cases, Lovell said animal owners will avoid taking pre- ventive measures such as giving their pets heartworm medication, which can lead to life-threatening illness. In addition, Lovell said people bringing animals to the shelter are regularly turned away due to capac- ity issues, which she said often leads to animal dumping when pet owners think they are out of options. “That’s when we see a lot of people take the dog to a back road and dump it,” Lovell said. Since 2017, the BARC has cons- cated almost 1,500 animals due to reports of cruelty, according to BARC data, which is often a result of mal- nourishment, Lovell said. WhileLovell commendedmeasures
HumbleAnimal Shelter CAT & DOG INTAKE Jan. 1, 2018-Feb. 15, 2022
LIVERELEASE RATE
82.9%
CATS & DOGS EUTHANIZED Jan. 1, 2018-Feb. 15, 2022
Total: 1,526
Total: 261
578 cats
948 dogs
155 cats
106 dogs
SOURCE: HUMBLE ANIMAL SHELTER COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
such as community cat programs to address feral cat populations, she said dealing with stray dogs takes a more hands-on approach. To reduce overcrowding, Lovell said Corridor Rescue works with local shelters to transport adoptable dogs across state lines to animal shelters with higher demands for adoptable pets— a measure also implemented by Best Friends. According toLalonde, it is important to understand that a lot of perceived
animal cruelty is a result of a lack of access to aordable resources. “It’s easy to assume that an animal isn’t loved because, from your per- spective, it doesn’t look like it’s well cared for, but that’s actually not true,” she said. “That animal could have an owner that deeply cares about it but just does not have the resources.”
For more information, visit communityimpact.com .
25
LAKE HOUSTON HUMBLE KINGWOOD EDITION • FEBRUARY 2022
Powered by FlippingBook