Reliable statistics on why dogs end up in shelters

[AKB]

Does anyone know where I can find reliable statistics on how most of the dogs in shelters get where they are? I'll try to keep this shortish. One of my part time jobs is in a bar, populated almost exclusively by sexist middle aged male blowhards who know everything about everything, as most blowhards do. Anyway, one of the exceptions to the male blowhard rule is a woman who comes into the bar with her blowhard husband (blowhard by proxy, I believe they call it). They are talking about getting a new dog in the relatively future. She wants to adopt, he wants to buy. I am not a great proponent of going to a breeder, but it's a personal choice that they need to make, I understand that. And these people are not my kind of pet people, so I'm doing a lot of nodding and smiling, suggesting where I can. Here's where we got into an arguement he said that he doesn't want to go to a rescue because "Dogs are pack animals, when they reach about eight weeks or ten weeks old, they decide whether they are going to run with the humans, or run with the pack. Since almost all dogs in rescue have been either neglected or abused, they are just not trainable. It's just not possible." I was too busy at the time he said this to make the kind of reply I would have liked. But certainly from this statement you can see why they are not my kind of pet people. The only point on which he was correct was, "Dogs are pack animals." It's not that I want them to get a shelter dog especially, but I just can't let that statement stand. When he brings this up again, and he will, I want to be able to smash him (it's the only thing I really enjoy about my job). So, about the almost all dogs in rescue statement- that can't be true. I have always read that statistically, most dogs in shelters are not abused, they are there because they are either from an unwanted litter, changes in family situations, and seizures by authorities are fairly rare. Is this true? Does anyone know of a good source of statistics on the breakdown of dogs in shelters?

[SoloRiver]

A number of references state that "behavioral problems" are the most frequent reasons that animals are abandoned or relinquished.

 

However, as far as I know there is no breakdown of how many of these "problems" are simple training/management issues, or real behavioral problems. I believe that the definition is based on owner perception, which we know is unreliable, especially for the type of people who would dump a pet into the shelter.

 

Sorry to not be much help.

[MaryP]

Your guy sounds a lot like a guy that I met in the pet store a while back. I nearly punched him in the head. The guy that I met was asking the store manager if he had any mixed breed dogs for sale because he wanted a mixed breed, not a pure bred, because he thought that mutts were better. When the store manager suggested that he adopt a dog from the Humane Society, he remarked that all the dogs from shelters were messed up and had been mistreated and couldn't be trained and all were 2-3 years old and he wanted a puppy and they never had puppies and they were all messed up anyway, blah, blah, blah. I could feel my face turn red as I turned to him and said, "Hmm, all of mine came from shelters or rescue and they are all wonderful dogs." I challenge ANYONE to show me a better dog than my Milo, who came from a shelter. Personally, I hope neither the guy that I met or the one that you met ever get a dog. People that ignorant (or, maybe, just plain stupid) should never be in charge of a dog anyway.

 

As far as statistics, I think you'd have a hard time finding any reliable statistics because many dogs that end up in shelters have unknown histories. Many are found as strays and are turned in by someone other than the dog's previous owner. Although there certainly are cases of abuse - I had a foster dog that was a confirmed abuse/neglect case - most of the dogs in shelters are not abused but end up in shelters for the reasons that Melanie stated above. Most of the fosters that I've had that came from shelters have been very nice dogs with good temperaments and have been very trainable. Most come to me with little or no basic obedience training, little or no house manners, and little or no potty training. These dogs may have been surrendered due to "behavioral" problems, but dogs don't train themselves. You need to be willing to invest a little time and effort in the dog, if you want it to be well trained and pleasant to be around. All of the dogs that I adopt out have some basic obedience, crate training, house manners, and are potty trained before I let them go. So, obviously they were trainable.

[sandyleew]

What an idiot. I have a dog from a shelter that we are pretty sure was abused and neglected and I have never had a more trainable dog than him. Maybe you could just direct him to some of the rescue websites or copy pages from the sites to show him. I know that Great Lakes Border Collie Rescue always has dogs that already have learned quite a few commands. If these dogs weren't able to be trained, how could they already know so much?

 

My other dog came from the Humane Society and was a stray and there is absolutely nothing wrong with her. As far as I can tell, she was well cared for and already knew a few commands.

[Guest WoobiesMom]

If he's a middle-aged blowhard, he should remember Benji from the movies. He was a rescue dog older than 10 weeks when he was found. If that's untrainable, I'll take untrainable all day long. If he WANTS untrainable, point him towards terriers, just to be mean. Then you can laugh and say, well, you know, dogs are pack animals and any that are taken from their pack prior to 10 weeks are just not trainable.

 

What a schmuck.

[AKB]

Oh God no- not terriers- we actually had an arguement about airedales some time ago. My childhood dog was an airedale- she was the smartest dog in the world. He was asserting that terriers aren't very bright. Long story short, I got the last word with "Well, smart dogs aren't for everyone. Most people just don't pay enough attention to understand how to work with intelligent animals." And then I left for a bit. So I didn't say anything meaner. Heehee. Passive aggression towards drunks is fun. Thanks for the suggestions, I'm glad I'm not nuts anyway. I like Mary's punch in the head idea best, I think.

[Michelle K]

You're definitely not nuts. I can't stand some people. Many of the dogs used in movies or on TV were shelter dogs. Rain (one of our Shelties) was on her way to the shelter when a lady that we know intervened. Rain's owner thought she was stupid and said that he couldn't get her housebroken. This dog is completely housebroken, and in an obedience class right now doing fantastic. She's super smart and a total sweetheart. If a person has the patience and the know-how to train a dog (not forcefully), any dog can learn. Some may take longer than others but it can be accomplished. One thing that I believe is that a dog is as good as it's trainer/owner. If an owner loves his/her dog and teaches the basics, then where's the problem? Some of us take our training up a few levels, but that's because we love spending time with our dogs no matter where they came from. People like this guy really don't need dogs, IMO.

[MaryP]

This is one of my previous fosters from a shelter. He was going to be euthanized because he wouldn't walk on a leash. I saw him on Monday at his first agility class where his Mom said he is doing great. And, he was even walking on a leash!

 

[G. Festerling]

You know what would be ideal? If it was the guys second (or more for that matter) marriage. Heck his wife got him after he was weaned from his mother (at least I hope so) and he must be ok if she is with him (again, I hope so!).

And humans are obvioulsy pack animals too.

And just like it took them to establish rules between each other it will take some time and effort with any dog. Be it a pup (pottytraining, unknown temper or other issues etc., basic training) or a rescue dog. Plus a good rescue will have already done a lot of the work on the dog and will know how to help. So really, with the right rescue "all" he has to do is just make the dog welcome in his home and learn how do properly handle it.

[Guest WoobiesMom]

Oh God no- not terriers- we actually had an arguement about airedales some time ago. My childhood dog was an airedale- she was the smartest dog in the world. He was asserting that terriers aren't very bright. Long story short, I got the last word with "Well, smart dogs aren't for everyone. Most people just don't pay enough attention to understand how to work with intelligent animals." And then I left for a bit. So I didn't say anything meaner. Heehee. Passive aggression towards drunks is fun. Thanks for the suggestions, I'm glad I'm not nuts anyway. I like Mary's punch in the head idea best, I think.

 

My former Airedale (pic in my profile) was too smart for his own good but then the biggest clutz you'd ever meet! He turned when I called him and bonked his head on walls, doorways, and cabinets more times than could have been good for his pea brain! LOL But smart enough to look at something he'd done once or twice and ask you with his eyes "Why in the world would I do that again when I've just done it and gotten my yummy treat for it? Come back later and I'll let you know if I'm interested." I was the only household where visitors told me I had a dog like a cat and a cat (Miss Jackie - still alive, old and cranky) like a dog who would pester you for attention and lie in your lap as soon as you sat down.

 

I miss my Mr. Rush.

[MaggieDog]

I've done some basic stats at my shelter and approximately 18 to 30% of our dogs (depending on whether you take puppies into account or not) are relinquished due to treatable/preventable behavior problems (escaping, chewing, puppy mouthing, "disobedient", etc.). The majority of the rest are relinquished due to non behavior reasons - moving is a big one - a small percentage are relinquished and never make it to the adoption floor because the relinquishment reason was aggression or illness related. The Spartanburg Humane Society (SC) receives about 10,000 dogs/puppies EVERY year.

[AKB]

I'm so dumb- I typed out a whole reply, but neglected to submit it before I wandered off to look at Woobie's Mom's Airedale picture. He was very handsome. Our Airedale, Chloe, was a genius. We had bells on all of the doors in our house (long story short, my brother was a speedy and crafty toddler) and she taught us to let her out when she rang the bell on the back door. Without any coaxing from us, she began alerting us to things in the yard like fallen baby birds and squirrels. She would simply plant her front feet over them and bark until we came and helped whatever creature she had found in distress. She was amazing. And she was a better judge of character than most people. Anyway- thanks everyone, and Erin I'm going to borrow that percentage when the arguement comes up again. G. Festerling, this is actually his third marriage. And you're right, that would be a great analogy to make to a reasonable person, however, he's not that person. I need a new job.

[Eileen Stein]

http://www.petpopulation.org/research.html

 

http://www.petpopulation.org/topten.html

[Bordercentrics]

I can't help with reliable statistics, but I have a few observations after volunteering in a shelter for three years. I have photographed and described over 6,000 dogs for PetFinder, and I see the same things over and over. Many, many people just don't care enough about the dogs they own to train them and do things with them. The typical dog in a shelter is large, energetic and rambunctious - usually a Lab or Pit Bull. Their temperaments are usually perfectly nice, but it's obvious that no one has ever worked with them or taught them even the most basic manners. They can't walk on a loose lead, they jump on you, and of course they don't know any obedience commands. They may be housetrained, but it's just as likely they have lived in a back yard all their life. There just are not that many people who are willing to adopt a large, active dog and civilize it.

 

Dogs that get adopted quickly include: small dogs, cute dogs, puppies, very good looking dogs, and purebred dogs of breeds that don't show up in shelters very often.

 

Dogs that are hard to adopt are those energetic large untrained dogs, black dogs, and dogs that are shut down or panicked by the shelter environment (this includes most Border Collies).

 

The best outcomes for shelter dogs are to have a breed rescue take them, or for them to have a great temperament evaluation. The ones with great evaluations are often pulled by all breed rescues or sent to Western Washington, which often has a shortage of adoptable dogs with good temperaments.

 

Oh, BTW. many, many people who turn dogs into shelters lie and lie and lie. They say they found the dog (so they don't have to pay a fee) but it's really theirs. They turn in old or sick dogs because they don't want to treat them or pay for euthanasia. They say the dog has a good temperament and it is really dangerous. They say that their child just developed allergies. So, statistics on reasons for owner turn ins will probably be inaccurate anyway!

[AKB]

Thanks for the links - I have read the abstracts but not the full articles yet. Thankfully the subject has not come up in some time- but I'm sure it will again. Good to be equipped. Thanks so much for all of your input. I bet people lie when they turn in their dogs! How terrible. I actually had another discussion with a completely different customer about taking the dog to the pound for euthanasia. I never cease to be shocked at how poorly some treat their pets. On a nicer note, I was talking to one of the regulars I like about his dog and he said, " I would give that dog my kidney, I love him so much." I have no idea why precisely a golden retreiver would need a human kidney, but it was a sweet sentiment.