An Ohio humane society put pet owners on blast last week in a viral social media post as it struggles to keep up with the number of callers asking to abandon their dogs at the shelter.
The Fulton County Humane Society issued a biting rant in a recent Facebook post where it urged pet owners to “get their act together” and “be better humans” to their four-legged friends.
“The number of messages we are getting every week from people wanting to surrender their dog because they ‘don’t have time for it anymore’ or ‘it killed our cat’ or ‘it bit my child’ or ‘I can’t have it where I live’ is OUT OF CONTROL,” the post starts out saying.
“The dog you chose to get and now don’t find so darling because it isn’t a puppy anymore, is not our problem.”
The message was “long overdue,” the humane society explained, noting it needs to focus its effort on pets where the homeowner dies or becomes sick, suffers a house fire or moves into a long-term care facility.
Shepherds, huskies, herding breeds and pit mixes are among the dogs owners have been pushing into the shelter, the Fulton County Humane Society said.
“Dogs are a commitment. If you think you won’t have time for it in a year, DON’T GET ONE. If you know your landlord says you can’t have a dog and yet you get one anyway, then expect us to take it when you are getting evicted, THINK AGAIN,” the shelter wrote.
“Some dogs require hiring a trainer. Be financially prepared to do so! Owning a dog means having the time, money, and patience for it.”
The shelter volunteer behind the post that’s been shared nearly 1,000 times since Wednesday told WTVG it felt good to her chest.
“What is happening has been weighing heavily on all our hearts,” Sarah Klopfenstein said.
“They tell us things like they were pups, and now they’re big,” she said of pet owners. “They chewed up something, they chased the cat. They are moving and the new place doesn’t allow dogs. They haven’t even tried things they should first like contacting a vet or a trainer.”
Shelter director Stephanie Moore told the local news station that the situation is “dire.”
“We have to be straight to the point,” Moore said, noting the humane society received 10 phone calls just in the last week from people looking to dump their dogs for allegedly poor reasons.
Most Facebook users cheered the denunciation.
“Pets are just like children,” one commenter said. “You would never think of giving your children away because they are not little anymore!”
“Very well said!! Dogs are a lifetime commitment,” another user said.
One user, though, feared the tirade would lead depraved people to simply abandon their dogs on the side of the road instead of seeking a shelter for them.
The humane society replied, “Agree to disagree. Sometimes you need to call a spade a spade and hold people responsible.”
