Posted by lillycollette on July 1, 2008 at 5:28 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Perhaps -- just perhaps -- if they worked harder on their ‘attitude’ towards people seeking animals these animals could be placed more quickly.

Posted by dharris12 on July 1, 2008 at 7:08 a.m. (Suggest removal)

I adopted my wonderful dog from the Charleston Animal Society and they were nothing but professional towards me and loving towards their animals. One of the vets that works there fostered my dog when he came in with scabies and mange. She cried with joy when he was adopted. All of the others I encountered there were awesome as well.

Posted by Early on July 1, 2008 at 8:25 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Yep, that's the way we do it in the south, we just keep multiplying and multiplying. I say give the cats a voucher for each kitten they have, that's the way we do it in the south.

Posted by red on July 1, 2008 at 8:27 a.m. (Suggest removal)

I have also had a issue with attitudes from staff members at that location. It seems to mainly be the high school teenagers. When I asked questions about some of the dogs, they rolled their eyes and really had no knowledge of the age, breed etc... I understand not all breeds are known, but a little enthusiasm would have been pleasant. I ended up leaving and not returning.

Posted by drp7773 on July 1, 2008 at 8:36 a.m. (Suggest removal)

There was a story on CNN last week where a shelter picked up 100 dogs all were regular breeds no mutts and instead of just letting people adopt them they decided to charge 200.00 each for the dogs. I guess greed runs rampent even with animal lovers, and I'm pretty sure the shelter was in Georgia. Only July and they have this many and with their rules so many will die by summers end......

Posted by Tammie on July 1, 2008 at 9:08 a.m. (Suggest removal)

I truly wished I was able to adopt an animal right now because I would. I love dogs and cats but I can't get a kitty right now due to the threat of listeriosis and I cant get a dog because I am not home often enough to be a good caregiver. *sigh*

Posted by LadyRenegade on July 1, 2008 at 9:12 a.m. (Suggest removal)

People tend to have an anamorphic outlook on an animal and, especially men, tend to not want to have their males neutered. If these men could come to understand that A) it's not THEIR'S that are being removed and B)the dog/cat doesn't have a clue they are there in the first place that would solve half the issue right there. The other huge mistake people make is that they choose a dog by their looks or because of the breed "ideal" they want instead of understanding behavior traits. A lab, husky, german shepherd, border collie, etc. (basically ANY working dog) should never be placed where it will be alone all day with no stimulation and couch potatoes or not home all weekend. Working dogs need to work, not lay on the couch. This is why all of the questions are asked! www.akc.org is just one of the many websites where you can see which dog would fit your lifestyle. AND remember they're not disposable. You have a kid for life, you have an animal for life. If you don't want it forever, don't get it. There's nothing like unconditional love. :)

Posted by RTC on July 1, 2008 at 9:15 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Tammie, as long as someone else can take care of the litterbox you will be fine.

Posted by Tammie on July 1, 2008 at 9:24 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Morning RTC...my s/o is deathly afraid of cats (damn funny to see a grown man scale a house!) and my parents are allergic. It's a lose/lose situation for me. :-( My neighbors rottweilers are the closest I get to pets.

Posted by RTC on July 1, 2008 at 9:54 a.m. (Suggest removal)

LOL A grown man afraid of cats? Maybe he was told all of those old wives tales when he was growing up. You know, like a cat will suck the breath out of a baby, and those other untrue tales.
Unfortunately, many people are allergic to cat dander, and they won't take allergy medicine.
I have 2 dogs and 1 cat, and the cat is definitely the easiest to take care of. They are basically self sufficient creatures. Get them a self feeder and waterer, and other than scooping the litterbox, they take care of themselves.

Posted by Tammie on July 1, 2008 at 9:58 a.m. (Suggest removal)

My s/o also is allergic to almost every freakin' thing. Pet dander doesnt bother me at all. I think once lil mama is born, I'm going to get a bird. Lol Maybe once she gets older, I may get a dog. I heard beagles are good with small kids, any truth to it?

Posted by PalmettoHawk on July 1, 2008 at 10:07 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Every cat that my wife and I own have been spayed with the exception of the outside stray that we have been feeding and providing for and she will be spayed too. Do we love kittens? Yes we do but we realize and accept that it is our responsibility to spay.

If only people would stop to think about the expense involved in the long term care, feeding and keeping of pets instead of turning a blind eye to the situation they might not think they need that cuddly little ball of fuzz that is purring up a storm or licking their hand, neck and face. Wait...that would go for our own pro-creation, too.

Never mind.....

Posted by blondjes on July 1, 2008 at 10:19 a.m. (Suggest removal)

i moved to Charleston 4 years ago and adopted 2 cats from the ASPCA and i just adopted a kitten from their 2 months ago, that woman should be charged with neglect "kittens came in gasping for air" that is horrible!!! my cats all had respiratory infections and its a quick fix with some medicine that you sprinkle in their food, hopefully this article will encourage more people to adopt and donate

Posted by blondjes on July 1, 2008 at 10:25 a.m. (Suggest removal)

actually that looks just like the kitten i adopted that Kay is holding!

Posted by clms1027 on July 1, 2008 at 10:44 a.m. (Suggest removal)

I know the lady very very very well with the 17 cats. She did her best to take care of them. She hadkids who took care of them. Neighbors came and took care of them. The lady loved those cats more than anything, and was heartbroken.

Posted by Early on July 1, 2008 at 10:45 a.m. (Suggest removal)

There are spay and neuter clinics in the tri-county area that will do it for free or a minimal fee.

Posted by blondjes on July 1, 2008 at 11:13 a.m. (Suggest removal)

was she heartbroken when she saw them dying and gasping for air?

Posted by RTC on July 1, 2008 at 11:17 a.m. (Suggest removal)

I took my youngest dog to the spay/neuter clinic located in the back of the pet store on Sam Rittenburg. Petsmartz or Smartpetz? I think it cost $55. The cost was way cheaper than the vet, and my dog did fine. The only problem for me was having to take the dog in the morning rush hour traffic, and then picking it up during the afternoon rush hour.
It was well worth it though, and the people were very nice.
There is a spay/neuter clinic in Mt.P., but it is privately owned and truthfully, it was not any cheaper than the vet.
I just don't understand why people allow their pets to have litter after litter when it is so much kinder and simpler to have then fixed. I would probably say that it is more laziness and just plain not caring that causes people to act so irresponsibly.

Posted by Early on July 1, 2008 at 12:26 p.m. (Suggest removal)

My wife didn't mind spending the money to have me neutered.

Posted by Tammie on July 1, 2008 at 12:39 p.m. (Suggest removal)

Early you are awful. Lol

Posted by YankeeLady on July 1, 2008 at 1:43 p.m. (Suggest removal)

Well-intended or not, to have 17 sick cats and kittens and not give any thought to seeking medical attention is irresponsible. Besides educating people about the importance of spaying and neutering, and the consequences of not doing do, people need to have their thinking elevated to include animals as conscious beings deserving of kindness, not throw-aways.

Posted by Eye_on_You on July 1, 2008 at 1:57 p.m. (Suggest removal)

PalmettoHawk, get a job at the SPCA

Posted by LadyTarHeel on July 1, 2008 at 2:35 p.m. (Suggest removal)

I adopted my cat from Pet Helper's and I would be willing adopt another if Snuggles wasn't an alpha female and didn't like any other animals in her "territory". (She doesn't even like when my family or friends come over because they take the attention off of her). It saddens me to hear about the 17 cats and kittens that had to be put down. I tell all of my friends who are in search of a pet to look at the animal shelters first instead of spending tons of money on a "fancy pet". From first hand experience, they make great pets. Sure, they may have problems, but it's nothing a little love and a gentle hand can't over come!

Posted by ColdBeer on July 1, 2008 at 3:41 p.m. (Suggest removal)

I hope they catch whoever is putting these spikes in the animal shelter residents.

Posted by ForPnC on July 1, 2008 at 3:45 p.m. (Suggest removal)

See what I get for working all day? I don't get to read the news and comment!

Most all of you have said everything I was going to say.

Tammie - Years ago I had a co-worker visit my house and she brought her husband. He saw my cats. He asked that I put them in a separate room until he was gone because he was allergic. I told him that it was the dander throughout the house that he's allergic to. Then I told him to get the hell out. I'm not locking my cats up for anyone. After he attached his jaw back on to his face he asked if I was kidding. I told him no and slammed the door.

Man, life is great!

Posted by ColdBeer on July 1, 2008 at 4:16 p.m. (Suggest removal)

I have a two year old Shi-tzu, male, neutered, inside dog, free to a good home that has a fenced back yard....

Posted by ForPnC on July 1, 2008 at 4:20 p.m. (Suggest removal)

ColdBeer - My cats are bigger than your dog! And, my 85 pound labs would think it's a toy.

You'll never get rid of your dog. You love it and you know it!

Posted by lillycollette on July 1, 2008 at 4:28 p.m. (Suggest removal)

While I do support animal rescue -- my experience in that avenue of acquiring an animal was so unpleasant, discriminatory and intrusive that I was more than happy to go to a private breeder.

I am happy for anyone that found acquiring an animal through any rescue organization to have been a positive experience. However, those happy instances do not negate the damage and potential for damage to people and animals in the cases that are handled badly.

Animal rescue is an unregulated cottage industry that is waiting for the -- perfect disaster / perfect law suit -- before people will take their head out of the sand and take a serious look at the potentials for mischief in these cases.

Posted by MindBath on July 1, 2008 at 4:31 p.m. (Suggest removal)

CB, thanks for clearing that up. I thought Spike, from Tom and Jerry, was suspected of being Baby Daddy to residents of the shelter...

Posted by ColdBeer on July 1, 2008 at 4:33 p.m. (Suggest removal)

ForPnC, "My" dog is actually a mixed breed that I got from the pound 8 years ago. This little Shi-Tzu was "supposed" to be my daughter's dog. The silly little dog decided it likes me better than anyone else, so my daughter gave up on it. I am crazy about the dog... it's 100% personality, but I'm just not ready to start another 10-15 years as a pet owner. It makes it too hard to travel having a dog at home.

BTW, my cat is also huge.... HUGE!

Posted by RedHorse7 on July 1, 2008 at 4:47 p.m. (Suggest removal)

I am a volunteer for a local animal rescue. I know first-hand that "fostering" an animal is a rewarding experience. The applicants are screened very carefully and the adoption "fee" is to help defray the costs of neuter/spay, micro-chip, shots, etc. Animals which are given away are more likely to end up as lab experiments......unless, of course, you are familiar with the person or he/she came highly recommended.

Posted by ForPnC on July 1, 2008 at 4:59 p.m. (Suggest removal)

RedHorse -
I wish I could foster and I've thought about it often but I work all day and wouldn't have the time it takes to care for an unknown animal.

When my two labs are gone I'll go to the Lowcountry Lab Rescue again and adopt two Black Labs. Their fees don't allow them to break even on the medical care they give their dogs.

Did you know that black dogs are the last to be adopted simply because of their color? What a shame.

Good for you for being a foster!

Posted by walleyedwoman1215 on July 1, 2008 at 6:01 p.m. (Suggest removal)

I sound like a broken record, but please, please, PLEASE consider adopting a homeless animal before going to a breeder. While the majority of breeders are educated, kind and devoted to bettering their chosen breed, the fact is their purebred Bichons, Yorkies, daschunds, etc. won't be euthanized if not purchased. A terrier-mix in a cage at an underfunded, space-strapped county animal shelter will die if no one takes it home.
If SPCA personnel seem harsh or unduly suspicious, it's because they have the animals' best interests at heart and have seen too many pets come back after adoptive owners decided they didn't "fit in with the family" or didn't have time to properly care for them.
My husband and I have adopted a boxer, a Lab and a chow-mix from the SPCA, and a Jack Russell from a nonprofit rescue. Please, try to save a life first. Your new pet will reward you with a lifetime of love.

Posted by stand828 on July 1, 2008 at 6:35 p.m. (Suggest removal)

When I got my last dog at the SPCA on Leeds in 1992, it was very simple. I walked down the row of kennels, saw Cleo behind the gate, fell in love, went inside and paid my $60 bucks and that was it. She came home, and just died last Novemeber (three days after our 15th anniversary), after being spoiled rotten for 15 years.

A few years back someone in my office gathered up a litter of kittens and their stray mother who had been staying by our building and took them to the shelter. We had been feeding them and I missed them so much that I went to the SPCA and bought the ones still there back. It was the mother and two kittens, and my mom was going to keep the mother and one kitten, and my best friend was going to keep one kitten. The only problem was that they had caught some kind of illness in the kennels, and had to be fostered before they could be adopted out.

So I agreed to foster them, and what an experience that was. One morning I went into the guest room where I was keeping them to give them their meds, and they were obviously better. The mother cat was climbing up the drapes then jumped from the blinds across the room to hang onto a somewhat valuable oil painting on the wall. I was horrified, and hadn't closed the door, so she then got loose in the house...it was a nightmare.

I'm a lawyer and I had to be in court, so somewhere on a court transcript tape there is a judge commenting on my disheveled appearance as I raced in for a hearing, late and breathless. The judge asked if anything was wrong, and I just said, "Don't ask...I'm fostering cats at home for the SPCA." "Oh, well that's a nice thing for you to do," he said. I think that was about the only time he was ever nice to me.

I do agree that the shelters have gotten overly intrusive in the information they require before they adopt out a pet, though. Now, I understand I'd have to basically give them my life story, income level, housing information, etc., before they determine whether I'm qualified to adopt and what breed or size animal I may choose. I'm sure they may mean well, but if I go to choose a pet, I've probably already thought all that stuff out. If I fall in love with a collie and they say I can only take a poodle, then screw them...they have only themselves to blame if they end up having to euthanize those dogs. While I'd much rather have a shelter dog, I'm not going to go through that and be judged by some stranger just to get a pet. I don't think animals should be sold for profit with so many homeless ones in the shelters, but I'm afraid I'd have to consider a breeder before I'd go through such a restrictive and unnecessary process.

Posted by wonderdog on July 1, 2008 at 9:39 p.m. (Suggest removal)

Open your heart
Open your home
Adopt from the shelter!

Posted by FiscalConservative on July 2, 2008 at 5:50 a.m. (Suggest removal)

We should export the excess cats and dogs to China. They eat them. They could be our next biggest cash crop.

Posted by red on July 2, 2008 at 12:22 p.m. (Suggest removal)

I totally agree stand 828...I answered all questions on the application honestly with showed them that had 2 other dogs. A chihuhua and a boxer. I was looking for another Boxer type breed to keep my current boxer company considering my chihuahua is getting grouchy....after seeing how I answered with having 2 other animals, they inform me that I had to bring my 2 other pets into the shelter ( not to mention kennel cough, parvo, etc....) and allow them to play and meet each other before they would allow me to adopt.
After hearing this, I left and havent been back.
Not only did I not understand this process they were extremely rude.
Don't get me wrong, I understand the importance of making sure these animals go to a good home, but I can not see paying $80 for an animal and allowing him to be placed on a rope outside with no shelter, food, water etc....that makes absolutely no since (sp?).

Posted by katrenavantassle on July 2, 2008 at 2:22 p.m. (Suggest removal)

Yes, the shelter is overcrowded and understaffed, hence the need for teenager caregivers...without experience enough to deal with the public in a professional manner. But all in all, the SPCA on Remount is a wonderful place. I have personally had nothing but good things with them. They have their reasons why they get so personal and its all for the benefit of the animals. See, I now have 5 dogs and one cat.3 of the dogs,were adopted by so called "good home providers" and when I found out these people were going to take the dogs back to the shelter because they either couldnt keep them where they lived or because they didnt want them anymore...I REFUSED TO LET THEM DO THAT...SO THEY ARE NOW MY DOGS. (really are my "kids") I have had them for 3 yrs now...and they are a part of my family. My two dogs I had previously have completely received them as family and now they are a well behaved pack. We watch Cesar Melan together to learn about pack behaviors and we are doing great together. They have their own room in my home where they can mingle with us at any time but at night, they like to go into their crates... believe it or not) They have a entire fenced in acre with toys and fresh water bins to run around on, and get lots of love daily. They have all had their rabies shots (at the Remount Rd. SPCA) and they have no illnesses or diseases. I love them very much. The cat is my daughters but he is also accepted by the pack as a "strange" but tolerated member. LOL!!
Kay is doing a great job!!! GO KAY!!!

Posted by katrenavantassle on July 2, 2008 at 2:26 p.m. (Suggest removal)

It is so important that these adoptee's become accepted by the other animals. If not, they will constantly fight for food, space, attention and any other thing they think they are not getting because of this new animal. That is why they need to become aquainted...and see how they respond. I have seen some animals be introduced before more than once and no matter what you do, they cannot get along. No sense in adopting that one...so you see, that is why they do that.
If only I could go back in my youth and become a vet...I would. I love all animals...so much. I would be a good one.

Posted by gr8ful on July 8, 2008 at 12:02 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Yes, blondjes, she was and still is heartbroken.

Being overwhelmed, not only by the cats reproducing, but other things as well in her life, is in no way a good excuse for what happened to the kittens and adult cats. Mind you, most of the cats relinquished were kittens. She is a lady with an overabundance of love in her heart for ALL living creatures, including the stray kitten she found in the middle of Hwy 7 and brought home to avoid being killed in hopes of giving finding him a good home as well. Unbeknownst to her, it was sick and unfortunately seems maybe to have passed it along to the other kittens.

I think it her case, it was too much love mixed with too much ignorance. She'd already contacted Pet Helpers and Berkeley County PAWS for help in spaying the adult females, and had an ad with picture ready to be posted in P&C for the week following the Saturday they were relinquished. The only reason she didn't take them to the SPCA was because she wanted to find homes for them and knew their inevitable fate if they went to the SPCA. Unfortunately for the kittens, cats and her & her family, the situation ended that way for all her cats.

Because of this, she hopes that others will see the need for spaying and neutering animals so the same doesn't happen again.