The World’s Most Dangerous Band Promotes Shelter Pets
This has been a year of real progress in ending the use of carbon monoxide gas chambers in animal shelters. Texas banned chamber use on dogs and cats statewide; Mississippi and South Carolina have now closed what we believe to be their last working chambers; Michigan legislators are likely to pass a bill to outlaw their use; and Kansas is poised to promulgate regulations banning such chambers this fall. Just this past week, we closed two more carbon monoxide gas chambers in North Carolina and one in South Carolina, thanks to funding and support provided through The HSUS. We’re working with every shelter and agency ready to shift away from their use.
Kimberley Alboum/The HSUS
The gas chamber at Alexander County Animal Shelter
in North Carolina is demolished.
While we are working to end the use of inhumane methods of euthanasia in shelters, we are also working to end the euthanasia of healthy and adoptable cats and dogs altogether. One effort we are very proud of is our work to promote the adoption of shelter animals. In honor of National Adopt a Shelter Dog Month, today The HSUS and its partners – Maddie’s Fund®, the Ad Council and Halo Pet Foundation – released a video series called “Meet My Shelter Pet” to showcase the unique bonds between shelter pets and their adoptive owners. One of the videos features music man and Late Show with David Letterman band leader, Paul Shaffer, with his daughter Victoria, showing off the lovable personalities of their four adopted dogs, Riley, Jake, Echo and Rue.
The videos are part of The Shelter Pet Project, a public service advertising campaign launched in 2009 to positively change the perception of shelter pets. Shelter pet adoptions are on the rise in the United States. More than 17 million people will acquire a dog or cat within the next year, and each year four million of these animals are adopted from shelters or rescues. Despite these gains, however, 2.7 million healthy and treatable pets are still losing their lives in shelters each year. The Shelter Pet Project’s goal is to bring that number down to zero. To watch the videos or search for your next shelter pet, visit TheShelterPetProject.org.
Inhumane euthanasia is one of the long-standing problems in our movement. Day by day, and shelter by shelter, we are getting closer to where we all want to be as a movement.
Watch Paul and Victoria Shaffer with their canine crew:
