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Just read this story in the news and I'm so sad for the poor owners of this dog.
Apparently the dog got loose, was picked up and the shelter had it released as it was a coyote. Actually it was a sheba inu.
Hopefully they will find their dog.
Woman's dog mistaken for coyote, set loose in wild | Odd Headlines | Comcast.net (http://www.comcast.net/articles/news-odd/20100723/US.ODD.Not.a.Coyote/ - broken link)
Last edited by Jerseykat; 07-23-2010 at 06:21 PM..
Shelters make Mistakes ALL the time. I believe that the people Running the Shelters SHOULD be required to LEARN the Breeds 1st!!! Even your Adv VETS have NO clue as to What breeds the dogs are GRRRRR Now I know the adv Mix breed IS hard to figure out BUT if you Know the Purebreds Your 1/2 way there at getting the dogs Homes!! I had a gf that was trying desperatly to save Chow. Seems the shelter decided ALL chows were nasty therefore they we put to sleep as soon as they came thur the doors. Lucky this dog was brought in when the vet wasnt around to do it. So my friend spent a hour talking these people into releassing the dog to her. Well she Finaly won & took the dog home. A month later she brought the dog to Obediance class. Welllll Guess what WAS NOT a Chow was an Oversized POM!!!! It was Coal Black But thats where the "Chow" ended! Another person rescued a Border Collie NOT was a Sheltie......grrrrr the list goes on!!
most shelters have enough trouble affording the staff time needed to provide basic care for the animals; ensuring that staff are experts at identifying all breeds is a bit much. i don't blame shelters for making other things a higher priority for their staff's time. at many shelters, the adoption listings are put together by volunteers and shelters can't really afford to be that choosy about the qualifications of animal lovers who are gracious enough to donate their time. and most shelters deal with way too much volume to rely on just one staffer or director who has somehow become an expert on identifying all breeds to identify every dog who comes in.
and really, if your friend was that into chows, it seems strange that she wouldn't recognize that the dog she was adopting wasn't one if it was so obvious. a pom big enough to be mistaken for a chow has to be some kind of mix anyway. and mistaking a sheltie for a border collie? again, if you're looking for a particular breed, wouldn't you have at least a vague idea of what that breed looks like? and if you're not looking for a particular breed, who cares if it was misidentified by the shelter?
identifying the component breeds of mixes (which make up the majority of shelter populations) can be almost impossible, and even identifying purebreds can be difficult. not all purebreds are perfect breed standard, there are mixes that can end up looking like purebreds, etc. for instance my friends have a poodle/bulldog mix who looks for all the world like an irish wolfhound. seriously! sure, it would be great if shelters could properly identify all purebreds and match them with adopters looking for those breeds, but i don't think it's fair to expect that.
that being said, i agree that no shelter should be euthanizing any breed on admission. and the story the op posted is simply disgraceful. even disregarding the fact that no shelter should be releasing a clearly domesticated dog into the wild, a shiba inu doesn't look anything like a coyote!
Maybe I didnt Make my self Clear!! My friend was NOT looking for a certain Breed! She saw this girl & wanted it BUT the Worker said No cause it was a CHOW....their policy was to Distroy ALL Chows Pits GS & Rotties!! IF she hadnt stayed and Argued thie dog whould have been DEAD!! IF there are policys to Distroy certain Breeds Then YES they Should Damn well KNOW the Difference!!
there shouldn't be policies to destroy certain breeds, period. that's just idiotic.
especially when some of the "breeds" aren't even breeds, like "pit bulls".
but in any case, your original post seemed to focus on the idea that shelters should be required to have breed experts on staff because they could hook up breed enthusiasts with purebred dogs. the problem of dogs being misidentified and destroyed is much simpler to solve by getting rid of stupid policies that discriminate based on breed.
I agree Groar!! Some shelters here also but to sleep ANY Tortie CAT!! Says they are mean..... Not I have had several that were sweeter than other colors/breeds!!! Its just Discrimanation!!
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