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Animal ATTRACTION |
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March 2008
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By Leslie Contreras - Galveston County Daily News She began taking in stray cats while working at Amoco, at one point housing up to 50 cats in an outside enclosure at her home. "They had everything they could possibly need," Dixon said. She said the city appreciated what she did. City officials rezoned her property. Dixon is one of many people in the county who have taken on saving animals as a private mission, and who seek alternatives for unwanted or stray animals from the crowded shelters. In 2000, Dixon formally organized her rescue program in Texas City. With retirement funds, she created Whiskerville, dubbed the only no-kill animal shelter in the county. Last year, the facility euthanized six animals because of extreme illness, she said. "My dream home is sitting on Sixth Street," Dixon said, describing the facility at 1112 Sixth St. North, which houses up to 150 cats. Her organization also runs a dog-fostering program, though she hopes to buy nearby property and open a kennel. "Our pound is a kill facility," she said, referring to the county’s shelter. "They almost have to. It’s very, very sad." Sabrina Fesler, a Santa Fe woman who was recently cited for running a backyard dog rescue program without proper documentation, shares Dixon’s belief there should be alternatives for unwanted animals. For Fesler, the incentive to begin her own informal rescue program began around November when she spent time at the county shelter after hurricanes Rita and Katrina. "I do believe I take better care of these animals than they do," Fesler said. "I keep them until I know they are healthy, physically and mentally, until they are ready to go to a new home." Fesler claims that there are more than a 100 people like her in the county running informal rescue programs, mainly because of some people’s unease with the state of local shelters. She said she met most of these people on the Internet, where animal rescuers meet to trade information on animals and find new homes for them. Fesler plans to get a $60 kennel license to house 11 to 25 dogs in her backyard. She said that she does not plan to spay or neuter the animals, something that most shelter officials encourage. But she said she will vaccinate and de-worm the animals with her own funds and will inspect potential adopters’ homes. The county works with about 10 rescue groups on a regular basis to find homes for pets at the shelter, said Kurt Koopmann, spokesman for the county health district. However, it is unlikely that the county can move to a no-kill shelter anytime soon, said Ron Schultz, director of environmental health programs. "What we stress is responsible pet ownership," Koopmann said, noting that spaying and neutering is an important way to address the problem. The county is looking into starting a program to spay and neuter all animals in the shelter. The League City Animal Shelter neuters or spays all animals it takes in. This story is available through KHOU, Ch. 11's partnership with The Galveston County Daily News. 4 CommentsLeave a comment |
Sabrina Fesler won't be altering these animals? That's not rescue! I find that appalling and irresponsible to the extreme! Shame on her for contributing to the euthanasia numbers! Shame!
Not spaying/neutering the animals before adoption is counterproductive to saving homeless animals because these animals will only create more homeless animals. And it's state law that animals for adoption have to be spayed/neutered before adoption or have a spay/neuter contract.
What are the requirements for obtaining a kennel permit in Galveston to care for a relatively small (but over the limit) number of unwanted dogs/cats in a home shelter? I need to know ASAP. please respond if you know.
I just saw this story. Of course, news only prints part of the story. First of all, I no longer do rescue. I am not going to give the County money. It is my constitutinal right to own as many animals as I want as save as many as I can. My comment on spay/neuter was I would not do it until an animal was adopted. I can not fund it all by myself.