FAST FACTS:
(Memphis, 7/15/2009) Of the 18,000 animals that came through the Memphis Animal Shelter last year 13,000 were euthanized.
Ernest Alexander, the head of the shelter, says 75 to 100 animals are put to sleep each day.
"I've been an animal person all my life. Me and the staff, it touches us all."
Alexander says the shelters open-admission policy forces the facility to take-in any animals brought in.
That means some dogs are housed three and four to a kennel. Creating overcrowded conditions that sparked a dog fight over the weekend.
"We have to referee fights. That's something we don't want to allow," says Alexander.
Michelle Buckalew says there's a simple solution to the overcrowding and what she calls an unacceptable amount of animals being euthanized.
Buckalew is as a member of the Memphis Animal Services Advisory Board.
At a recent meeting she took the shelter to task for what she calls a lack of strong, visionary leadership from Memphis City Hall, all the way down to the shelter.
"We have to have supervisors that are geared toward compassionate care. And a community involved who'll say enough is enough."
Alexander says "there is no problem with leadership. I have a staff that's cooperative."
Alexander says he's doing the best he can with the tools afford him. But that's hard considering his budget was slashed by twelve percent.
That's not good news in a bad economy that's forcing more and more people to drop their pets off at the shelter.
He says one thing that would help is if people spayed and neutered their dogs. This weekend there's a mobile adoption going on at Hollywood Feed on Poplar and Erin.
- Up to 100 animals euthanized a day at Memphis Animal Shelter
- Last year 13,000 put to sleep
- Overcrowding is part of the problem
(Memphis, 7/15/2009) Of the 18,000 animals that came through the Memphis Animal Shelter last year 13,000 were euthanized.
Ernest Alexander, the head of the shelter, says 75 to 100 animals are put to sleep each day.
"I've been an animal person all my life. Me and the staff, it touches us all."
Alexander says the shelters open-admission policy forces the facility to take-in any animals brought in.
That means some dogs are housed three and four to a kennel. Creating overcrowded conditions that sparked a dog fight over the weekend.
"We have to referee fights. That's something we don't want to allow," says Alexander.
Michelle Buckalew says there's a simple solution to the overcrowding and what she calls an unacceptable amount of animals being euthanized.
Buckalew is as a member of the Memphis Animal Services Advisory Board.
At a recent meeting she took the shelter to task for what she calls a lack of strong, visionary leadership from Memphis City Hall, all the way down to the shelter.
"We have to have supervisors that are geared toward compassionate care. And a community involved who'll say enough is enough."
Alexander says "there is no problem with leadership. I have a staff that's cooperative."
Alexander says he's doing the best he can with the tools afford him. But that's hard considering his budget was slashed by twelve percent.
That's not good news in a bad economy that's forcing more and more people to drop their pets off at the shelter.
He says one thing that would help is if people spayed and neutered their dogs. This weekend there's a mobile adoption going on at Hollywood Feed on Poplar and Erin.
