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Humane Society Gets A Checkup

Humane Society Gets A Checkup image
Parent Issue
Day
20
Month
September
Year
1976
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Donated by the Ann Arbor News. © The Ann Arbor News.
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Humane Society Gets A Checkup

BY ZADA BLAYTON Staff Reporter

The Humane Society of Huron Valley was under scrutiny last week.

Phyllis Wright, director of animal sheltering and control of the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) in Washington, D.C. has been evaluating the personnel, operations and budget of the human society.

The humane society is the ninth humane society in the country to be investigated by Wright for the purpose of accreditation.

The. HSUS has begun a project to accredit humane societies in order to improve and expand services of the shelters and to widen public respect for animal welfare and control agencies.

Accreditation is to certify that these human societies are meeting established professional standards of operation.

The Humane Society of Huron Valley has some very outstanding features, said Wright. Wright said she was especially pleased with the society's method of Euthanasia, or killing animals. She said the society has the best technical program of the 50 humane societies she has visited.

The animals are injected with an overdose of sodium pentobaribitol and are dead within 10 seconds.

Areas in which the humane society is being evaluated include; the geographical location of the society and how close it is to major cities it serves, Euthanasia procedures; animal care, which includes equipment and procedures, how adoptions are handled, disease prevention and parasite control, in-service education, and anti-cruelty education.

While Wright said she was impressed by the staff at the local humane society and their concern for animals, the operations of the humane society are limited by space.

The community has grown, she said, but the last addition to the humane society was made in 1961. The humane society is supported by county funds and donations.

Whereas the humane society has not physically expanded, it has established a spay and neuter clinic in an effort to reduce the number of stray animals in the area, said Wright.

About 18 surgeries are being performed a day, said Kathie Flood, director of the humane society. A total of 1,778 have been performed since January. The clinic has been opened since March 1975.

While spaying and neutering animals has probably reduced the number of unwanted animals in the area, there are still many who must be killed. And most of these animals had owners who could not meet the responsibility of taking care of a pet.

Of the 16,780 dogs and cats received by the humane society in 1975, some 10.000 were put to sleep. “There are people who say that humane societies are trying to keep themselves in business,” said Wright. “That’s insanity.”

There isn't a worker at the Humane Society of Huron Valley who wouldn't like for there not to be a need for their job anymore, said Wright.

Of the 13 humane societies in the country which will have been evaluated by the time of the annual meeting of the HSUS in mid October, Wright said she expects about five to be accreditated.

Whether the local humane society here is accredited or not, it is going in the right direction, according to Wright.

Checking New Arrival

News photo by Robert Chase

Humane Society worker Shelley Steele (right) checks a new arrival at the facility brought in by Ann Arbor dogcatcher Mary Ebbitt (left). Phyllis Wright (center), an evaluator with the Humane Society of the United States, observes the procedure for receiving new animals.