CAGE CRAZY

Usually I like to illustrate my blogs but this one needs to be what it is.. devoid of cheer. I am heart sick tonight. Dutch is still in the shelter tonight, sleeping on a cold concrete floor, thick bars, one meal a day. No sound but other dogs whimpering and barking and moaning or making no sound at all. No hand petting him, no toys.

Few dogs can take this for long. Around the six week mark the clock starts to tick and Dutch has been there since August 21, 2009. It is now November 7, 2009. How many days, weeks, months. How long can he take before Cage Crazy takes over.

Cage Crazy is a condition known only too well to shelter workers. When a dog comes into adoption he is already one of the lucky few in a county shelter. Hurt beyond treatment? Put to death. Possessive over food? Put to death. Possessive over toys? Put to death. Overly aggressive with other dogs? Put to death. Agression against humans? Put to death. Extremely timid and scared? Put to death. I am using these words because they are the stark truth in thousands of our shelters for millions of the dogs in this nation.. hour after hour, day after day, week on week, all year. I want you to see it. I want those who don't know or don't understand to know. I don't feel like pussy footing around with anyone out there. A dog who goes Cage Crazy has survived all that.. but he will not survive this.

But not for Dutch... not yet. But his time might be running out.

I remember them all. Each one of the beautiful dogs we played with and petted and exercised and worked with.. all dead. But most of all I remember Zambrano, who was play bowing, and jumping and running with 4 little kids playing ball, doing everything right, obeying every instruction... less than a week later.. that beautiful boy was dead.

Why?

When a dog has been in a shelter situation for more than 6 weeks the clock starts ticking. At any point from there a dog can begin to lose their minds. You can usually tell when it is happening, their bark will become more shrill, their behaviour will begin to just be... different.. and then one day they will growl at a visitor.. or nip at a member of staff.. or attack another dog. The dog has simply reached the end of it's rope and can take no more, like a deep depression or a person having a break down.. bam.. and instead of trotting happily out of the shelter on a leash with his new family, a corpse goes out the back door and it cracks my heart.. every single one.. leaves a crack in my heart.

So I am just going to ask a few simple things of you.

For gods sake spay and neuter your dogs. No it is not cruel. No your kids do NOT need to see the miracle of birth. No it will not change the dogs personality. Yeah your dog is beautiful and would make great puppies, one or more of which will probably end up dead on a metal table way too young.

Don't go just to look at the dogs or take your kids like it is a petting zoo. All you are doing is adding to the strain on the dogs. If you want to go play with the dogs.. volunteer!

Don't sit there moaning and whining about the 'terrible kill shelters'. Again, go and volunteer. Because when a NO Kill shelter is full.. guess where all the dogs and cats go folks!

Don't be a part of the problem, be a part of the solution. How? Volunteer, donate, take a care package of things to the shelter. But most of all.

Get your next dog from the shelter. You will get a great dog. But before you pick one please, always ask staff or volunteers which dog has been there the longest and look at that dog first. I am not asking you to take a dog just because you feel sorry for it, you should never do that, but DO look at the longest first in case that is your kind of a dog.

Watching a dog going Cage Crazy and feeling so helpless to save it is the worst feeling in the world. Please go and look at Dutch. He is only 1 yr old.. maybe he could be your baby. He likes tennis balls. He will sit for you to throw. He is not too good at bringing them back or letting them go, but he can be trained. He is cute.

There is a Dutch near you. Or you might be near Rockford.. in which case.. go look at Dutch.

And if you don't? I hope this one of my blogs stays in your mind for a long time.