by Ashley Villines, Northern Oklahoma Humane Society
For a little more than a year, the Northern Oklahoma Humane Society
has worked closely with the Animal Control unit of the Ponca City Police Department to develop a no-kill program for the community. The effort is an adjunct to the highly successful efforts to address a local program with feral cats.
In April and June 2021, two related articles appeared in the local newspaper and on social media. The first article touted the successful efforts to trap, spay/neuter, and release the thousands of feral cats that roam Ponca City. The article focused on the value of the program because it avoided euthanasia for the captured felines. The second article explained in detail the plans to be a no-kill community by 2025. Everyone involved in the effort — the Humane Society, Animal Control, and our volunteers — was pleased with the publicity, and we all expected community support for the effort.
The response was like a tornado that hit with no warning, leaving everyone perplexed as to what had just happened.
We can only assume that a misinterpretation of our message led to an immediate inflation of surrendered animals to the shelters. Because people were no longer afraid of their animals being euthanized, they began to surrender their pets in huge numbers. Instead of gaining help from the community, the opposite happened. Humane Society kennels filled up. Animal Control kennels filled up. Our foster homes were filled to capacity.
I’m embarrassed to say that we had not seen this coming. It wasn’t even on our radar. We have since learned that other communities across the country have had similar experiences.
Why People Surrender Animals
So like any good storm chaser unwilling to give up, we studied the data to understand the needs of pet owners to prevent this from recurring. We looked at traditional reasons for surrender: lack of financial resources, cost of veterinarian care, cost of fencing, lack of low-cost spay/neuter options, and inability to proactively rehome one’s pet.
We uncovered other factors that have an impact also. For instance, it is very difficult to find rental housing in Ponca City that will allow pets — especially certain “bully” breeds and dogs larger than 25 pounds. In Ponca City, 34 percent of residents live in rental housing. That number has grown by 6 percent since 2010, making it more difficult each year. Even lessors who allow pets might want, say, a $500 deposit, a photo of the dog, or other documentation. I have been in that predicament many times, but I will not move without my dog. And tenants who get pets without telling landlords
run a risk of being evicted, which might have caused pets to be surrendered to us.
The COVID pandemic is another factor. Many people who spent more time at home during the initial months of COVID got lonesome and opted to fill the void by adopting pets.
“Fluffy” was really cute as a puppy — just a ball of fuzz with a wagging tail. But two years later, Fluffy isn’t so cute. Fluffy likes to eat. Fluffy needs expensive shots. Fluffy needs to be spayed, at even more cost. And Fluffy likes to chew — two table legs, one pair of shoes, and a homework assignment (or at least that’s what the kid told his teacher).
Fluffy’s owner had not thought through the responsibilities of pet ownership. And now Fluffy’s owner doesn’t view Fluffy as a member of the family. So when the owner read about the city’s no-kill policy, it was time to surrender Fluffy.
Collaboration Can Help
After gaining some insight, we were left with the question, “How do we advertise our progress toward no-kill and try to garner community support without attracting the surrender of more animals than we can handle?” By partnering with organizations such as Best Friends Animal Society and Common Bonds, both of which lead the way in the “No Kill by 2025” initiative, we have identified best practices and programs that enable communities such as ours to create a network of resources to combat pet homelessness and shelter overcrowding. Thanks to the help of our amazing volunteers, we have begun to structure a coalition to help the most vulnerable pets and their families. We now have programs at Northern Oklahoma Humane Society such as fosters, low-cost spay/neuter clinics, Pet Pantry, TNR for Community Cats, adoption events, and transports to partner organizations.
With public relations and marketing tools that focus on the dynamics of communication across cultures, we intend to broaden our reach to as many pet owners as we can. We also understand the different ways that different age groups in our community receive information, and we use multiple channels of communication to raise awareness of our efforts. From social media to newspapers and fliers, we provide value to animal lovers and keep everyone up to date on our programs and progress.
The missing element to sustainability of our lifesaving programs is participants from the community. By having support and resources to protect and serve the most vulnerable pets and their families, we can work together thoughtfully, honestly, and collaboratively to make true no-kill possible. And the next time we see the whirlwind of surrenders headed for our shelters, we will know a fortified group of allies is protecting the animals.
