This is an issue that the animal shelter industry faces daily. This is not an issue that I will attempt to avoid. I will however, try to make this a personal story to help other shelter workers understand the importance of the shelter to which they are caring for.
This is a story of work. A very dangerous job for anyone. It is a job that takes a lot of physical strength and dedication and is very important to the animals in the shelter.
People are always worried about how animals and their shelter will affect their lives. This is why we have the shelter in the first place. As animal welfare advocate, I am often asked to speak to groups about the animal shelter industry. I feel compelled to share this story.
The animal shelter industry is a lucrative one and one of our clients has a big problem with it. The shelter workers are very dedicated to their job. There is no job that I am aware of that is more physically demanding than the shelter worker.
I hear from clients that the workers are often hard-hearted and very controlling. At one shelter, a client said that she was told she could not take care of dogs because “they were so afraid of the other dogs.” I felt very bad for this woman, because animals are incredibly intelligent. It would be terrible to put them out of their misery, but I understand why they would feel that way. This is the same problem that occurs in most, if not all, shelter workers.
I think the same thing happens in human institutions (involving human adults and children alike). Adults treat children and animals like dirt, so they’re often cruel to them. I think that’s why people are so reluctant to admit they need help. If someone says to you, “You need to go to the emergency room,” you might think you need to get a referral to a friend or family member, but you probably don’t.
You cannot be as caring towards a child or animal as you would be towards a human child or animal. You need to treat them like dirt, take them for granted, and make them feel theyll be forgotten if they don’t do what you ask. So you have to work hard to keep them in check.
In Animal Shelter, there’s a scene where a group of workers are being reprimanded by a supervisor for neglecting their duty. The supervisor is then shown having a conversation with a nurse about why they are so careless with their duties and their life, and how it all applies to animal shelters. The conversation is, quite literally, heartbreaking.
Animals in animal shelters are often kept in tiny cages. If they are old or injured, they can be put in a “rescue” cage so they dont have as small a space. They usually get to eat whatever they want, but they also get treated like crap if they are sick. This is something that has to be rectified.
One of the problems with animal shelters is that they often dont have the best facilities. For instance, the new animal shelter in my neighborhood is the size of a small bathroom. The people who work there have to clean up after all the animals every single day.