Surrendering your pet
Surrender Fees effective January 14, 2012
- Puppy/Kitten under 6 months of age $ 5.00
- Litter of 4 or more $ 20.00
- Adult 6 months and up $ 10.00
CCHS is a “no-kill” organization which means we do not euthanize to make room for new arrivals. We do euthanize dogs and cats for temper (aggression or extreme unsocial behavior) and for illnesses/injuries beyond our financial means to correct or treat. As a result, CCHS can only take animals in when we have space, and space is only opened when animals are adopted or transferred to another rescue organization. CCHS stands by its decision to be no-kill because of a basic philosophy that the overpopulation of companion animals can only go down through increased spays and neuters, and euthanasia in many ways contributes to the overall perception of companion animals as “disposable.” There are many facilities, especially animal control shelters, who do not have the luxury of making this choice. No one can expect a facility that receives dozens of animals per day or week to maintain them until they all find homes. That expectation is unrealistic and those organizations who are forced to euthanize do so only because they have to – not because they want to.
While many people looking to surrender a pet – either owned or a stray – prefer to have that animal go to a no-kill facility like CCHS, few people actually understand that being no-kill means having limited intake openings. While we would love to take in everything that needs help, we simply can not because of limited space, limited help, and, most importantly, limited finances. CCHS works very hard to move as many animals as we can through a variety of outlets: transfers to other rescues or agencies; puppy rescue partners. But, until more people spay and neuter their pets, the numbers of unwanted dogs and cats will never go down.
If you have an animal you need to surrender, we will try and help you. For puppies, it is imperative they receive a set of puppy shots immediately. Sometimes, if we don’t have room for them on a particular day, we might be able to help you place them through another group. But, puppies MUST have a set of vaccines to go anywhere. CCHS can help with shots to at least get them vaccinated should an opening happen. The pups can receive their first shot and return to your house until either space opens at our facility or another facility. We can also help place your puppies, or adult dogs, if you essentially become their “foster parent.” CCHS can post them on our internet listings and then potential adopters can see the pups or dogs and email or call with questions. The best way to prevent unwanted litters of puppies is to have your dogs spayed or neutered. One female dog and her offspring can produce 67,000 puppies in 6 years.
For cats, CCHS does not have as many outlets for them. Kitten season typically happens in the spring and fall, and we QUICKLY become overwhelmed with kittens, nursing mothers and very young litters, or older kittens that the owners could not give away. Cats multiply at alarming rates. One female cat and her offspring can produce 420,000 kittens in 7 years. Local animal control does not accept cats, and there are dozens of feral colonies living in and around Carroll County. Stray cats and litter after litter after litter becomes a huge problem. Guess what? Spaying and neutering is the ONLY way to control this problem.
If CCHS can not take in your animals, there are other outlets. There is a huge listing of other shelters and rescues at www.petfinder.com and you can type in your zip code and get a list of shelters/rescues closest to you. For purebred animals – either dogs or cats – you can typically find a breed rescue by doing a simple Google search and type in that breed with Tennessee in the subject heading. For puppies especially, people can call Precious Friends Puppy Rescue in Clarksville, TN at 931-551-4407. Precious Friends regularly ships puppies to North Shore Animal League in New York. But, spots on these shipments are at a premium and people are encouraged to contact them as soon as they can. Precious Friends requires puppies being surrendered to have had their 1st puppy shot 14 days in advance, be between 8-12 weeks old at the time of surrender, and have no hair loss. They will vaccinate the puppies for you and then the pups would go back to your house to wait for the additional two weeks. Pit or pit mix puppies are not accepted. Please make all arrangements with Precious Friends.
Dumping is a very common practice by irresponsible people who allow their animals to reproduce or suddenly decide they have to unload an unwanted dog or cat. Dumping animals creates numerous headaches for people who are the lucky recipients of a sudden litter of puppies/kittens or confused and terrified adults. Dumping animals is one of the meanest, cruelest things anyone can do to a dog or cat. Euthanasia is more compassionate than tossing a dog or cat out in a strange area where its fate is often decided by being hit by a car, shot, injured in a fight with other desperate strays, starvation, or dehydration. Dumping animals – even at an animal shelter – is against the law. For people who unexpectedly become caretakers of additional pets, contact us and we will discuss options.
CCHS would like to save every animal in the area, but we simply can not do that – there are WAY too many. The overpopulation of dogs and cats is the number one reason why we constantly ask pet owners to have their pets spayed and neutered. But, we try and do what we can with our resources. Please call the shelter at (731) 358-1019 or email cchstn@gmail.com for more information about admission or additional options.