Above: A report in the Star in September about dogs at the Keysborough Animal Shelter that had days to live.By Sarah Schwager
A SPRINGVALE family has hit out at the Australian Animal Protection Society’s Keysborough Animal Shelter after it refused their request to adopt a dog on death row because they had a kitten.
The Simons family was shocked at the refusal after recent reports in the Star that there were not enough owners for dogs at the shelter.
But Keysborough Animal Shelter president Christine Giles said the shelter had to think carefully before adopting out its animals.
“We do turn some people away. We’re not judgmental, we just want our cats and dogs to go to an appropriate home,” Ms Giles said. “If people have been turned away, as a rule it’s for a reason.”
Stacey Simons said she, her husband Kevin, their daughters Sam, 16, Debbie, 13, and son Anthony, 7, had visited the shelter to find a dog after weeks of consideration.
Mrs Simons said they had narrowed their choice down to three, including a rottweiller called Gemma and an 18monthold labradormastiff cross called Turbo, which they had been particularly keen on.
“They wouldn’t let us pat him, walk him, or anything,” she said. “It’s not like they can’t be trained. “After three (years old) they are too set in their ways but before that they can be trained.”
Mrs Simons previously worked at the RSPCA and said she was capable of caring for and training a dog.
“I was very disappointed,” she said. “My kids were so upset. They really wanted a dog.”
Ms Giles said the shelter took great care when placing an animal in a home, especially if they did not know its background.
“We take a lot of things into account and we hope our staff and volunteers act appropriately in every case,” she said.
“Every situation is different. We try to judge everything on an individual basis.”
Ms Giles said the shelter had released lots of dogs to cat owners but sometimes a dog was not stable enough to cope with that domestic situation.
She said they often put dogs in with cats at the shelter to test their reactions. Gemma and Turbo were found to be incompatible with cats.
“It’s not foolproof but it’s a way of seeing how it reacts,” she said. “We go to extremes to place dogs with the right owner.”
But Mrs Simons said it was not fair to have dogs put down because a home could not be found in time.
When Star asked about the fate of Gemma and Turbo, a shelter volunteer said they were “gone”, which she said probably meant they had been adopted out. The shelter can only legally house a dog for a month before it is either put into foster care or put down.
“We need our customers otherwise we wouldn’t home any animals,” Ms Giles said. “But we’re not going to give them to anyone who comes in. Every situation is different.”
Ms Giles said Mrs Simons had been invited to the shelter to look at more suitable dogs.
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