As a Humane Society volunteer, I have seen the ugly end of the pet overpopulation problem. All kinds of dogs come through the shelter: abandoned, strays, owner surrenders or ones who were simply born homeless.
It can be completely heartbreaking to see so many dogs hurt or sick. The services provided by shelter staff and volunteers are life-saving for dogs like Sierra and Rose, who need heartworm treatment before being adopted, and Toby and Odin, who need behavioral modification.
When I walk through the kennels all I can think is, how can anyone do this? Because the way some of them come in is not just due to overpopulation. It’s abuse. When Gertie, a hound mix, came in with a gunshot wound in her back leg and and a broken tail, it was one of those loss-of-faith-in-humanity moments.
Hoarding dogs have some of the most intense stories. In June, eight chihuahuas came in from one of those situations. A lot of them had no hair and many physical ailments but they were simply the sweetest dogs.
Among all the chaos when the dogs are rescued and come in sick and scared, there needs to be happy moments. Seeing them get into a forever home where they are going to have food, shelter and love makes it all worthwhile.
There is sense of relief when a long-stay dog goes home. It is one less day that they are going spend in a metal cage and one more day they spend in a comfortable home. One of the recent success stories is Rusty, a 10-year-old lab, who went home with a young couple where he is going to live out his golden years on a couch, as any senior should.
Ending up at the shelter is arguably not the best thing for an animal. Yes, they are in a cage most of the day, but they have food, water, refuge and most importantly, love.
To volunteer or to get more information about how to help, go to

Volunteer

http://www.austinpetsalive.org/get-involved/

http://www.austintexas.gov/department/animal-services

http://pets.wilco.org/

http://www.austindog.org/