Not that I think my thoughts on anything are all that important, but it's my blog and I can do what I want.
I am a fierce shelter advocate. I volunteer at a local shelter, my furbaby is from a shelter, we donate more money to shelters than any other organization and I will tell anyone who will listen (and some who won't) to please adopt pets from shelters not breeders.
That being said, I completely 100% agree with the rescue group Mutts and Moms (for whom I can't link to because they had to inactivate their Petfinder site after being harassed to bits by fervent Ellen fans/fat soccer moms.) Okay, Ellen seems like a kind, funny, good person. But, the fact of the matter remains that it is standard operating procedure for rescue groups and shelters to require adopters to return a dog/cat/ferret/fish/etc. that doesn't work out back to said group.
Let's look at it this way: A family goes to a shelter to adopt a dog. The shelter does a home visit and finds that the home is not suitable. The kids are too young and rambunctious for the somewhat skittish dog, the house doesn't have a fence and one will not be put in, and this dog is an escape artist. So, the decision is made to not adopt the dog to this family. Mom decides that her precious little babies deserve that dog, being that they are the fruit of her magical womb. So, she asks her friend with a teenager and a fenced in yard to please adopt the dog and give it to her. The friend does this, and the dog ends up biting on of the kids after it pulls the dogs tail. Now the shelter gets sued.
See where this is going?
Shelters and rescue groups are not for profits usually partially or completely staffed by volunteers. We're not talking about Fortune 500 companies with enough resources to apply the rules on a case by case basis. These groups create rules in order to protect the group, the animals and the public. I'm sure if she had contacted the group directly and said "Listen, this isn't working out for my family, however, my friend and her family would love to adopt this dog and I hope that you would consider moving him there" things would have worked out better.
Instead she did what she wanted and is now using her TV show to create endless problems for a group that she feels has "wronged" her by not letting her do whatever the fuck she wanted. And let's face it, just because someone is famous doesn't mean they aren't up to shenanigans and completely insane (Britney Spears, anyone?)
This whole thing just pisses me off. Shelters and rescues have enough problems without being demonized by some spoiled brat that didn't get her way.
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1 comment:
I totally agree. I like Ellen but she should *read* any contract she is signing. I would think that the contract to adopt a dog is significantly shorter than the contract she has for her job. And I am quite sure she has somebody read that over before she signs it. Anyway, just because she didn't read, doesn't mean that Mutts & Moms should be punished.
It's a SOP to remove a dog placed in a home not suitable for that dog. And everybody knows that the shelter has the right to place that dog in any home they deem fit. Not your best friend's or hair dresser's home.
And while I am sure it was upsetting, Ellen should absolutely not have gone on air with this issue. She only made the whole thing worse and tarnished her name.
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