DALLAS – Inside the walls of Dallas Animal Services, things can be friendly, frenetic, and sometimes fatal for a stray. The unsheltered dogs weren’t the only creatures wagging tails going into the fall. The city department saw euthanization numbers dip.
One problem: the dogs, cats, and a few other animals still keep the place at capacity.
“We are taking in 5,000 more animals this year than we did at the same time last year, which just shows you that many more animals have lost their homes,” said Mary Martin, assistant director for Dallas Animal Services.
Martin is sure the animals are not materializing out of nowhere.
“These guys don’t fall from the sky,” Martin said. “When people talk about strays, those were owned animals that have lost their homes.”
According to Martin, they have solid data to support why they are getting so many animals.
“We have a lot of anecdotal information, and it looks like the economy factors in,” she said. “It looks like people’s inability to pay for veterinary care factors in, their inability to pay for pet deposits, breed restrictions in housing.”
Dallas Animal Services provided CBS News Texas with statistics revealing where its success started in the summer and into the fall. While intake numbers fluctuated, the department was proud of adoptions, rescues, foster-to-adopt numbers, some success in returning to owners, and a drop in euthanasia.
July
- Dog Intake: 1,696
- Cat Intake: 738
- Dog Adoptions: 776
- Cat Adoptions: 408
- Dog Rescues: 401
- Cat Rescues: 180
- Dogs to Foster: 239 (+172 foster-to-adopt)
- Cats to Foster: 172 (+81 foster-to-adopt)
Euthanasia (Not owner requested): 378
August
- Dog Intake: 1,465
- Cat Intake: 778
- Dog Adoptions: 745
- Cat Adoptions: 382
- Dogs Rescued: 391
- Cats Rescued: 135
- Dogs to Foster: 156 (+163 foster-to-adopt)
- Cats to Foster: 209 (+96 foster-to-adopt)
Euthanasia (Not owner requested): 282
September
- Dog Intake: 1,512
- Cat Intake: 758
- Dog Adoptions: 667
- Cat Adoptions: 330
- Dogs to Rescue: 439
- Cats to Rescue: 109
- Dogs to Foster: 178 (+114 foster-to-adopt)
- Cats to Foster: 214 (+91 foster-to-adopt)
Euthanasia (Not owner requested): 289
“What I’m grateful for personally is the team that we have brought together and how dedicated to life-saving they are,” Martin said. “How dedicated they are to really finding that balance between public safety and life-saving and that our stats show that.”
Part of that team is medical supervisor Susanah Jimenez. Before coming into the North Westmoreland Road each day, Jimenez said she takes a deep breath and says a prayer.
Every animal logged into the facility gets a medical evaluation. Jimenez and her team encounter cats with eyeballs hanging out and misaligned jaws, dogs bloodied and scarred from fights, and animals with pneumonia and broken limbs.
Jimenez points to one of many injured dogs under their care.
“I don’t know what happened to her, but when she came in,” Jimenez said. “Her finger was literally hanging on by a piece of skin.”
During Jimenez’s tour, CBS News Texas witnessed a Dallas Police officer present. Jimenez’s team would need to examine a dog with a rape kit due to alleged circumstances we didn’t inquire.
“We’ll develop a relationship with animals—bringing them in—treating them day after day,” Jimenez said. “Then, you know, space reasons or because medically—no one comes up for them—we’ll have to turn around and euthanize them.”
For her, that’s when things on the job can become emotional. Martin said Jimenez runs the equivalent of an M.A.S.H. unit.
Cats are not the problem. The facility only takes in particular cats. Dogs, however, dominate the population and the capacity of every square foot on Dallas Animal Services.
“Especially average-looking ones over 40 pounds and resembling bully breeds, shepherds, or huskies, tend to occupy space longer,” Martin said.
Labradoodles and poodles, she said, leave the facility in no time. Dallas can move animals nationwide thanks to partnerships with approved animal advocate groups and rescues.
Operation Kindness in Carrollton is one of Dallas’ partners.
“We help our local city shelters clear their shelters by transferring animals and their care that need extra care over to us so they can be adopted,” said Lizzy Watson, who works at Operation Kindness.
Watson said they placed over 5,500 animals for adoption in North Texas.
Martin said the organization is one of their invaluable partners.
“I can’t stress enough how important they are to us,” Martin said. “We would never be able to have achieved any of the successes we’ve had in the last year without them.”
Martin said they get help with housing, medical services, and even forensic work from Operation Kindness.
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