Dogs being burned alive at Ohio shelter
via Pet Pardons - August 10, 2012
Animal advocates have been trying to put an end to gas chamber euthanization at the Fairfield County Dog Shelter near Lancaster, Ohio. Two of the county’s three Commissioners have postponed the vote, even when presented with eyewitness accounts that dogs are coming out of the gas chamber still alive and are thrown into the incinerator along with the dead animals.
Dogs are being burned alive in Ohio.
This week, about 100 people packed the Commissioners’ hearing room to speak to decision makers about discontinuing the inhumane practice. Animal welfare advocates want the county Commissioners to start using lethal injection instead. Fairfield County is among approximately ten of the eighty-eight Ohio counties that still use the gas chamber to kill county-shelter dogs, according to the Ohio Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and the Ohio County Dog Wardens Association.
Commissioner Steve Davis said that he is in favor of changing the policy from gassing to injection. He was the only Commissioner to speak to protestors and thank them for coming to the meeting. He planned to vote on the measure this week, however, Commissioners Mike Kiger and Judy Shupe said they wanted more time to make a decision. Voting was postponed, likely for two weeks. The two Commissioners cited a desire to examine cost and other factors before voting.
Commissioner Kiger attended a gassing at the shelter, but still thought the practice was humane. For those who have never witnessed euthanization by gassing, film footage of gas chamber use is included with this article. Although it is not footage from the Fairfield shelter, it is representative of the process.
This week, about 100 people packed the Commissioners’ hearing room to speak to decision makers about discontinuing the inhumane practice. Animal welfare advocates want the county Commissioners to start using lethal injection instead. Fairfield County is among approximately ten of the eighty-eight Ohio counties that still use the gas chamber to kill county-shelter dogs, according to the Ohio Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and the Ohio County Dog Wardens Association.
Commissioner Steve Davis said that he is in favor of changing the policy from gassing to injection. He was the only Commissioner to speak to protestors and thank them for coming to the meeting. He planned to vote on the measure this week, however, Commissioners Mike Kiger and Judy Shupe said they wanted more time to make a decision. Voting was postponed, likely for two weeks. The two Commissioners cited a desire to examine cost and other factors before voting.
Commissioner Kiger attended a gassing at the shelter, but still thought the practice was humane. For those who have never witnessed euthanization by gassing, film footage of gas chamber use is included with this article. Although it is not footage from the Fairfield shelter, it is representative of the process.
It is clearly apparent that animals that are gassed suffer emotional and physical distress during the procedure, even when the procedure is carried out correctly – which hasn’t always been the case at the Fairfield shelter.
Although the dog warden maintains that he euthanizes 4 to 6 dogs at a time, a former deputy dog warden and a WEP worker both signed affadavits describing very different experiences. Both employees witnessed the overloading of the chamber, which should hold a maximum of six animals for the gassing to work properly. Both stated that they had seen twelve to sixteen dogs in the euthanization cage at once, more than double the recommended limit.
The former deputy said she had witnessed dogs removed from the chamber who were not dead, and the cage was put through a second cycle. She added that this was often the case with puppies who were too young to be gassed because of their immature respiratory development. She stated that the director of the shelter was instructed to purchase stethoscopes to check for heartbeats, but that he had never carried through.
Two witnesses stood up at the meeting saying they had seen dogs come out of the gas chamber that were not dead and that were thrown into the incinerator still alive. Perhaps that is not surprising since employees as untrained as the WEP worker were forced to do the gassing. Apparently, Commissioners Kiger and Shupe don’t find the thought of animals burned alive disturbing enough to shut down the gas chamber.
Animal advocates started a petition to discontinue gassing at the facility which received 7,000 signatures, but the Commissioners shut off their email accounts because they were “tired of receiving the messages.” The only way to contact Commissioners and voice concern is by phone: 740-652-7090 / 614-322-5260, FAX: 740-687-6048 or mail: 210 East Main Street. Room 301 — Lancaster, Ohio 43130
According to the Change.org website, to kill an animal by carbon monoxide poisoning costs $4.98 per animal versus $2.29 per animal by lethal injection (EBI=Euthanasia By Injection). The argument to continue gassing can only be made as a means of convenience, since a group of animals can be done at once, as opposed to individually by injection.
Amy Bogart, with the Humane Society of the United States, said if the only thing preventing the county from going to a lethal injection form of euthanasia is the cost of training, her organization is willing to pay the cost of the training and setup.
The Fairfield County Dog Shelter has already euthanized 183 dogs this year. In 2011, the county euthanized 578 dogs. These numbers represent about 50% of the shelter’s intake.
Occupy for Animals did not compile this article. It was brilliantly written by Ariel Wulff. To see the orginal article, please click here!