Getting 2 Zero
Determining Appropriate Capacity
It is important to work out appropriate capacity for your pound/shelter to predict and prevent overcrowding.
The attached article may be helpful: A Matter of Measurement by Dr Kate Hurley, Director of the University of California Davis Koret Shelter Medicine Program. While quite detailed and technical, this article does raise important considerations for the facilities and programs that need to be in place to prevent animals having to be euthanased because of insufficient space or overcrowding.
It is important to have separate accommodation areas for:
- unclaimed strays being held for the statutory holding period
- quarantine and isolation
- unclaimed strays and surrenders waiting to be assessed
- unclaimed strays and surrenders already desexed, microchipped, vaccinated, wormed, flea-treated and health checked ready to be adopted
This allows the public to be able to visit and view all the animals that are definitely available. It prevent unnecessary delays as people are able to adopt them straight away. It avoids confusion for volunteers and the public about which animals are available. Pounds and shelters can have volunteers working with all the animals that are waiting to be rehomed to exercise, groom and socialise them.
Efficient movement through from admission to being adopted is essential to:
- reduce stress on the animals
- avoid disease transfer
- make best use of the space available to save more lives
Having a foster care program gives more flexibility with space. See Fostering Section.
Having happy photos of animals and promotion of opening hours that suit families and working people also helps fast track the animals into homes.