New experiences

Leaving the suburbs of Cleveland for the hills of Athens was a bit of a culture shock. However, I was determined to get involved with community organizations that interested me. Throughout high school I volunteered at the Stay-A-While Cat Shelter, a no-kill shelter in North Royalton, Ohio where cats roamed free in large rooms. Every Saturday I went in to the shelter to clean and play with the cats. The work was easy and fulfilling. Every once in awhile I would see cats and kittens leaving to go to their new homes.

I figured that my experience at the Athens County Humane Society cat shelter would be similar. I started going to the shelter once a week. At first my duties mainly consisted of cleaning and feeding the cats. Shortly thereafter I started helping the manager, Marla Brooks-Verity, with medical procedures. I learned how to flea treat, deworm and give shots to cats and kittens. I also learned how to hold the cats by the scruff of their neck to keep them still for drawing blood for tests or giving shots.

After only working there for a month, I took my first foster kitten home to my dorm room. I quickly learned that kittens at the shelter had little chance of surviving their time there. Because of their weaker immune systems, kittens would become ill in the shelter environment after days of arriving. Feline upper respiratory infections ran rampant.

I continued working at the shelter for the rest of the year. It quickly became an important part of my life. I was usually there at least four days a week, sometimes more. Over the course of my time at the shelter I had many experiences that made the animal welfare problems in Athens really hit home. Some of the experiences that I'll share are not pleasant and may be hard for some people to handle.

FACING REALITY

"Where's Joe?" I asked when I came into the shelter one day. I was refering to the the tabby and white cat with the loud meow. "Did he get adopted?" No one would answer my question. After this situation was repeated several times, I finally learned to shut up. It was my first important lesson - don't ask questions when cats and even whole litters of kittens disappear overnight.

Shelter manager Marla Brooks-Verity would go to the shelter after hours to euthanize the cats. "I probably euthanized about 35 cats a month, and at least three times that number during kitten season," Marla said.

During spring, summer and fall (kitten season) every available cage was taken. The small shelter was busting at the seams, stuffed full of the unwanted and forgotten cats of Athens County. At one point we even housed kittens in the storage closet because of the lack of space. Every day, more cats would be dumped outside when no one was there. There were no cages outside, so people would just let cats loose, which contributed to a growing feral colony in the area around the shelter. I even remember arriving at the shelter and finding over 10 cats and kittens that had been dumped outside. Often, newborn kittens would be left in boxes by the front door with no mother in sight.

With the shelter so full, sickness was common. There were several times when I found kittens dead in their cages - a result of illness or disease. Dead cats were carefully wrapped in plastic and placed in a large freezer until they could be picked up for disposal.

Marla served as the shelter manager for seven years. "Before we got the large freezer, we wouldn't have anywhere to put the bodies. Sometimes people took them outside and threw them in the dumpster. The whole place smelled like rotting cats," she said.

Shelter volunteers did everything they could to help out, but them number of animals was overwhelming to all. Adoptions were the one bright spot, though they were few and far between. Most people wanted small kittens, so adult cats were often overlooked. I found myself trying to not become attached to the adults because I never knew if they would be there the next day.

CLOSING THE DOORS

In November 2005, the Athens County Humane Society cat shelter closed its doors. On paper, the shelter closed because the organization was forced off the property for legal reasons. However, several humane society board members had been lobbying to close the shelter for quite some time.

The shelter had become a place where no one wanted to be.

"I wanted the shelter to close," said Marla. "And it's good that it closed because it made us focus on prevention and spay and neuter."

With the building gone, the humane society began a foster care system for homeless animals and started efforts to provide more low-cost spay and neuter services to residents. They began scheduling a low-cost moblie clinic called RASCAL to come each month to perform spay and neuter surgeries.



After the shelter closed I could breathe easier. I didn't have to face the same devastation every day. But this doesn't mean that there aren't still problems. In fact, many Athens residents are upset that there is no shelter in the county.

WHAT DO YOU THINK?

Was closing the shelter a better option than killing most of the cats that went into it?

What would you do if you found a stray animal in Athens?

*Above photos by Amy Lauer

First impressions

In February 2005 I set off to find the Athens County Cat Shelter. After several wrong turns I maneuvered my car down a steep embankment, across a rickety bridge and along a winding gravel road until I reached my destination. What I found was a small wood-shingled house — the home of the Athens County Humane Society.

During my sophomore year at Ohio University, my love for animals inspired me to begin volunteering at a local animal shelter. I had done extensive volunteer work at animal shelters in my hometown, but I quickly discovered that my experience in Athens would be far different.

Athens is located in the heart of the Appalachian region, nestled in the hills of southeastern Ohio. The area is marked by beautiful terrain and an overwhelming culture of poverty. In fact, Athens County is one of four counties in Ohio designated as "distressed" by the Appalachian Regional Commission.

The poverty level directly affects animals and animal welfare in the region. Many residents lack the money or means to properly care for their pets. According to Athens County Humane Officer and Dog Warden Lana Planesik, adequate food and shelter are the biggest animal welfare concerns. Pet overpopulation is another major issue affecting the Appalachian region. Because medical procedures such as spay and neuter surgery are expensive, pet owners often neglect to sterilize their pets.

I am creating this blog for an assignment in my Online Journalism class. When I first learned that I had to create a journalistic blog on a topic of my choice, I was extremely excited. Finally, I could inform others about matters pertaining to animals in the Appalachian region.

This blog will delve into the animal welfare issues that are prevalent in the Athens area and throughout other parts of Appalachia. It will follow the efforts of people and organizations who, like myself, strive to make a difference for the animals.

I look forward to this experience and I hope that I can shed light on a topic that many may be unaware of. Your questions and comments are welcomed and encouraged, as they will help me continually improve the content of this blog.