Got emailed something that has stressed me out

There's a petition about allowing rescues to take into Canada, cats and dogs from war torn countries, it's a good thing in theory but there's one big problem that the people who have created the petition don't seem to of thought about:

I am not sure about Canada, but this country (and I believe in America) there are way too many cats and dogs already in rescues, waiting for a new home,

If rescues start to take in loads of cats and dogs from war torn countries, that will make this problem worse. Rescues only have a set amount of space that they can look after animals (and limited funds to look after them)

This means that it WILL lead to pets already in the country, that desperately need to be rescued from a bad situation, to be left in that bad situation due to lack of space in the rescues, potentially (spelling) They are basically saying, the way i am seeing the petition, that just cause the other cats and dogs are in a worse position, that they want pets already in the country to suffer for longer, to save other pets.

Surely it should be down to the country the cats and dogs are already in, to take responsibility?

Educationing the people in that country i do not have a problem with, teaching them about animal welfare, thats surely a much better idea than saying "yes we will take all the unwanted cats and dogs from that country" then realising "we have taken in too many and our rescues cannot take in any pets that are suffering in this country cause we swamped the rescues with unwanted pets from abroad"

Am I wrong in feeling like this? Or do I have a valid point?

I don’t think you’re wrong at all, what you say makes sense to me.

I don’t begrudge any animal a happy home, and I do know a gorgeous happy re home dog who was imported but like you say there are lots of re homes waiting for homes in their home countries.

I must admit I hadn’t thought about it deeply until you wrote this post.

You are absolutely correct. We can't even handle what we have in our own country. Adding more will just lower the quality of care for those already in rescues & shelters

I tend to agree with you. My city has so many stray cats and dogs that they have to send them to other states in trucks. We can't handle anymore.

That's why I did not sign that petition, tbh - cause pets already in this contry (and USA and likely canada) are getting - due to the fact there are not enough homes to go round, without the animals from other countries getting brought into the UK or the USA or canada

Every animal deserves a loving home, but in my opinion each country needs to take responsibility for their own animals, not expect another country to step in and take loads of unwanted animals

I actually don't have a problem with using them for food, as we do other animals.

This made me thing about children too. There are thousands of kids in the foster system here that need homes, but most straight couples opt for fertility treatments instead. And I have a coworker who adopted from Russia to get white kids. The ones up for adoption here are mostly brown. Also, I specified straight couples because I know plenty of gay couples willing to adopt from foster care.

There's not the same immediate urgency with kids though, the kids are not going to get
simply due to not being adopted, pets however if they are in rescue too long, it can lead to them getting simply for not being adopted fast enough

It makes me think of Ebony and her kittens, if the rescues here had of taken in cat's from abroad instead, Ebony and her kittens would of been left, Ebony would of died then her kittens would of starved to death

This is very thought provoking and you make valid points. It's odd because where I live, it's very hard to find adoptable animals, especially kittens. I worked at a pet store and every day people asked about where to find kittens. I got lucky with my shelter cat. His post was online for maybe two hours when I saw him, and I immediately called the shelter to make an appointment.

But back to your OP, I realize that my location is an exception, most people want the youngest kittens and puppies and rarely consider adopting from a shelter, and yes, like what others say it is so sad to want to bring in animals from war zones if we cannot take care of our own shelter animals.

Sadly, the older the pet, the harder it is to find a new home for the pet

Going to be the devil's advocate.... how is some place like Ukraine supposed to provide shelter and adoption for animals? Some areas are so devastated there is no place for people to shelter.

I understand the concern that areas of the US shelters are already at or above capacity. Would it be doable for other countries to help move animals to safer parts of Ukraine and provide needed supplies?

I'm usually more focused on people than animals.

My point is, bringing pets into another country to re-home isn't the answer, t will lead to

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Originally Posted by downandlonely I'm usually more focused on people than animals.

You must have a lot of faith in people, then.

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Originally Posted by *Beth* You must have a lot of faith in people, then.

Hmmm, thinking it doesn't have to do with faith in people but war torn countries or even all the homeless in our country, the people are in as much a need of safety as the animals. Can't help them all so it is good to focus since there are a lot of animal rescues around

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Originally Posted by eskielover Hmmm, thinking it doesn't have to do with faith in people but war torn countries or even all the homeless in our country, the people are in as much a need of safety as the animals. Can't help them all so it is good to focus since there are a lot of animal rescues around

My mom used to donate to a couple of charities that meant something special to her. Couple of times a year she'd ask if I thought she was doing the "right" thing. I still believe in what I used to tell her. There are sooo many charities out there pick the ones that mean something to you. I would add a caveat to that now to suggest researching the charity to make sure the money is actually going to those in need, not lining the pockets of the administrators. We can save every needy person or critter in the world. Most folks I know also don't have huge amounts to donate. I see nothing wrong with donating to a group that helps a cause close to your own heart.

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Originally Posted by lizardlady My mom used to donate to a couple of charities that meant something special to her. Couple of times a year she'd ask if I thought she was doing the "right" thing. I still believe in what I used to tell her. There are sooo many charities out there pick the ones that mean something to you. I would add a caveat to that now to suggest researching the charity to make sure the money is actually going to those in need, not lining the pockets of the administrators. We can save every needy person or critter in the world. Most folks I know also don't have huge amounts to donate. I see nothing wrong with donating to a group that helps a cause close to your own heart.

Exactly, picking the charity that speaks to you & that gives the money to the needy rather than lining CEO'S pockets is really the important points. I give mostly to horse rescues myself when it comes to charities since I have worked closely with them on a personal basis & know the ones I support. Each person does best when it is something close to their heart

It's too late to edit my previous post. It should say we can't save every person/critter.

I wish we could .....

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Originally Posted by willowtigger I wish we could .....

Me too Willowtigger.