Too Many Animals Crowding Shelter

Too expensive, unwanted or forgotten are among endless excuses contributing to the highest intake a Las Cruces animal shelter has ever seen.

Dr. Beth Vesco-Mock, director of the Animal Services Center of the Mesilla Valley, says the euthanasia rate is skyrocketing.

The topic is sensitive to discuss, but ABC-7 feels it is an important reality to share.

A metal cage with a blanket, pillow and water bowl may be one of the only ones at the shelter that was empty Wednesday evening.

Supervisor Curtis Herring says most often a cage is only empty for a short time, when an animal is euthanized to make room for the next one that is dropped off.

Vesco-Mock says the shelter is overcrowded and full of more and more animals who come face to face with death everyday.

“Hi guys, how ya’ll doing, I know, I love you too,? Vesco-Mock said, as she let a litter of puppies lick her face through a metal crate.

But Vesco-Mock says she wishes she had never met them at the shelter at all.

“It is just really, really irresponsible,? Vesco-Mock said. “This is a lifetime commitment of the animal and it’s really not fair to be dumping it at the shelter all the time and expecting the shelter staff to be able to come up with a solution for your animal.”

In the month of June, Vesco-Mock says the shelter became the last resort for more than 1,600 dogs and cats.

Animal Control Officer Brian Goodman unloaded two more dogs Wednesday afternoon. The dogs, Buddy Boy and Laura, will now have to fight for space at the shelter. If they are lucky, they will get a cage big enough for them to share.

“They bring their dogs in and say they don’t care if we euthanize it, it’s our decision,? Herring said.

Herring is faced with the decision of death every day. A golden-haired dog, a new mother, is one of nearly 70% of the animals at the shelter that will not survive.

?This is definitely one of the hardest things I’ve ever done in my life,? Herring said.

Inside a small room with a metal table, Herring shaved the fur off part of her paw. Another man, held her in his arms. For this brief moment, she is not alone. Then there is a quick injection, and her final breath. Her final resting place is a black garbage bag stuffed in a freezer.

“It’s heartbreaking, definitely, when you think about your own animals that you have at home that you love and you’re caring for, and then you see the way people throw these away like garbage,? Herring said. ?They throw it on us, saying, ?Well we’re leaving the dog with you, it’s your decision,? and it’s not our decision because you’re the one who is burdening our shelter with this animal knowing we don’t have the space for it.?

Vesco-Mock says she does believe this could change, but says it will not change until the community takes a serious look at education for how to responsibly care for a pet.

“I’m sure the public is tired of hearing this problem but unfortunately, it is a community problem – it is not a shelter problem,? Vesco-Mock said.