Community Corner

Lake Elsinore, Wildomar Biggest Contributors Of Unwanted Pets

According to Southwest Communities Animal Shelter statistics, during fiscal year 2010-11 nearly half of all dogs and cats euthanized at the shelter came from Lake Elsinore or Wildomar.

If euthanasia rates are any indication, Lake Elsinore and Wildomar earn the unfortunate distinction of having the highest number of unwanted pets in Southwest Riverside County.

According to statistics, during fiscal year 2010-11 nearly half of all dogs and cats euthanized at the shelter came from Lake Elsinore or Wildomar.

The shelter contracts animal control services for Temecula, Murrieta, Wildomar, Lake Elsinore, Canyon Lake and Menifee. In total, 2,105 dogs and 2,569 cats from all six Southwest Riverside cities were euthanized at the shelter during the 2010-11 fiscal year, according to records. The numbers include both adoptable pets and those that can't be placed due to aggression, illness, etc.

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As for euthanasia rates for pets out of Lake Elsinore and Wildomar, Kristine Anderson, president of the shelter’s board of directors, said the mindset in the two cities "is a little different." 

“I’ve heard it said that newer communities don’t have the higher unwanted pet problems that older communities do, and I think that’s true," she said.

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Proximity may play a role as well, Anderson said. Murrieta and Temecula both have a high number of pet rescue groups as compared to Lake Elsinore and Wildomar, she explained.

"I think if someone finds a dog in Temecula they are more likely to call a local rescue group than drive 20 minutes to the shelter," she said.

According to the Wildomar-based shelter’s records, a total of 994 dogs and 1,265 cats from both Lake Elsinore and Wildomar were put down at the facility during the 2010-11 fiscal year. Lake Elsinore was the bigger contributor, with 659 dogs and 666 cats.

But for such a tiny city, Wildomar has a sizeable unwanted cat problem, with 599 felines euthanized during the year, as compared to 335 dogs.

Anderson concedes the down economy is partially to blame.

“Some people can’t afford to keep their pets, or they can’t pay to get their animals fixed,” she said.

It costs between $200 and $300 to get a pet spayed or neutered through a veterinarian, Anderson said, but some county-run shelters provide spay/neuter clinics where sterilization is half the cost, and Southwest Communities Animal Shelter occasionally offers spay/neuter vouchers of between $50 and $100.

Anderson said Southwest Communities is working toward building a low-cost spay/neuter clinic at the shelter, but the project is one to two years out.

In the meantime, “we can’t just let animals keep breeding and breeding,” Anderson said, pointing out that last month the shelter saw only three cats out of 300 returned to their owners.

“The only way we’re preventing cat overpopulation is through euthanasia? That’s wrong,” she said.

Anderson also pointed to a canine case in which a man brought in a dam and her newborn pups to the shelter. He said the puppies were just too much so he handed over the litter and the mother.

“If he’d had the dog spayed in the first place, he wouldn’t be dropping them off,” Anderson said.

As part of its services, the shelter offers numerous free educational clinics, and they reach out through schools and other organizations to promote responsible ownership.

But animal control officers on the street help educate as well, Anderson believes.

Lake Elsinore and Wildomar are currently spending less than their neighbors on officers. The two cities each contract for five hours of animal control services five days a week; Murrieta and Temecula each pay for 12 hours, five days a week, Anderson said.

She contends additional manpower allows officers to handle standard emergency calls and also take time to be proactive.

“With the extra time, we can talk to the neighbor about spay and neuter,” she said. “We can solve more problems.”

But ultimately the issue comes down to individual responsibilty.

“Of the 50 animals that come in everyday, only about 30 go out [of the shelter]. What happens to the other 20?” Anderson said.

They are euthanized, a brutal detail some people don’t want to hear.

“We had a lady drop her cat off here. Ten days later she called to see if it had been adopted. It hadn’t,” Anderson said. “The woman just couldn’t understand why her nice cat was euthanized.”

Southwest Communities Animal Shelter is a new facility. The animals are showcased in well-lit rooms – cats play together, dogs rest on fluffy pillows with toys nearby.

But the shelter is not a pet hotel – animals either get a new home or they die here.

“This is their last resort,” Anderson said. “If they don’t get adopted, they’re gone.”


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