Demand For Rescue Dogs in Some States Now Outstrips Supply

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Here’s some good news. Thanks to the growth of pet rescue groups, there is more demand for rescue dogs than there are dogs available for adoption in some U.S. states.

According to NPR, in several parts of the country, shelters, like the Northeast Animal Shelter in the Boston area, are importing rescue dogs from other areas, including other states and even other countries to meet the demand.

Laurie McCannon, Northeast Animal Shelter’s director, says the shelter in its early days used to adopt 300 dogs a year; recently they adopted out over 4,000 dogs in 2013, with three-quarters of the animals coming from out-of-state.

There are fewer unwanted dogs and cats in shelters across the Northeastern part of the U.S., thanks to spay-and-neuter programs as well as the awesome participation of various pet rescue groups. Celebrity endorsements probably don’t hurt, either.

Though the southern states have a way to go when it comes to their spay-and-neutering laws, many experts point to Hurricane Katrina as a turning point for the newfound interest in adopting rescue dogs. Efforts to find homes across the country for the unwanted and stranded animals in New Orleans helped pave the way for shelters and rescue groups to transport thousands of animals from various states and countries.

Of course with all of this good news, there is some backlash. There are some veterinarians who worry about “dog trafficking.” The number of dogs being transported across state lines is unknown because the U.S. Department of Agriculture doesn’t track those numbers. There are health issues as well, including mange and heartworm. And dogs who come from other countries run the risk of contracting and spreading rabies.

However, if certain laws can be put in place, including restricting the adoption of dogs where rabies are endemic (and perhaps supplying those regions with the proper medical care), we think the boom in adopting rescue dogs is the best news we’ve heard so far in 2015.

Via NPR

Photo: Shutterstock