Pets Without Parents of Mason and Logan Counties

Before Pets Without Parents (PWP) began operating the Mason County animal shelter, on euthanasia day drivers on the road in front of the ugly brown shed, which served as a shelter, could hear the blood curdling howls of pain as the cats & dogs were being cruelly killed with a needle stabbed directly into the heart with no sedation.

The Mason County animal shelter is remote, dilapidated, & prior to Pets Without Parents formation, was inadequately funded, understaffed & was rarely open to the public. Almost all animals that were relinquished/impounded were euthanized inhumanely by intracardiac injection without sedation. The dogs were hosed down with water & left to shiver on the cold concrete floor. The cats were kept next to the dogs in ancient, filthy rabbit cages. Kittens escaped from the cages & were killed by the dogs. In addition to the county shelter, there is a holding facility in the county seat of Havana that is unheated, inadequate, & until recently, held animals in airline carriers for days. PWP was formed largely in response to the inhumane conditions at the Mason County shelter where animals were kept in a filthy and disease-ridden environment, often without food or water, with painful medical conditions & absolutely no opportunity for being adopted.

In March 2007, Mason County & PWP entered into a contractual arrangement transferring daily operations of the Mason County animal shelter to PWP. Since then, the euthanasia rate has decreased from 92% to approx. 22%. In just 1 year we have provided dog beds, replaced the rabbit cages with stainless steel cat cages, built a fence & outdoor runs so the dogs could exercise & set up a protocol of preventative medicine so all animals are vaccinated & treated for parasites upon admission. Two veterinarians are available around the clock & any health issues are treated immediately.

Earlier, in 2006, Mason County PWP joined forces with a humane organization in neighboring Logan County and became Pets Without Parents of Mason & Logan Counties. The Logan County animal shelter was experiencing many of the same problems as Mason County. PWP works closely with the Logan County animal shelter to promote, adopt & rescue impounded animals, & provide facility enhancements. During 2007 alone, PWP saved approximately 900 animals from certain euthanasia in Mason and Logan counties.

In addition to operating the Mason County animal shelter and assisting the Logan County animal shelter, PWP addresses the local pet overpopulation problem through:

 ADOPTION – Over the past 4 years, PWP has placed more than 3,000 dogs and cats into forever homes or other rescue organizations. Until they can be adopted, many of them are placed in foster homes. The animals adopted out by PWP are vaccinated, microchipped, sterilized & tested/treated for disease. Dogs are also temperament tested using the SAFER method by our SAFER-certified shelter director.
 HUMANE EDUCATION – PWP has provided educational programs at local schools & organizations, workshops for law enforcement officials & animal control officers. Additionally, we have 5 state-approved humane investigators who investigate allegations of abuse and neglect of companion animals, including horses. PWP has conducted more than 300 humane investigations over the past 2 years.
 SPAY/NEUTER – PWP has decreased pet overpopulation in our area by sterilizing all animals adopted through PWP & by providing residents of Logan & Mason counties with low-cost spay/neuter through the PWP/Animal Protective League (APL) program. PWP also provides subsidies or voucher assistance to residents who cannot afford to have their animals spayed/neutered as well as a feral cat sterilization program.
 ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS – PWP also provides food, veterinary care, vaccinations & temporary boarding to people who otherwise would have to relinquish their pets. Our Meals on Wheels program provides senior citizens with food for their pets. PWP has distributed more than several tons of pet food & litter within the past several years.

We are proud of what we have accomplished the past 4 years & how we have positively impacted the animals and people of our communities. Unfortunately, given our agrarian population & lack of large population centers, we constantly struggle with placing large numbers of unwanted pets. The tiny Mason County animal shelter consists of only 9 dog runs & 11 cat cages. We have no quarantine facility & no way to separate the cats from the dogs.

Our tiny group of dedicated, passionate volunteers have worked tirelessly on the zootoo contest to climb from #940 only 8 weeks ago to the top 20! They dream of a new shelter for Mason County!

Information provided by the owner