 About
Us
The Ellis County SPCA opened to the public in
August 2004. We are a private non-profit 501(c) (3) organization
and are located in Waxahachie, Texas. We are not affiliated
with any other SPCA or the ASPCA of New York. Our success
depends on the support of donors, volunteers, and animal
control contracts with the City of Ennis and the Ellis County
Sheriff's office. Due to the extreme number of animals brought
in by animal control, we are unable to be a no kill shelter.
Due
to an increase in population in Ellis county, there is also
an overpopulation of animals. A group of concerned citizens
has formed the Ellis County Society for the Prevention of
Cruelty to Animals (EC-SPCA) in an effort to increase adoptions
of these animals, to educate our community about the importance
of spaying and neutering, to provide information on proper
animal care including kindness towards animals, and to help
build a modern animal care center.
 The Ellis County SPCA - Society for the Prevention of Cruelty
to Animals was founded in April 2003 by a group of volunteers
from the community who saw the need to:
-
increase adoptions of unwanted animals by offering them
a second chance for life in a loving home;
- foster
public sentiment of humanity and gentleness toward animals,
and;
- encourage
and promote responsible pet ownership by increasing
spay/neuters.
Why
we cannot be a "No Kill" Shelter
No Kill shelters
limit the type and number of animals that they take in
based on their “adoptability” and space available in their
facility. Animals that are turned away from these
types of shelters must still go somewhere. Every
animal shelter must do some euthanasia of animals that
are sick, aggressive or hurt. We want to help the
MAJORITY and cannot limit ourselves to which homeless animals
are brought to us. To help pay for overhead
of $250,000 annually and to keep our facility open, we
current hold two contracts with the Ellis County Sheriff's
office and the City of Ennis. We receive over 400 strays
monthly from those contracts alone.
We do not set a maximum
amount of time we will keep an animal up for adoption.
Decisions about euthanasia are based on the adoptability
of the animal and the space available to humanely house
the animal at the shelter. Rather than setting a time limit,
we strive to ensure that each animal remains
healthy and adoptable. If the animal becomes stressed,
aggressive, or sick at the shelter, or if space becomes
a problem, euthanasia may be considered.
It is estimated
that animal shelters care for between 6–8 million dogs
and cats every year in the United States, of whom 3–4 million
are euthanized. There are simply not enough responsible
homes for all of these wonderful, innocent animals. At
this point in time, it would be impossible to humanely
house every unwanted animal in the United States.
HSUS
Statement: The Humane Society of the United States believes
that limited-admission animal shelters, commonly called "no
kill" shelters, can play a role in helping homeless companion
animals find responsible, lifelong homes. However, since
these shelters are limited in the number of animals they
can accept and care for, we feel strongly that there needs
to be an animal shelter whose doors are open to all homeless
animals in every community. Too often, stray animals suffer
from starvation, disease, poisoning, abuse, injuries from
traffic accidents, attacks by wildlife, and severe weather.
If not spayed or neutered, they bring more innocent animals
into their world of suffering.
The HSUS believes that humane
euthanasia of homeless companion animals is preferable
to the harsh lives and slow, painful deaths they face when
they must fend for themselves outdoors. It is estimated
that animal shelters care for between 6–8 million dogs
and cats every year in the United States, of whom 3–4 million
are euthanized. There are simply not enough responsible
homes for all of these wonderful, innocent animals. At
this point in time, it would be impossible to humanely
house every unwanted animal in the United States. |
