Letter to the Editor -- Rescuing the animals from Safe Haven

I really believe this is up to us, animal lovers to bring this to an end for the sake of those poor animals. They have been tortured long enough. I can tell you from experience - if we don't get those dogs out of there they will die horrible deaths. We can't wait anymore. This is nothing less that a atrocious case of hoarding. Hoarding cases never end well for the animals --  

Letter to the Editor of the News Journal:

I’ve really thought this over & I believe *we* need to RESCUE the dogs from Safe Haven, Georgetown DE. As long as everyone thinks you have to donate to make it *about the animals* & of course it is – but what about their quality of life?

If you continue to allow them to stay open by donating you have become an enabler - en•a•bler -
1. to make able; give power, means, competence, or ability to; authorize: This document will enable him to pass through the enemy lines unmolested.
2. to make possible or easy: Aeronautics enables us to overcome great distances.

They have $67,000 a month coming into SH for over a year. Seems they spent ½ of that on boarding $30,000 a month. They animals have not been given basic medical care like worming, shots & certainly not spayed/neutered. The dogs are being evicted from the (4) boarding kennels for lack of payment. They're $50,000 in debt to them.

So where did the other $37,000 a month go? They had $9,250 a week coming in & they couldn’t manage to provide basic medical care of the dogs? That is what they were PAID to do thru Kent County Levy Contract – take care of the animals medically - which INCLUDES getting them back home to their owners – not shipped to other states.

This is so cruel I can’t believe that people still continue to allow this. What if that were your dog had gotten lost?

If you as a true animal lover & feel setting up dogs in late July into August outside under tarps is a good idea – well by all means continue to support the fundraiser’s that have promised that not one penny will go to paying off SH’s debt.

Volunteers had to start their *own* fundraiser so they could provide tarps, vet care, emergency vet care, food, and all the things that SH was paid $67,000 a month to do? What does that tell you about their ability to run a shelter?

If you call or send an e-mail to Safe Haven saying something like “You know what? We thought it over, and we want you resign the animal control contract for Kent -- immediately. You can’t handle what you have, let alone take in more of people lost pets. People’s beloved pets of which you have no intention of allowing them to get back home.

We think you need to contact professional animal welfare agencies right here in Delaware such as Hetti Brown who is the paid state director representing HSUS. They can certainly provide superior medical care & housing that is required – especially when compared to what you plan to do to them by putting them outside under tarps in the summer!"

The fate of these animals is truly in the hands of the public. Just having angry posts on Facebook is not going to help these animals. Getting them rescued and AWAY from SH will save their lives & the quality of their lives.

Here is a direct link to Hetti so you can let her know how you feel about this - http://www.humanesociety.org/forms/states/contact_delaware_director.html

Comments should be sent to: http://www.safehavende.org/

Excerpt from the latest newspaper story in the SH Saga: “Ms. Lofthouse said two board members, paying expenses out of their pockets, recently moved about a dozen dogs to no-kill shelters in New York, Maine and New Hampshire. The board is working with ASPCA, Best Friends Animal Society and Faithful Friends to reduce the number of dogs in its long-term care. “This is going to be ongoing — to try and place animals out of state” with no-kill rescue organizations, she said. “We’ve got to reduce our numbers. We know that.” As of Wednesday, there were at least 170 dogs and 86 cats in the shelter’s care. “We’ve all been making calls. We have our families making calls so dogs are being moved,” Ms. Lofthouse said.  **** In addition, Safe Haven had received, on temporary loan, fencing enclosures so most of the 50 dogs that were being housed off site of the Georgetown shelter could be brought back and reduce private kennel expenses, she said.