A writing assignment I completed within the frame of my Digital Media Content Creation studies at UCSD Extension in 2018.

light golden retriever puppy close up photography
Stock photo (not my own photography)

For Vegas and Frankie.

Vegas died on July 3, 2014. There was nothing wrong with the dalmatian mix. He just hadn’t found anyone to adopt him yet. More dogs poured in, and as the animal shelter ran out of room, Vegas ran out of time. He was euthanized for space.

Vegas was unique, but his story isn’t. One in five U.S. shelter dogs doesn’t make it out alive. The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) reports that every year about 3.3 million dogs enter U.S. animal shelters and that every year about 670,000 of them are euthanized.

To reduce these numbers, animal shelters need us to adopt, foster, volunteer and donate. But even if you can’t do any of that, you can still do something. Here are five other ways you can help:

  • Share alternatives to dog abandonment. To avoid overcrowding at animal shelters, help prevent dogs from being surrendered in the first place by sharing information about resources. Let dog owners with financial hardship know about organizations that provide food or low-cost veterinary care, so they can keep their pets. Two such organizations in Texas are Don’t Forget to Feed Me and the Texas Coalition for Animal Protection (TCAP). Find out what’s available near you and spread the word.
  • Promote microchipping. Tell friends, family and neighbors about the importance of having their dogs microchipped (and keeping the information updated!). If microchipped dogs get lost and wind up at shelters, they can be returned to their owners, which frees up valuable kennel space.
  • Encourage shelter adoptions. If you know someone in search of a new dog, recommend visiting an animal shelter or considering a rescue organization’s foster dogs. This will free up a kennel at a shelter or make room at a rescue, meaning the rescue can help another shelter dog.
  • Generate donations. Rescues can save shelter dogs by fostering them or by sponsoring their treatment for medical conditions to make them more adoptable. For both they need funds, and there are two effortless ways you can help raise them: Simply walk with the Walk for a Dog app by WoofTrax or shop with Amazon Smile. Just pick your favorite rescue organization and get started.
  • Network. Many shelters post their dogs’ pictures on their Facebook pages. You can share these posts on your own page and encourage friends to do the same to get the dogs more social-media exposure and help them reach potential new owners. You can also research reputable rescues and bring their attention to particular shelter dogs.

These alternatives don’t have the same impact as the efforts of shelter volunteers and rescues, but they allow you to show support in small ways and be part of the solution. Instead of doing nothing, you can do something and help shelters and rescues turn sad stories into happy ones.

Case in point: Frankie. When kennels at the shelter filled up and he was put on the urgent list, he seemed destined for the same fate as Vegas. But on January 24, 2015, his story was turned around. A rescue came for him, and Frankie travelled from Texas to his foster home in New Jersey.

Together, the rescue, volunteers and shelter saved a life. Frankie’s life. They showed compassion, dedication and commitment. They made Frankie the dog who got away.

You don’t have to do everything. Just don’t do nothing.