Did you know that "no-kill" doesn't include baby kittens?
[tiny meow]
It's true! An animal shelter can kill hundreds or even thousands of baby kittens just like Peppermint
and still be considered "no-kill."
[tiny meow]
I know.
That's because the term "no-kill" doesn't exactly mean what you might think.
We use this term a lot in the animal welfare community
to describe the practices of certain animal shelters,
but we don't always do a great job at defining the term for the public.
To understand what "no-kill" really means,
let's take a look at a definition from one of the major no-kill advocacy groups.
Most in the no-kill movement define a no-kill shelter, a no-kill city,
a no-kill community or a no-kill nation as a place where all healthy and treatable animals are saved,
and where only unhealthy and untreatable animals are euthanized.
The definitions in the Asilomar Accords define these terms.
Okay! That sounds great, but what does that really mean?
Well, the Asilomar Accords is a written standard used in the animal sheltering industry.
It's kind of like a guidebook, and it defines "healthy" as "all dogs and cats eight weeks of age or older
"that at or subsequent to the time the animal is taken into possession have manifested no sign
"of a behavioral or temperamental characteristic that could pose a health or safety risk
"or otherwise make the animal unsuitable for placement as a pet." Oh, dear!
Well, there goes a huge portion of the feline population entering animal shelters.
This means that both baby kittens and feral cats
are not protected by the concept of no-kill because they're not suitable for placement as a pet,
kittens because they're not old enough, and feral cats because they don't want to be somebody's pet.
So the Asilomar Accords make it very clear that baby kittens and feral cats are not counted as "healthy,"
but are they counted as "treatable?" Treatable animals are defined as
those "who are likely to become healthy if given medical, foster, behavioral, or other care
"equivalent to the care typically provided to pets by reasonable and caring pet owners."
This is an important distinction because a kitten like Peppermint
needs a lot more care than that given to an average pet. She needs to be bottle fed,
she needs to be stimulated to go potty, and of course she has to be kept warm,
so by the standards set forth in the Asilomar Accords, neonatal kittens are not considered healthy or treatable
and by the standards of "no-kill," they can be killed.
Another major advocacy group defines "no-kill"
as saving the lives of "animals who are fully healthy, and friendly to both humans and other animals."
But just because you aren't friendly to humans doesn't mean that you aren't healthy.
I mean that's crazy!
Huge portions of the feline population are feral,
and they deserve to live even if they don't want to be somebody's pet.
That's why we have Trap-neuter-return.
In my perspective, being unfriendly to humans or simply being a baby
should not exempt you from the dignity of a chance at a full life.
So when you hear that only unhealthy animals are euthanized in a shelter, keep in mind
that animal sheltering doesn't consider kittens under 8 weeks old "healthy."
The general public has no idea that while an eight-week-old kitten will be the most likely to be adopted in a shelter,
an 8-day-old kitten will be the most likely to be killed.
And this isn't to speak badly about shelters; quite the opposite.
I share this because I want more people to support their local animal shelter.
Shelters only kill kittens because they don't have adequate support to care for them on site.
Think of it this way: an orphan kitten might need to be fed every two, three, or four hours,
but animal shelters have operating hours.
They close at the end of the night, and they might be closed for 12 hours.
Well, you cannot ethically keep a neonatal kitten overnight in a shelter with no care.
So when a baby kitten enters a shelter,
they're likely to meet their fate within only a matter of hours.
Either they're going to make it out to a foster home, or they're going to be killed.
There just aren't enough resources to care for kittens overnight in shelters.
The United States has over 3,500 brick-and-mortar animal shelters,
but only about a dozen of them provide 24-hour overnight care for neonatal kittens.
That means that the thousands of other animal shelters that are taking in kittens
rely completely on the presence of foster parents in order to save their lives.
So this is why I think it's so important for us to explain to the public what "no-kill" really means
because I think without more context, this term has the potential to not only confuse people,
but to actually demotivate people from getting involved.
When the average person hears that they live in a no-kill city,
they're going to think, "Okay. Everything solved. No help needed here!
"I'm not gonna get involved."
When the average person finds a kitten outside,
the thing they always say is, "I'm gonna find a no-kill shelter to take them to."
I hear it all the time.
Same goes for feral cats. I hear all the time,
"I found a feral cat outside and I brought them to the shelter, but don't worry.
"It's a no-kill shelter, so they'll be fine there."
People just have no idea.
People really think that this means animals are not at risk of dying, but it's totally not true.
And when the public doesn't understand this risk, they're not incentivized to step up to the plate and help out themselves.
I think it's important to say exactly what we mean and talk openly about what's going on.
We want the public to be curious and invested
in what animal shelters are faced with. We want people to look at the data
and get active with the populations that are the most vulnerable.
I think we use the term "no-kill"
because it's so positive, and it's so uplifting, and I really love that.
I think that we do need to have a positive approach to animal sheltering and show people
that animal welfare is a winning team. But at the same time that we want to be positive,
we also want to be honest. We want people to know how much work still needs to be done.
I for one think that there's a way to talk about animal sheltering
that is both very hopeful and very honest, a way where we can look aspirationally towards the future,
but also acknowledge where we stand today because our current conception of "no-kill"
is a goal that only saves some, and on behalf of the tiniest kittens,
I personally believe that we should aim higher. What do you think? Tell me in the comments below.
I'd love to have a conversation about this, and hey, if you found this video interesting
I hope you'll watch my video
about "kill" shelters versus "no-kill" shelters,
and really what the distinctions are between the two.
It might surprise you!
I think you'll find that every animal shelter is doing the best they can with the resources they have,
and that all of them deserve our help so that we can get towards a day
where it is truly a no-kill nation.