by Lorelei Cohen

Created on: March 24, 2008

The number of abandoned and abused animals brought into shelters each year is heartbreaking. Cats, dogs, horses, hamsters and many other numbers of animals of all types and breeds make their way to the rescuing hands of local shelters each day, all set up for this very reason, to care for those who need their care.

Coming from a neglected background, many of these animals generally suffer from special physical, emotional and medical needs, and these brought on by the very hands that were meant to care for them. The hands of their irresponsible owners. These animals often arrive with a large variety of problems brought on by their past and they are in desperate need of experienced care!

The individuals who work within these shelters have the experience, or are acquiring the experience, to care for these animals. They are able to access what types of problems the animal may have upon arrival at the shelter. They then decide if the animal is in need of immediate medical attention, and if so, if their medical condition is contagious to other animals. If it is indeed an infectious condition then most shelters are equipped with the space to isolate the animal so that others within the facility will not be infected. In a foster home setting this isolation is often times difficult to accomplish, or may be delayed due to a lack of experience in diagnoses. Because of inexperience on the part of their new caregiver, a lapse in time could cause other animals within the home to unfortunately be exposed to the illness, and to also contract it.

Abandoned and abused animals are very much like humans, they wind up with a wide variety of psychological problems stemming from the physical, or emotional abuse that they have previously suffered. They may now be very angry, afraid, or otherwise emotionally scarred from the treatment that they have received and these are all emotional imbalances that must be slowly and patiently worked on. The effects of abuse don`t disappear overnight, and although love can sometimes accomplish miracles, it often takes training and experience to know the proper behaviors to be used in treating an abused animal for them to have a successful recovery. Providing the consistent behavior that is needed in the treatment of these abused animals is very important, shelters have the regimen, the staff, the facility and the experience to successfully provide this much needed consistency.

In the lives of previously abused animals, once rescued from harm, shelters are their first step in the direction of going to a true home. Shelters provide the immediate care that is so desperately needed by these animals when they are rescued. Shelters provide the medical, physical and psychological care that these animals need to once again associate with humans. The animal receives the medical attention to mend its wounds or illnesses, it is fed and begins to trust that its food will be there on a consistent basis, and through consistent behavior the animal learns to no longer fear its caregivers.

They learn again to trust in humans, to once again enjoy the play and companionship that humans can provide, and they in effect learn to be pets again. It is at this point then that the animal is ready to go to a foster home for care, or if it is really lucky, then into a new home for adoption.

It would be wonderful if shelters were not needed as desperately as they are. Unfortunately the number of abandoned and abused animals brought into shelters each year is heartbreaking. Even more heartbreaking is knowing that there are thousands of animals each year who don't manage to make it there.

Help break the chain of abuse if you are at all able to.

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