The Types of Animal Shelters You Can Find

Most people think a dog shelter is the same, and we can understand why. Everyone’s had a different experience with different shelters and animal rescue service providers. Many people believe that all shelters come under the umbrella of a national governing body that oversees their operations, a universal “mother club.” In fact, with a few exceptions, every shelter is its organization, complete with its policies and procedures, the governing body, and list of services provided – or not provided.

Types of Animal Shelters

Although many emotional support animal letter are similar in function, they differ in terms of structure, types of services provided, and how they operate.

Municipal Shelter

Your government – city, county, township, parish – maintains and manages this form of shelter, which is entirely funded by taxpayer funds.

The shelter is part of the city’s “animal protection” program, which is responsible for protecting people from wild animals. They are normally in charge of implementing city or county animal laws and regulations; they can also investigate animal cruelty cases and provide outreach programs. Their designated staff members can be referred to as “animal control officers,” “animal care officers,” “dog wardens,” or other similar regulatory terms.

Animal Control may be a separate entity within a municipality, or it may fall under the umbrella of the police department, public works department, health department, parks, and recreation department, or another division. The priority of programs is frequently determined by which department is in charge of them. If it is under the control of the health department, “rabies control” activities are given top priority; if it is under the control of the police department, animal control laws can take precedence.

Full-Service Private Nonprofit Shelter

This is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit entity with a Board of Directors and by-laws that control the organization’s mission and policies. Its mission is to protect animals from humans, and it often includes an educational aspect. Many states require these organizations to incorporate for the “prevention of animal cruelty and abuse” when applying for nonprofit status. They may or may not have representatives, who may or may not have voting rights.

Full-service shelters, also known as “open door” shelters, typically welcome the majority, if not all, of the animals brought to them by their owners, and may (or may not) accept stray animals of all kinds. Animals are usually kept in these shelters for as long as they can. They have successful adoption, education, and spay/neuter services, and they aim to keep euthanasia rates as low as possible, but they don’t always succeed.

Although the most dedicated of these may be able to achieve a fragile “low-kill” status by accepting all animals brought to them, most are forced to euthanize animals daily for a variety of reasons. Poor health or behavior, as well as a lack of room, maybe among these causes. However, Euthanasia has been looked down upon more and more, and countries like India have completely banned this.

Humane investigations, rescues, and cruelty case trials can all be carried out by full-service voluntary shelters. Jobs in the field of cruelty law are often granted titles like “humane cop” or “cruelty investigator.”

Limited Admission Nonprofit Shelter

This form of shelter, which is also a 501(c)3 tax-deductible charity to “protect animals from humans,” is also known as “selective intake,” “guaranteed adoption,” “low-kill,” or “no-kill.”

This shelter, which is often managed by a board of directors, restricts the number of animals it accepts, normally by some sort of adoption screening examination. There could be a long wait for a dog or cat to be placed in one of these shelters, as responsible shelters only accept new animals when kennel space becomes available. Their no-kill policy prevents them from having many kennel paces opening up, as some dogs can occupy this space for months, even years.

Animal Rescue Groups

These may or may not be 501(c)3 non-profits, and they may or may not be so-called “no-kill” organizations. Some rescue organizations have their facility, while others house their dogs in foster homes or boarding kennels. Breed rescue organizations that work under the auspices of their breed clubs are typically non-profit organizations with a board of directors.

They are sometimes – but not always – rational about euthanizing dogs that aren’t successful adoption prospects. They tend to make wise use of scarce resources and make tough choices about how to support the largest number of dogs with those resources.

Here are some of the most common kinds of dog shelters you can find. Many of these exist in India, but cannot function at an efficient capacity due to multiple reasons. If you, or your friends and family, are animal lovers and want to help these dog shelters, you can find an ample amount of literature on their websites that tell you exactly how you can contribute.