This is interesting.
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Many Shelters Candy-Coat Dogs with Aggressive Behaviors in their Zeal to Increase 'Live Release Rate.' We Examine 34 Case Files.
Examining Cases Up Close
DogsBite.org - Back in April, we were contacted about the "live release rate" trumping public safety at a California shelter. This is an epidemic across the country. In some cases, it borders on criminal. Dogs with serious aggression are being adopted to the public, sent to fosters, transferred to rescues and transported across county and state lines. They are being recycled back into communities instead of being euthanized due to the holy grail of boasting a high "save rate."
To examine the issue up close, we filed a public records request in July for 34 dogs, including all behavioral and medical notes, at Sonoma County Animal Services. We were alerted to these particular 34 files to examine -- this is not a "random sampling" of cases -- in order to review questionable and problematic cases. Also to review the over arching issue of live release rate being prioritized over public safety, and in many cases, being prioritized over animal welfare too.
You will read about dogs with serious aggression euthanized only after being adopted or fostered and returned. You will read about dogs with multiple aggression memos that management adopted out anyway.
In the case of Sonoma County, the files show that some shelter workers operate under a "climate of fear," the fear of personally interacting with some of these aggressive dogs, as well as, sending them back into the community. Staffers witness the aggression and document the behavior (in behavioral memos) and at least in the 34 files we reviewed, many of these memos by employees are simply ignored by upper management. The live release rate pressure literally trumps all.
Rest of article:
https://blog.dogsbite.org/2016/09/cl...-adoption.html
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