Take Steps to Reduce Overcrowding in Animal Shelters

We’ve visited dozens of animal shelters, many of which are 30 or more years old.  Their physical condition is invariably poor with failing floors, bad drainage, and poor heating/air conditioning systems – all of which lead to a constant battle with the spread of disease.  Overcrowding, however, may be the single most important situation to address!

Overcrowding in animal shelters is not only a common occurrence; it is problematic in most, older shelters - and many new ones as well.  While some states have addressed the problem through legislating minimum areas for each dog or cat and limiting the maximum number of animals permitted in a single enclosure, many do not.  Overcrowding leads to disease spread, animal discomfort, physically & emotionally and is dangerous for both the animals and their caretakers.

Too many shelters respond, for instance, to the influx of cats in the spring & early summer by placing 15 or more in a room – or cat colony.  Shelters should be careful to minimize the number of cats housed together and to be sure there is sufficient room for each.  The Association of Shelter Veterinarians (ASV) recommends a minimum of 15 square feet per cat when housed in the colony model.

This holds true for dogs as well.  Groups of dogs who “get along” can certainly be housed together.  Care must be taken; however, to provide sufficient space that each can sleep, stand, turn around, and move about freely and naturally.  The Association of Shelter Veterinarians doesn’t provide explicit area calculations because there is such a range of size in dogs, but they do provide insight into how to go about housing dogs properly to keep them safe and sane.

Finally, each animal requires attention – not only for basic food, water & cleaning, but also to make consistent contact with their human companions.  This is especially true as the length of their stay in the shelter increases.  With overcrowding the shelter staff and volunteers simply cannot meet the needs of each animal with the result; they suffer from lack of attention.  The ASV points to shelter overcrowding as one of the most important factors required for proper shelter operation.

When designing an animal shelter, careful analysis will provide the answers required to size the shelter properly and will thus avoid overcrowding.  This, of course, assumes the right programs are in place aimed at continually reducing intake and increasing adoptions.  A natural “flow” should be present in the shelter operation in order to avoid overcrowding.

 Shelterplanners’ Needs Assessment Study not only identifies how many animal rooms are required to adequately house your animals but also recommends custom programs to improve your animal shelter’s condition. For more information, please visit www.shelterplanners.com or call 434-971-8848.