Thank you to Amy O'Brien for an interesting article. I volunteered, walking and fostering dogs for the Vancouver pound for a few years. When I moved three years ago, I went to the Burnaby SPCA to walk dogs. Within weeks of first volunteering, a lovely, older german shepherd had been euthanized. Apparently this was due to diarrhea, which is extremely common among shelter animals because of stress. I am not sure what veterinarian the SPCA has that would recommend a dog be euthanized because of diarrhea. I suspect the dog might have actually been euthanized as he was older, and not very adoptable.
I hope for the sake of the animals that the SPCA has changed in the last few years. I don't know as I could not go back and watch an animal welfare organization continue to kill dogs. It is a sad day when a dog is better off at the local pound rather than a big animal welfare organization.
Although the shelter environment was certainly stressful for the dogs when I volunteered with the Vancouver pound, I did not see a beloved dog I walked euthanized for age or for diarrhea. And the staff at the pound were extremely kind and helpful to the many volunteers who came in and out at odd hours during the day. The pound attracted many volunteers who fostered, adopted and walked dogs due to their flexibility. The SPCA is much more restrictive as to when volunteers can come in and walk and care for the dogs and cats there.
I sympathize with how hard it must be to run a very big organization such as the SPCA. I sympathize with tough decisions that must be made on 'no-kill' policies as people are sure to criticize whether the SPCA does or does not euthanize.
I think the only answer is for the SPCA to start to get really tough about curbing the dog and cat overpopulation. When I volunteered with the Vancouver pound, they were one of the first organizations to load up all their dogs in a van and take them to a local vet clinic to make sure the dogs were all fixed BEFORE leaving their premises. The Vancouver SPCA finally followed suit, just very recently, but it took a while which was a surprise given they had a clinic right across from them. I believe it absolutely necessary to make sure all of the animals leaving any SPCA premise across BC be spayed and neutered, including pediatric spay and neuter.
I would also like the SPCA to get tough with backyard breeders who are breeding far too many dogs and giving these dogs to totally irresponsible people who leave their dogs outside 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, often chained up. This is absolutely no life for a dog, and although I think Education is part of the answer, the other part is to simply make it a lot tougher for these people to obtain a dog. There really needs to be breeding by-laws that the SPCA could lobby for as well as police.
The shelters are pretty much full of dogs who come from these backyard breeders, so one would think the SPCA would have a huge stake in helping these dogs out.
Euthanizing an animal is still an awful thing to do, and it must be incredibly difficult for the SPCA staff to have to do this. It makes sense to me then, that the SPCA would do everything in its power to stop the incredibly endless flow of cats and dogs that go through its doors. I don't think anyone wants to see the total destruction of the SPCA . I think the public wants to see the SPCA do everything possible to help companion animals.
Upgrading facilities is badly needed, education is needed, and so is investigating cruelty to animals as CEO Daniell states. But what about curbing the pet overpopulation? From my volunteer dog walking days, it still overwhelms me the amount of animals needing good homes, and the incredible flow of animals coming into shelters. It also overwhelms me how few good homes there are out there, who will commit to the lifetime of an animal, who will keep their dog inside with them, train, walk and properly socialize their dog.

Lori Cumiskey