Tale of two shelters is revealing

by Ted Murphy -- Editor

I must say I was a little skeptical about Delta switching its animal control contract from an institution like the SPCA to an upstart entity like the Delta Humane Society. However, after personal experience over the past month, having dealt with both SPCA shelters and independent humane societies while in search of a new dog, I can say those worries no longer exist.

We visited eight shelters in our three-week odyssey to find a medium-sized dog of any description and age. Five of those shelters were run by the SPCA, two by independent humane societies and one, the Vancouver pound, by local government.

Not to brag, but I thought we were a pretty good catch: a suburban couple with a child, a house, a fenced back yard and a love for dogs. Having adopted from the SPCA twice before, I didn't expect them to roll out the red carpet, but I did think we'd get a better response than we did.

Walking into most SPCA shelters, and we visited three of them more than once, we were met by complete indifference. It became so commonplace I'm certain they must all use the same customer service manual, the one that says inquiries from the public should be embraced like kennel-cleaning duties.

I'm sure there are a lot of great SPCA staff members out there, but if our experience was typical, and I suspect it was, you'd be hard pressed to know the organization is in the business of finding stray and surrendered dogs new homes.

I say this because when I compare our dealings at the SPCA with those at the two humane societies, it's like the difference between a Yorkie and a Great Dane.

When we visited the Langley Humane Society, the staff and/or volunteers couldn't have been any more accommodating. One of the dogs - Murphy, as it turns out - was so friendly he "hugged" my son, if you know what I mean.

In the end, and thanks to the wonder of the Internet, we finally hooked up with WAG, a humane society in Whistler, where an extremely caring woman corresponded with us via e-mail and phone to arrange an adoption.

After a flattering reference from our vet, Dr. Kevin Harris of Trenant Park Pet Clinic, we made the four-hour roundtrip to the mountain on the Thanksgiving weekend to get Shyenne, a border collie-Lab mix.

If the Delta Humane Society can provide the level of care and compassion we saw exhibited at the two non-SPCA shelters, then I think Delta's wayward animals will be in good hands.

Change is hard, but in this case, it just may be for the better.

posted on 10/27/2004