When to Rescue a Dog or Not? Every day, a dozen or more animals are brought into Karuna for treatment or to be admitted as an inpatient. As animal lovers, we understand the sincere concerns of people who want to help. However, over the last 25 years we have rescued and taken in thousands of dogs and we have learned some very hard lessons. We have to ask serious and important questions: is the dog very sick? Do they look well, are they starving, do they have serious and life-threatening injuries? If we take in a dog, we take her / him out of their own territory, where they know where and when there is food available, where they can hide from heat or rain, where they have friends and many persons who know her.

What happens when we take her in the shelter without a medical emergency?
-She is losing her freedom, independence, and agency.
-She has to adjust to other mostly disabled dogs inside a very limited space.
-She will constantly try to escape; she wants to “go home”!
-But most of all; losing her freedom, she will be a prisoner and be prone to the several contagious seasonal diseases that are always in an animal shelter.

She might not survive! This is the reason that we only take in animals for emergency medical intervention. Usually, dog owners have to be responsible and bring their animals twice daily for treatment (not just dumping them in the shelter).

Warm regards,

Clementien (President, Karuna Society for Animals & Nature)