为什么越来越多的猫狗离开动物收容所

为什么越来越多的猫狗离开动物收容所

There's a scary scene in the original animated version of Disney's "Lady and the Tramp." Sweet Lady has just been nabbed by a dog catcher and is in the pound. The canine residents joke about that no-good Tramp, but they all grow silent as a pup begins "takin' the long walk" through a door from which no dog returns.

迪士尼动画版《窈窕淑女》中有一个可怕的场景。这位可爱的女士刚被一个捕狗人抓住，现在被关在狗栏里。住在这里的狗狗们拿这个不怎么样的流浪汉开玩笑，但是当小狗开始“长途跋涉”穿过一扇没有狗狗回来的门时，他们都沉默了。

It's a scene that has played out in real life all too often in animal shelters around the country in recent decades as pet overpopulation and shelter overcrowding have made euthanasia an unfortunate solution. But that scene has begun to change.

近几十年来，由于宠物数量过多和收容所人满为患，安乐死成了一个不幸的解决方案，这一场景在全国各地的动物收容所中经常上演。但这种情况已经开始改变。

The majority of animals at shelters are now rescued or returned to their owners. (Photo: Janyaruk Pongpom/Shutterstock)

According to a New York Times investigation, pet euthanasia rates have fallen dramatically in big cities over the past decade, dropping more than 75% since 2009.

据《纽约时报》的一项调查显示，过去10年，大城市的宠物安乐死率大幅下降，自2009年以来下降了75%以上。

For its research, the Times collected data from municipal shelters in the country's 20 largest cities, pointing out that most don't track information in the same way or make it readily available. Although they do their best to get animals out alive — to adopters, rescue groups or back to their owners if they have them — shelters often are criticized by animal lovers for euthanizing any animals at all.

为了进行这项研究，《纽约时报》从美国20个最大的城市的城市避难所收集了数据，指出其中大多数城市并没有以同样的方式追踪信息，也没有提供现成的信息。尽管他们尽最大努力让动物活着出来——对收养者，救援组织，或者如果他们有动物的话还给他们的主人——收容所经常因为对任何动物实施安乐死而受到动物爱好者的批评。

Why numbers are falling

为什么数字在下降

One of the factors that has changed the tide is increased awareness of the importance of spay and neuter programs. (Photo: Carl Dupont/Shutterstock)

One reason euthanasia rates have dropped is that fewer dogs are entering shelters in the first place, thanks in part to a huge push to spay and neuter pets that started in the 1970s.

安乐死率下降的一个原因是，首先进入收容所的狗更少了，这在一定程度上要归功于始于上世纪70年代的一场大力推动阉割和绝育宠物的运动。

Another reason euthanasia rates are dropping is that more shelter dogs are being adopted — and it doesn't matter if a dog is purebred. Instead, with celebrities showing off their Instagram-friendly rescue dogs, normal people are also jumping on the mixed-breed bandwagon.

安乐死率下降的另一个原因是越来越多的收容所里的狗被收养了，而且狗是否是纯种并不重要。相反，随着明星们在instagram上炫耀他们的搜救犬，普通人也加入了混种狗的行列。

Working toward 'no-kill'

致力于“别杀”

'No-kill' shelters only euthanize animals that are extremely sick or that can't be rehabilitated. (Photo: Pongsatorn Singnoy/Shutterstock)

With an estimated 733,000 dogs and cats euthanized in animal shelters every year, we're still a long way from saving them all, points out Best Friends Animal Society. That's a national save rate of about 76.6%, but the group is pushing to achieve no-kill for dogs and cats at shelters nationwide by 2025.

据估计，每年有73.3万只猫狗在动物收容所被实施安乐死，我们离拯救它们还有很长一段路要走，最好的朋友动物协会指出。这意味着全国的储蓄率约为76.6%，但该组织正在推动到2025年在全国范围内实现猫狗不被捕杀的目标。

But "no kill" isn't as simple as it seems. Most rescue groups define the term with footnotes. It usually means saving healthy and treatable animals, with euthanasia reserved for only those animals who are severely unhealthy or who can't be rehabilitated. Best Friends defines "no kill" as when nine out of 10 dogs leave a shelter alive. Some shelters call this a "live release" rate instead of a "no kill" rate.

但“不杀”并不像看上去那么简单。大多数救援组织用脚注来定义这个术语。它通常意味着拯救健康的和可治疗的动物，安乐死只保留给那些严重不健康或不能康复的动物。《好朋友》对“不杀狗”的定义是:90%的狗活着离开收容所。一些庇护所称这是“实时释放”的速度，而不是“不杀”的速度。

And the key is to find the perfect compromise where no unhealthy or dangerous dogs are released into the community and shelters aren't overcrowded so illnesses can be spread and healthy animals won't have to be euthanized.

关键是找到一个完美的妥协方案，不让不健康或危险的狗进入社区，不让收容所人满为患，这样疾病就能传播，健康的动物就不会被安乐死。