Does PAWS Yokosuka Charge To Take Someones Pet That Is Trying To Give It Away?

A friend told me today, she was trying to get rid of her cat, and PAWS quoted her around $100 to take the pet from her.

Are you kidding me?  I can understand there are costs involved, but if someone wants to give up their animal they have to pay to do so?

http://pawsyokosukajapan.com/blog/

The website didnt say anything about costs involved with giving up your pet, but it does discuss how much an adoption process costs.

How much does adoption cost at PAWS? The adoption cost of our animals varies by their age and spay/neuter status. Puppies, Kittens, and Adult cats and dogs that PAWS has Spayed and Neutered cost $175.00 in order to cover the cost of their surgeries. Adult animals that have already been altered prior to coming to PAWS are $100.00 Puppies and kittens that leave PAWS unspayed and unneutered are $140.00. Small animals are priced on a case by case basis.

It's not uncommon in the US for shelters and the Humane Society to charge a surrender fee.

I would bet part of the fee is not only for care for the pet if they take  it, but also to encourage the owner to re-home the pet themselves.  Some people may say  "Well I don't want to pay $100, so I'll put fliers up myself and ask friends if they'd like my pet" instead of just bringing it straight to PAWS. 

You have to pay a fee to dispose of your used oil and tires for your car, why is it so shocking you'd have to pay a fee to dispose of an animal?

Agreeing with Tirani that it's pretty common to have a surrender fee at an animal shelter (we rehomed our cat before we PCSed here, but I checked out no-kill shelters in San Diego, in case we couldn't find her a home in time, and they all had surrender fees around $100). Since it's a no-kill shelter, there's a possibility that they could have that cat for a long time until it's gone to a new home, and the costs of caring for it can really add up. Seems fair to me.

No, PAWS is NOT kidding you Adam.
They have turn in fees for a reason. It is to discourage people from just getting rid of a pet when its convient for them, and HELLO, how do you think these animals are fed? What if that animal gets sick while there. Vet bills are very expensive for the shelter. I use to be VERY involved with the shelter. Everyone is there on a volunteer basis to take care of the animals. But the only way they get money is by adoption fees, turn in fees, and by fundraisers. So yeah, $100 is not too much to ask.

Think of it this way.... how many people just open the door to their pets INSTEAD of paying a surrender fee?

When I transferred from here to Hawaii, we had to give up our dog. And it was $50 (at the time).

So yeah, $100 is not too much to ask.

I guess. I do understand PAWS has expenses.

If you read this post about PAWS needing such items/volunteers:
http://www.japanbases.com/home/foru...2.aspx#752

I even donated tons of stuff that day that I saw you guys sitting in front of the commissary. I am not against you guys making ends meet and continuing the program, but what else could be done for people that need to give up their pet besides paying for it?

The person that I know, she doesnt want to pay, but she also thinks its hard for someone to want to adopt a full grown cat, so she is sort of stuck.

In the states, does the pound charge you?

I have never had pets so I really dont know much about it.

All you pet lovers, please help PAWS with volunteering items. Click on the above link, and read the issues they go through, and the common items they need.

Adam-
Some County Shelters do have a surrender fee. Some do not. Many charity-run shelters also have surrender fees. It's probably less common to find one that does not charge a surrender fee. You have to figure that at least 50% of animals that go into shelters are euthanized- NEVER adopted out. PAWS is a no-kill shelter so they take responsibility for the pet for the rest of it's life.

I found this from another shelters website- it may shed a little perspective on why shelters charge fees:

Why we ask for a surrender fee…

* We are a charity – a private, non-profit organization that meets a specialized need in our community. We have been serving this community since 1957. We are not mandated to take in pets; rather, we do because we want to ensure a safe, humane haven for animals that have no other place to go.
* We do not receive any government funding or tax revenue.
* We RELY on donations and nominal fees, such as our intake fee, to care for approximately 50,000 animals each year.
* We spend between $195 to $285 to care for each dog, cat, puppy or kitten in our shelter. This includes vaccinations, spay or neuter surgery, flea/tick control, laboratory tests and food/boarding, which average $15 per day per animal. The average stay per animal is 10-14 days.
* The average cost to us to humanely euthanize and properly dispose of an animal is $125. This includes the cost of the drugs, the landfill disposal fee and the time of the veterinary technician or doctor who carries out the procedure.
* Our average adoption fee is $50.
* Regardless of the animal’s outcome (adoption or euthanasia), we will “lose” an average of $155 for each animal that we take in or rescue.
* Ask yourself: If we were not available to take in the pet you can no longer care for, what would you do?

We greatly appreciate your understanding of - and cooperation with - our surrender fees.

http://www.humanesociety.org/animal...shelters_e

The surrender fee is there to keep the owners from WANTING to get rid of the animal so easily. We see so many people who just come in to surrender their pet because IT'S TOO MUCH HASSLE TO TAKE CARE OF IT or WE ARE PCSING AND WE DONT WANT TO TAKE THE TIME TO RESEARCH HOW TO TAKE IT WITH US. We are trying to KEEP the owners from just leaving the animal with us. We are trying to get the owners to find a better life for their animal, and we can't always guarantee they will be happy at the shelter, for however long they are there for.


PAWS also does not receive any money from the base, so that little bit of money that you are complaining about barely covers the care for the animal. It probably feeds the animal for a week, not including any vet visits it might need. $100 is NOTHING when it comes to taking care of an animal.

We want it to hurt to give up the animal. We see so many people who just walk in with no regret and no remorse. If it's not going to hurt in the heart, then it can hurt in the wallet.

The more it hurts the person to give up the animal, the less likely they will. It's actually cheaper in some cases, and if you do your research, to take the animal back to the states or wherever with you than it does to surrender the animal.