Jacksonville Humane Society - Review

Today, I made a visit to the Jacksonville Humane Society. It was my first time being there, and there is a lot that I can say about the place. First of all, the overall layout of the of the HS was quite nice, different buildings to signify different locations of the HS (adoption, admission...etc). As for the cleanliness of these buildings, I would have to say that there was a lot of mud and dirt around on the large dog/puppy adoption floor, mud that people had tracked in. I can take an understanding to the fact that it was early, and we went when they first opened. What I did take a liking to about the cleanliness was the fact that the staff requested pardon of the mess laying around.

As for the staff, each member seemed to care about the dogs and cats at the facility. They were friendly, and always available to help out when they were needed.

The dogs, I have a couple of concerns. In my own suggestion, I would have placed dogs that had not been assessed on a pre-adoption floor, instead of putting them with everyone else. We were growled at by several dogs, some showed aggression towards my husband. There were no warnings on the cages that say "I Bite" or anything of the sort, the only warning that remotely related to such a thing was "Have not been assessed for canine-ality." Now, I have to ask, how will a 5 year old who walks away from their mother or father understand that the dog is new, and the staff really don't know the dog too well, and have no idea if they would bite? Or one of those more aggressive, growling dogs, who's to say that a child won't say "Aw, how cute" and stick a finger in there? I have seen it happen, so don't tell me that it's impossible. Dogs need to be in a safe environment. They had brand new dogs with the dogs who had been there long enough to get use to the kennels. This sickened me. Assess the dogs BEFORE putting them where someone might feel the need to stick their fingers in the cages, no matter how many warnings you have up. I don't care if you have a sign that says "I will Bite", someone will still be foolish enough to try, at least ONE person every day will try something.

Dogs are very unpredictable animals. They cannot speak to humans, they cannot tell you that something is wrong. The only way that they can communicate the idea of "Hey, get away from me" is by barking and growling. Dogs who may seem friendly at first impression may turn out to have a deep disliking for a certain smell that someone brings in, or children. I am curious as to what kind of assessment they put these dogs through.

I have seen several signs on cages that say "I am in the guarding food program". Yes, and this is what? A program that teaches dogs not to be food aggressive? We approached a kennel where it had this sign on the dog's cage. Almost imediately, we were growled at, and told to step back from the cage by this poor dog. What other choice did he have but to show anger and aggression, warning us not to touch his food. Now, again, imagine a child saying "Oh, it's OK puppy!" And reach in to pet the dog. I am certain that child would be bitten. Any questionable dogs like this need to be taken off of that floor and put in a seperate location. I can rant on for hours, exploding your brain on the ideas of taking risks with dogs that are of a questionable nature. I know that I will not let any child of mine (when I get them :P) approach these dogs unless they have been fully assessed and I have SEEN them be approached. Never let a child move towards a food-aggressive dog.

The small dog/puppy facility was just across from the cattery. This building/kennel location was clean and well taken care of. The staff told us (as well as a sign) to not put our fingers in the cages not touch any dogs, unless we plan on using their sanitizer in between EACH dog. Now, I did not see that sign, or have anyone tell me, when going into the larger dog kennel (which is in a totally different building) - So diseases are not easily spread between the small dogs, but between the large dogs? Maybe they should have this sign out there.

Through my observations, I would have to say that overall, the dogs looked healthy and well taken care of. The facilities, were for the most part clean and orderly, and the staff were friendly and well-educated, even if there were a lot of concerns with the way the dogs were housed. I do recommend visiting this facility, as I know I will be returning, I just ask that you exercise extreme caution, some of these dogs should go through behavioral classes before being reachable by the public.