Being a “Humane Society” Is About More Than Being Humane to Animals

Since our print newsletter arrived in mailboxes late last week, I've received some nice comments on the "From the Executive Director" essay. So I thought I would share it here as well:

Being a “Humane Society” Is About More Than Being Humane to Animals

In common parlance, the term “humane society” is understood to refer to an agency that cares for animals. The American Heritage Dictionary defines the word humane as, “having the good qualities of human beings, as kindness, mercy, or compassion.” Humane societies traditionally focus their kindness, mercy, and compassion on animals, rather than humans. Our supporters tend to be people who feel an affinity for animals, and people who don’t feel that affinity support other types of charities.

While our organization’s focus certainly is on animals, it disturbs me a little that the impact we have on the lives of humans is often overlooked or diminished. My first 14 months on the job have shown me that helping animals and helping people are inextricably linked.

Many non-pet owners may not understand how it is that we are helping people. They’ve never spoken on the phone with a widow who is distraught because her failure to manage her dog’s behavior prevents her friends and family from visiting. Nor have they taken the call from the senior citizen whose cat is in dire need of veterinary care that he cannot afford. They’ve never shed tears with a father relinquishing the family pet because he lost his job and can’t afford the expense. It wasn’t until the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina that a broad spectrum of the population saw what happens when pet owners are given the choice of evacuating without their animals or staying in harm’s way with them. At the Shelter, we witness the human-animal bond being threatened and broken routinely. It’s not on the same scale as a natural disaster, but it is no less tragic.

We’re here to help animals. But when you’re consoling a pet owner on the phone, or standing across the intake counter offering a Kleenex, there’s no doubt that you’re in the business of helping people.

Providing spay and neuter services to low-income pet owners is another way that we help people just as much as we help animals. I must admit that our primary motivation for offering these services has been to reduce overpopulation of companion animals. But after working at the two high-volume spay/neuter clinics we held this year, I’m no longer sure that the goal of reducing pet overpopulation should trump the goal of helping low-income pet owners obtain basic veterinary care. Perhaps helping people should not be secondary to our concern for animals; perhaps the two have equal value.

We recently received a thank-you card from a woman who brought her cat to CCHS on Cat Nip/Tuck Day. She expressed her gratitude for the services provided to her cat--the vaccines and the micro chip equally important to her as the surgery. But she didn’t stop there. She went on to explain that experiencing the generosity of Cat Nip/Tuck Day had renewed her belief that there are good people in the world and, since that day, she had started being a kinder person herself. Did we help this woman’s cat? Yes. Did we further our cause of decreasing the cat population? Yes. But arguably the most profound effect was on the cat owner, not the cat.

Perhaps the most important way in which we serve the people of Champaign County is through our interactions with children. Last year, our Humane Educator, Clay Foley, was a guest in several first grade classrooms in the Champaign Unit Four School District. He was invited to those classrooms to assist the teachers in presenting lesson plans that he helped create and that had been accepted into the First Grade Curriculum. We also provide educational experiences for children through the Cunningham Children’s Home, the Juvenile Detention Center, the Orpheum Children’s Science Museum, and the Urbana Free Library. These humane education programs don’t simply teach children facts about animals. They use topics about animals to teach lessons about respect and kindness towards all living things, responsibility, fairness, and caring. The lessons young people learn through these programs will make them good people, not just good future pet owners.

Although our concern for the animals of Champaign County takes top priority and we are driven by a desire to do right by them, we should not be shy about the fact that we also serve the human residents of Champaign County. Humans, too, are deserving of kindness, mercy, and compassion and we live our mission when we extend our humanity to all living beings.