Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, March 30, 1991 TAG: 9104010168
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: A-13 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Grief, personally, because having visited the Roanoke Valley SPCA shelter during the days Rambo was boarded there, I had the chance to meet that same flop-eared hound for which she grieves. Displeasure, for as objective as her article appeared, certain realities were overlooked.
The staff at the shelter are, to the individual, caring and loving human beings, who work in a less-than-pleasant environment for long hours at low wages. They do this because they care so much for animals.
The staff grieves for every animal that has to be put down in much the same way that she grieves for Rambo. The "rules" followed in detroying Rambo are there not so employees can prove their point or voice their authority, but to insulate them from their own unrealistic desire to give every animal that comes through that door the opportunity to live out its normal life.
The Roanoke Valley SPCA aspires to have the facility, personnel, and public awareness to ensure that every homeless, discarded and injured animal brought to its attention be afforded the chance to live. Unfortunately, there just isn't enough money or adopting families to meet these aspirations.
The Roanoke Valley SPCA is not perfect; it grieves deeply every time it fails to find a new home for one of its guests. But the staff take great joy in their successful adoptions and will continue in the knowledge that without their efforts, many more pets would come to an untimely end. STEVEN DAVIDSON Roanoke Valley SPCA Board Member ROANOKE
by CNB