California's Chihuahuas
It appears that there are more Chihuahuas in California than what California can actually handle!
California's Oakland animal shelters are so overcrowded with the tiny dogs that they have begun to ship the Chihuahuas out of state, sending more than 100 to Arizona, Oregon and Washington State.
The Director of Oakland Animal Services, Megan Webb, even says: "as soon as they get them, they are ready for new ones."
There are so many abandoned Chihuahuas in Californian animal shelters that they comprise more than 30% of the total dog population in all the shelters in California combined.
Animal experts are blaming Hollywood's pop culture, claiming that fans want to copy Paris Hilton and Miley Cyrus by carrying their own Chihuahuas in handbags. Unfortunately, the majority of these pups are eventually abandoned at the local animal shelter.
The animal experts certainly seem to be accurate in their assumptions - California animal shelters are the only animal shelters in the entire US that is swamped with abandoned Chihuahuas.
The senior vice president overseeing the ASPCA adoption center in New York City, Gail Buchwald, acknowledges that shelters in other states would love to have Chihuahuas in their shelters because of the high demand for them.
"We never have enough supply for the huge consumer demand for small dogs," she said.
However, one the main issues faced by the Oakland Animal Shelter is the lack of resources and money to fly the Chihuahuas to other states. But Ms. Buchwald has stated that she is more than happy to help out in that regard:
“"othing is outside the realm of possibility here. We have a supply-demand issue," she said.
Los Angles city shelters have so many Chihuahuas that 25 of them were flown to Nashua, N.H., last week. All of the Chihuahuas found new homes within one day of arriving!
Prior to being flown away, the Chihuahuas received baths, were sterilized and tested for heartworms before donning little coats for the flight out of California. This inaugural Chihuahua flight was funded by actress Katherine Heigl and the Jason Debus Heigl Foundation.
Los Angeles is hoping to fly out at least 40 more Chihuahua as soon as the money can be raised.
Madeline Bernstein, who is the president of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Los Angeles, explained that Chihuahuas are the most popular breed of dog in Los Angeles, and so therefore, it stands to reason that the Chihuahua is also the most commonly abandoned breed of dog in Los Angeles.
Ms. Webb from the Oakland Animal Shelter stated that her shelter receives nearly 10 Chihuahuas every day! Because of this, the majority of Californian animal shelters that were originally built to accommodate big dogs, had to be remodeled to better serve the needs of the small, 5 pound Chihuahuas.
Movies such as 'Beverly Hills Chihuahua' and 'Legally Blonde' have boosted the image of Chihuahuas to that of stardom.
The Senior Coordinator of the Chihuahua Rescue of Beverly Hills, Dave Frangipane, explained that Chihuahuas are sought after dogs by fans of Chihuahua-totting celebrities.
However, there are a few reasons as to why these adorable little dogs are being abandoned. The most obvious reason being that any cute puppy has the potential to grow up to have behavioral problems, such as aggressiveness and anxiety, or could succumb to a myriad of health problems.
Because of their susceptibility to injuries, Chihuahuas face higher veterinary bills in California that most other dog breeds living in that state.
Mr. Frangipane has said that: "People think nothing of kicking a small, yappy dog. And they can be abused by people of all sizes. A toddler can snap a Chihuahua's leg in a second."
However, the biggest increase in the Chihuahua population in California is most probably as a direct result of greedy backyard breeders and unscrupulous puppy mills, agreed both Ms. Buchwald and Mr. Frangipane.
Photo Credit: ajari
California's Oakland animal shelters are so overcrowded with the tiny dogs that they have begun to ship the Chihuahuas out of state, sending more than 100 to Arizona, Oregon and Washington State.
The Director of Oakland Animal Services, Megan Webb, even says: "as soon as they get them, they are ready for new ones."
There are so many abandoned Chihuahuas in Californian animal shelters that they comprise more than 30% of the total dog population in all the shelters in California combined.
Animal experts are blaming Hollywood's pop culture, claiming that fans want to copy Paris Hilton and Miley Cyrus by carrying their own Chihuahuas in handbags. Unfortunately, the majority of these pups are eventually abandoned at the local animal shelter.
The animal experts certainly seem to be accurate in their assumptions - California animal shelters are the only animal shelters in the entire US that is swamped with abandoned Chihuahuas.
The senior vice president overseeing the ASPCA adoption center in New York City, Gail Buchwald, acknowledges that shelters in other states would love to have Chihuahuas in their shelters because of the high demand for them.
"We never have enough supply for the huge consumer demand for small dogs," she said.
However, one the main issues faced by the Oakland Animal Shelter is the lack of resources and money to fly the Chihuahuas to other states. But Ms. Buchwald has stated that she is more than happy to help out in that regard:
“"othing is outside the realm of possibility here. We have a supply-demand issue," she said.
Los Angles city shelters have so many Chihuahuas that 25 of them were flown to Nashua, N.H., last week. All of the Chihuahuas found new homes within one day of arriving!
Prior to being flown away, the Chihuahuas received baths, were sterilized and tested for heartworms before donning little coats for the flight out of California. This inaugural Chihuahua flight was funded by actress Katherine Heigl and the Jason Debus Heigl Foundation.
Los Angeles is hoping to fly out at least 40 more Chihuahua as soon as the money can be raised.
Madeline Bernstein, who is the president of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Los Angeles, explained that Chihuahuas are the most popular breed of dog in Los Angeles, and so therefore, it stands to reason that the Chihuahua is also the most commonly abandoned breed of dog in Los Angeles.
Ms. Webb from the Oakland Animal Shelter stated that her shelter receives nearly 10 Chihuahuas every day! Because of this, the majority of Californian animal shelters that were originally built to accommodate big dogs, had to be remodeled to better serve the needs of the small, 5 pound Chihuahuas.
Movies such as 'Beverly Hills Chihuahua' and 'Legally Blonde' have boosted the image of Chihuahuas to that of stardom.
The Senior Coordinator of the Chihuahua Rescue of Beverly Hills, Dave Frangipane, explained that Chihuahuas are sought after dogs by fans of Chihuahua-totting celebrities.
However, there are a few reasons as to why these adorable little dogs are being abandoned. The most obvious reason being that any cute puppy has the potential to grow up to have behavioral problems, such as aggressiveness and anxiety, or could succumb to a myriad of health problems.
Because of their susceptibility to injuries, Chihuahuas face higher veterinary bills in California that most other dog breeds living in that state.
Mr. Frangipane has said that: "People think nothing of kicking a small, yappy dog. And they can be abused by people of all sizes. A toddler can snap a Chihuahua's leg in a second."
However, the biggest increase in the Chihuahua population in California is most probably as a direct result of greedy backyard breeders and unscrupulous puppy mills, agreed both Ms. Buchwald and Mr. Frangipane.
Photo Credit: ajari
1 Comments:
Sounds like Paris Hilton should fly about 1000 of the dogs to other states for adoption and so should anyone who has made money on the breed fly dogs to states where they can be adopted. I have a cute little chihuahua and cannot imagine him in such a strait.
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