History Of Animal Shelters And Protection Societies
From: Animal-Shelters-And-Adoption.com


Unlike humans, animals do not have the means to assert and
protect their rights. Therefore preventing animal cruelty and
defending animal rights is the responsibility of people.

One hero in this fight for animal rights was Henry Bergh, an
aristocrat and son of an American shipbuilder. For the first
fifty years of his life Bergh was a man of leisure, but in his
fiftieth year his perspective changed. In 1863 Bergh took a
diplomatic post in Russia and became disgusted by the treatment
of work animals there. From that day forward, Bergh dedicated his
life to protecting animal rights. On his voyage home he stopped
in Britain to discuss matters with the president of the Royal
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, the first
animal protection society in the world.


The First American Humane Society

Once back in New York, Bergh pleaded his case and in April 1866
the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
(ASPCA) was born. Nine days later the first anti-animal cruelty
law was approved by the New York legislature, empowering the
humane society with the force of the law. This first law was
designed to prevent cruelty to farm and work animals, primarily
horses. The humane society later succeeded in passing laws to
protect cats and dogs from animal cruelty.

When the ASPCA was first formed, strays dogs were daily rounded
up by the hundreds, placed into a cage, and dropped into the East
River to drown. In 1894 the humane society took over animal
control duties in New York, and created animal shelters and
promoted the practice of animal rescue within the city.

By the time Bergh died in 1888, 37 of the then 38 states had
passed animal cruelty prevention laws and humane societies and
animal shelters were opening across the nation.


Focusing On Dogs And Cats

In the early 1900s following the introduction of the horseless
carriage, the focus of the humane society began to shift from
horses to smaller animals, as dogs and cats became more prevalent
as pets.

In the 1950s and 1960s canned cat food and cat litter were
introduced, making pet cats a more popular. The humane society
consequently changed the focus of their animal shelters towards
the adoption of dogs and cats as pets. The licensing of pet dogs
was made an enforceable law, further pushing pet owners to accept
responsibility for their dogs.

Today the humane society is instrumental in the adoption of
thousands of pets from animal shelters every day. In addition,
animal shelters educate pet owners about the importance of
sterilization to prevent unwanted growth in the dog and cat
population. Sterilization of dogs and cats, before adoption,
helps decrease the number of animal rescues each year.

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