Addressing the Root of the Problem: How Closing the Shelter Saved More Animals

We recently had the opportunity to (virtually) attend the Humane Dog & Cat Population Management Conference, hosted by the International Companion Animal Management Coalition (ICAM). The conference featured engaging sessions from organizations around the world, covering themes from evolving population management and One Health, to rehoming and cat population management. These themes highlighted the various aspects of population management work, and showcased significant successes and research in the field.  

While every session was interesting, one in particular stood out. 

On Day 3, Gisela Vico Pesch, with the Asociación Nacional Protectora de Animals (ANPA) in Costa Rica, presented a session, “Breaking Paradigms Saves Thousands of Lives.” In this session, Gisela explained how their organization, like so many others, initially believed that opening a shelter would help the most animals. However, the reality was different.

“We kept the same 100 animals all year long, because of the low adoption rates. We continuously received animals. The streets were still full,” she shared. “It took around 10 years for us to realize, our dream shelter was not going anywhere.”

After attending conferences and learning more about dog and cat population management, they understood that the real opportunity for lifesaving was in prevention. They needed to address the root of the problem, “instead of spending time and money on the consequences.” 

“Once we understood that, our golden years began – and we’re still living them,” Gisela shared. 

The organization pivoted. In 2000, they conducted their first spay/neuter campaign. Since then, they’ve come a long way. 

After closing to the public in 2000 and finding homes for all the remaining animals, ANPA officially closed the shelter in 2006. By this point, they had spayed/neutered over 180,000 dogs and cats, at a cost of $47.50 per animal – roughly one-fourth the cost of sheltering a single animal.

In just six years, they had witnessed firsthand what many others had observed – sheltering has its limits; it’s costly, and the number of animals helped is always limited by the space and resources available. If adoption rates are low, and animals wait for longer periods in the shelter, then there just isn’t space or capacity to help the next animal in need.

Spay/neuter tells a different story. The cost to spay/neuter a single animal is significantly less than the cost of sheltering. Every surgery is one more animal helped. No capacity issues, no limitations. 

Today, ANPA is one of the strongest and biggest animal welfare organizations in Costa Rica. They continue to focus their efforts on spay/neuter campaigns, along with humane education programs, and urge other groups in Costa Rica to learn from their experience, and consider spay/neuter, rather than opening a shelter.