The stress on shelter staff is significant: no room to put ever more dogs; having to euthanize dogs to make room for new dogs;
performing triage on sick
animals when space is limited; having to make hard choices about evening and weekend heating and lighting with a
small budget; no veterinarian or
vet tech on the staff; no evening or weekend staff; no time to network adoptable
animals; no available homes in the surrounding communities; inadequate transport vehicles; little or no support from local government; an
Animal Control Officer often doing double duty, responsible also for managing the shelter; counties lacking even a shelter or inside kenneling.
A survey published this year found that over 50 % of final year veterinary students in the UK do not feel confident either in discussing orodental problems with clients or in
performing a detailed examination of the oral cavity of their
small animal patients.1 Once in practice, things don't always improve and, anecdotally, it seems many
vets dread feline dental procedures.