by Barbara Fairbanks, VP of HSNTx Board of Directors

Do you still call an animal shelter "the pound"?   If you do, you're certainly in good company.  Many members of the public that haven't been active in animal welfare innocently use this term to refer to their local animal shelter or adoption center. 

Although political correctness seems to dictate the current "acceptable" terms for all sorts of people and places and sometimes seems silly, animal advocates are working to dispel the "pound" mentality because it conjures up images of dogs and cats with a one-way ticket to the facility.

So even if you have already abandoned the old pound terminology, how would you respond to someone that is operating from a less enlightened perspective?  Gently working the alternative terminology into replies from someone that inquires about "the pound" is one way to educate people without actually correcting them.  A friendly explanation about the change of terminology works well with people that seem to have more interest in animals.  

Please do your part to help change the perception of animal shelters from a dark jailing facility to a compassionate haven for animals that have no place else to go.