SHANGHAI’S network of grassroots animal welfare organizations that rescue, shelter and adopt out stray dogs and cats got a bit of a black eye after one group that billed itself as the city’s largest rescuers of homeless animals was accused of malpractice by the local media.

The Shanghai Pet Rescue and Adoption Network was accused of charging fees for those who brought in stray dogs and cats, and then charging fees for people to adopt them, under the guise of “medical treatment” costs. Many adopters complained that the animals they agreed to take in were ill or died soon after being taken home.

In effect, the organization was accused of being a for-profit group, not the charity it claimed. Some alleged that the organization is an outgrowth of the former pet shop Eastern Dog Store, which was shuttered in 2006 amid allegations of pet trafficking.

It’s the sort of media attention that legitimate rescue services don’t need. They already have a tall challenge on their hands with an increasing number of stray animals in the city.

Shanghai is home to up to 1 million dogs, with only about a quarter of them registered. There is no estimate of the number of cats in the city.

Growing pet numbers have resulted in growing homeless animals, with owners either tiring of pet care or abandoning them when they leave town. Grassroots groups and concerned individuals provide the chief rescue and shelter services.

City regulations allow people to adopt dogs from shelters, but there are no rules about adoption procedures or safeguards.

“Most animal rescuers are individuals, so they usually set the requirements on adoptions,” said Jane Saw, founder of Best Friends China, a bilingual animal rescue group that operates both online and offline.

Saw said some rescuers are a bit overzealous in choosing people to adopt stray animals because they want the best homes possible.

Individual rescuers, who usually have pets of their own, bring strays for adoption because they can’t take in any more animals. Adoption is free. All animals are vaccinated, and older animals are also neutered. If animals are too young for neutering, the adopter must promise to have the procedure done at a later date. Dogs must be registered with local authorities.

A woman surnamed Xie, who wanted to adopt a dog on Willspet Homeless Pet Adoption Day, was rejected because she was a renter who didn’t have a Shanghai permanent residency permit, or hukou.

“Though I don’t own my apartment, that doesn’t mean I couldn’t take good care of a dog,” she said, with obvious disappointment.

For many rescuers, an ideal adopter would be a local family with permanent residence and solid employment in Shanghai.

“We found that some non-resident adopters abandoned their pets when they left town or went home for Spring Festival,” said one rescuer, who declined to be identified. “It’s not that these people aren’t nice, but we do have to minimize the risk of animals becoming homeless again.”

Follow-up visits

According to Saw, some rescuers make periodic visits to adopters’ homes to make sure that the animals are well cared for.

“Some ask adopters to send in frequent photos of their new pets,” she said.

Another rescuer, Max Ma, said it makes sense to have strict adoption policies because some people abuse cats and dogs for the fun of it.

“Even if we visit a home and find that to be the case, there’s little we can do about it,” Ma said. “We need more comprehensive legislation in this area.”

According to city regulations, those who abandon pets face penalties of between 500 yuan (US$72) and 2,000 yuan. Enforcement, however, is not easy or prevalent.

Rescuers said most people willing to adopt strays prefer puppies, kittens and specific breeds. Mongrels, which are called “Chinese rural dogs,” and older animals end up stuck in shelters.

“I once rescued a stray beagle dog and posted information online to find an adopter,” said rescuer Jenny Ye. “I received more than 50 replies a day, with some people even offering to pay me. However, adoption posts on Chinese rural dogs have been posted for months and months without any reply.”

Saw said it’s easy for people to buy the pets they want from online sites like Taobao.com.

“If one buys a dog for 10,000 yuan, he probably won’t neuter it,” Saw said. “Some owners buy animals to make money from breeding.”

Yet “backyard” can also increase the numbers of strays because if puppies fall short of breeding standards, they may be abandoned, Saw said.

The Shanghai Public Security Bureau runs a dog shelter in the Jing’an District. Dogs that aren’t adopted within 30 days can be put to death, but that doesn’t happen often, bureau officials said.

Ding Wei, an official of the city’s People’s Congress Standing Committee, told Xinhua news agency that dogs failing health examinations are supposed to be culled under regulations that took effect in 2011, but there are no effective regulations on what to do with other dogs. The matter is still under study, he said.

Before the regulation was enacted, all unregistered dogs had to be euthanized if caught.

Sun Quanhui, a senior science advisor with World Animal Protection, said the rising number of pets in Chinese cities is causing various social issues.

“Owners are responsible for the behavior of their pets,” he said, referring to cases when pets have caused neighborhood disturbances. “The first step should be reproduction control. If we don’t control reproduction, there will always be more homeless animals to rescue.”

Taking care of pets is often more troublesome than owners anticipate at the onset. They require daily attention. That cute kitten or puppy can grow up to be less endearing.

The role of rescuing abandoned animals must be shared by the government and grassroots rescuers, Sun added, suggesting that the government can purchase services from grassroots groups as support.

“Some animal lovers spent all their money trying to save stray dogs, even if it means an impoverished lifestyle,” he said. “In some cases, these animals are no better off than when they were roaming the streets.”