Animal Behavior

Misconceptions 
Humane Society of Pinellas
By: Alyssa Jones

Clearwater, FL---The Humane Society of Pinellas if fighting the stigma around animal behavior
and adoption. The Humane Society of Pinellas is working with their animals’ behaviors to help
them get adopted. 

While many people have come to the misconception that animals come to shelters due to
behavior issues Heather Gibbs, Behavior and Training Manager at the Humane Society of
Pinellas wants to break that stigma. Out of the 2748 dogs and cats either returned or
surrendered to the Humane Society of Pinellas only five people reported some type of animal
aggression. However, in most cases the animal is brought to the Humane Society of Pinellas
because people either can't take care of them or they aren't allowed to where they’re own is
moving. 

“A lot of animals that come to the Humane Society of Pinellas are coming to us because of their
own moving to a place that does not allow pets. This is for both dogs and cats, animals also
come to us because of landlord restrictions or breed restrictions.” 
One of the biggest misconceptions today is that certain animals are bred to be aggressive. Out
of the 1402 dogs taken in by the Humane Society of Pinellas only three were seen as some type
of aggressive. There is no one specific breed that is more aggressive than another. The
aggressive behaviors are learned after being taught to the animal. The misconception that
animal breeds are born aggressive is one of the biggest misunderstandings when it comes to
certain animal breeds and adoption rates. 

“There is no such thing as an aggressive breed or is aggressive all the time. These things tend
to be overused, misused or mislabeled and that perpetuates the beliefs that landlords should not
admit certain kinds of animals in their complexes or in their homes,” Gibbs says. 

Out of all the important programs offered by the Humane Society of Pinellas, one of the most
important is the behavior and training program. This is an internal training program put in place
to make sure animals get the behavior training they need while also preparing them to find their
forever home. While the animals are trained for their specific needs, they are also receiving
mental stimulation. Implementing an in-kennel enrichment program not only helps the animal
learn but also reduces the animal's stress. It’s important to keep the animals not only trained
and learning but it’s also important to keep them socialized. Through daily playgroups the
animals are learning how to socialize with one another. This also allows the trainers to see how
the animals interact with other animals, this will help them determine if a home with another
animal will be a good fit. 

“This is something that definitely needs to be addressed to get animals adopted more easily and
to be welcomed and to stay with their owners,” Says Gibbs. 

While the Human Society of Pinellas continues to work on ending the stigma around animal
aggression, they are always looking for more volunteers. If you would like to volunteer at the
shelter there is an application located on the website. They even accept donations of  blankets,
toys, treats and cleaning supplies. A full list is available on their website at
www.humanesocietyofpinellas.org. You can either drop off or send your donations straight to the
adoption center located at 3040 State Road 590 Clearwater, FL 33759. 
“With the hours they have put in last year alone it was over 31,000 hours, that would be the
equivalent of 13 full time employees. So, that’s money that we can spend on the animals just
through the volunteerism of these people, and we can’t do what we do without them.” Says
Sherri Stitt the Director of Development at the Humane Society of Pinellas.