Shelters are commonly misunderstood and mislabeled, but there is an easy way to start thinking about the shelters around you, how they function, and the role they play in your community. As shelter professionals we classify them by how animals enter the shelter. We do not classify solely on the end result since that strongly depends on how they come in.

Generally speaking there are only a few entry categories used. “Open Admission” which cannot turn animals away and is normally a contracted shelter. If a dog badly bites someone while entering the lobby – they still cannot turn it away. “Managed Admission”, which might also be contracted, is where the shelter manages the intakes (outside of strays) in a way that uses space and resources wisely, helps keep animal personalities evenly meshed in order to maintain low stress and visual adoptability.  They will offer alternative resources or assistance when possible. What may take place at a Managed Admission shelter is a dog needs to be surrendered, but is not urgent and can remain in the home for a while. The shelter is pretty full and has many dogs just like this one so the owner is put on a waiting list and is called when an extra space fitting for this dog opens. Meanwhile they are offered additional resources such as courtesy listings where the animal is posted on an adoption site or those in a pet-wanted book are called. The dog might find a home directly and avoid needing to stay at the shelter, but the shelter still helped find this dog a home.  Some space was kept for very urgent, planned, and contracted stray animals. “Limited Admission” is normally shelters which do not take in strays or have contracts with local governments. They have strict criteria for the animals allowed to enter the shelter. This normally includes, but is not limited to, extensive behavior/temperament tests, breed, age, general adoptability and health status. You may also hear “Closed Admission” and although very close to Limited Admission shelters this is normally reserved for those shelters which do not take animals from the public under any circumstances, but rather from other agencies only – still conducting the strict intake requirements and testing which the Limited Admission does.

As you can imagine Open Admission is the hardest type of intake since they cannot turn away the terribly dangerous or severely ailing animals, while the other end of the spectrum being Limited or Closed Admission handpick animals making care and good outcomes much easier.

At this point you may know that CASA is a Managed Admission shelter. We started managing admissions when I joined CASA in 2009, and it has worked very well for the animals that knock on our door. I urge everyone to inquire at their local shelters, ask real questions, and learn more about how they function as a whole and not just focus on the numbers they produce at the end of the year. This may also give insight on who may have the hardest hurdles to overcome with the animals they receive and where you might be needed most in order to help even more animals succeed in their mission to find happy lifelong homes.

Tegan Locker

Note: Some argue that Open Admission shelters can also be "Managed" while still technically being Open Admission. I personally don't disagree and the categories outlined above are simply a generalized guide to use when thinking about intake processes. My intention, and I am sure the intention of others outlining the same categories, is to simply allow those who are outside of our inner shelter world to see whole-shelter functions closer to the way we do. To allow them better ways of understanding the how and why that troubles so many who have become blind sided by the vague and misunderstood shelter labels. The same shelter labels which were initially intended for shelters and their own personal improvement goals, but now are used to slap shelters in to one or the other without a second glance.

read more on shelter terms and definitions (outside webpage document)