Copperas Cove animal control, under order of the police department, is the only shelter in the area that has been ordered to destroy all pit bulls, Rottweilers and their mixes without to allow adoption., OR EVEN RESCUE, no matter what the dog's character or age! Even small, highly adoptable puppies are destroyed, just for being a certain breed. Many breeds are misidentified as pit bulls and Rottweiler, especially puppies, that are actually completely different breeds. Further as it appears, they are forbidden to lsit found or adoptable dogs on any adoption website, be that Petfinder.com or their own page.


Animal owners surrendering their pets are not  told that they will be destroyed. Even registered rescues are not allowed to save any of these dogs, that is highly unusual and inexcusable. We ask that destroying dogs, based on their looks and breed, ends and each animal is given a chance to be rescued by any 501c(3) rescue group and adopted to any adopter willing to sign a liability release. Any reason stated for this regulation is typically avoidable, such as liability. Thousands of shelters in this country adopt out pit bulls and do not have liability issues.

The State of Texas Health Department, which governs most animals care related topics, does NOT encourage breed selection. However, by law, counties and cities can make up their own stricter guidelines and laws. I do wish that all cities could look at state-level practices and follow suit. Destroying all bully breeds will not change anything. Stringent requirements to spay and neuter, control of stray animals (strict enforcement of stray laws and notable fines/punishment) as well as eradication of back yard breeders will make more of a difference. As long as just anyone is allowed to sell puppies and make a buck off of poorly bred animals, we will never get a grip... not on bully or ill-bred toy breeds.

Further, the only 5 employees at the shelter are being paid nearly $180000/year but in between the 5 of them find no time to come out at 7PM or a Saturday when called, to take a stray pit bull to the shelter, even though they are declared too dangerous to be adopted by the officer of the police department that oversees animal control, yet at this inconvenient time, people are told to "set them loose, nobody will come out NOW" by police officers!

Further, many hundred cats are destroyed every year. the kill rate for cats is outrageous and couold be MCH lower if animal control was able, willing and allowed to network their animals like many other shelters do.