Area Shelters React To Rescue Of 200 Beagles By Humane Society Of Tulsa

The arrival of 208 rescued beagles to Tulsa from a breeding facility in Virginia is being met with both excitement and controversy.

Some local groups have been vocal on their social media pages, saying the Humane Society of Tulsa should not bring the beagles to Oklahoma, citing the state has so many animals in need.

The Humane Society of Tulsa said people are spreading rumors, such as the shelter euthanizing animals to make room for the rescue. HST said it uses euthanasia only in the most critical medical situations.

"This is a national transport effort and emergency response,” said Rachel Ward, Humane Society of Tulsa adoption center manager. “We were directly requested to come in, so there's a lot of chatter out there for sure."

Ward said 200 people, about 75 percent of them out of state, have already applied to adopt.

Ward said the rescue of the beagles will not impact its mission in the community.

"It really has not a whole lot to do with the local scene,” said Ward. “We're still doing all the same things we do on a weekly basis as far as intakes go."

Some, like Jamee Suarez with Oklahoma Alliance for Animals, question whether bringing the beagles here will hurt Oklahoma rescues and shelters.

"I just hope they don't adopt them out here because we have so many here right now,” said Suarez. “We have other beagle rescues here who are struggling as well."

Tulsa SPCA said it will take 30 beagles to adopt out and moved some over to its shelter on July 28.

CEO, Mindy Tiner, said it's about balance. "Last year, we brought 35 animals in from Louisiana and in 2019, when we had flooding in our community, our partners came together and took hundreds of animals from us when we needed help," said Tiner.

Tiner also said Tulsa SPCA, like other shelters, has dogs and cats there for months waiting to be adopted.

"They've been available and ready to go, and that had nothing to do with beagles, so we just hope that everybody can have some grace and understanding that we're all doing the best that we can," said Tiner.

Tulsa Animal Welfare is waiving fees for approved adopters of its dogs and cats.

Oklahoma Alliance for Animals is giving out a pet starter pack for all adopted dogs through Sunday.