Ghost Animals: How Best Friends' Shelter Policies Fail the Most Vulnerable

Managed Intake and the Decline of Spay/Neuter Funding are Failing America’s Most Vulnerable Animals

In the world of animal welfare, the numbers seem to tell a story of progress. Over the past four years, shelter intake across the United States has dropped from 5.36 million animals in 2019 to 4.74 million in 2023. Save rates—the percentage of animals leaving shelters alive—have risen steadily, with many states nearing or surpassing the coveted 90% “no-kill” benchmark.

But these numbers obscure a darker reality. Behind the declining intake figures and rising save rates lies a hidden population of animals that shelters never counted—animals Esther Mechler, the founder of United Spay Alliance and longtime animal welfare advocate, calls “ghost animals.”

“Ghost animals,” Mechler explains, “are those turned away from shelters due to limited-admission practices aimed at protecting save rates or live-release rates. These animals are often abandoned or left to fend for themselves, with many not surviving. They’re treated as though they don’t exist—hence the term ‘ghost animals.’ Tragically, many become literal ghosts.”

This hidden crisis is now coming into sharper focus, thanks to a recent court ruling in San Diego that challenges the legality of managed intake policies in California shelters. Combined with national animal welfare organizations’ deprioritization of spay/neuter funding, it threatens to unravel decades of progress in animal welfare—and expose the true cost of a policy designed to make shelters look good on paper.

The consequence of Best Friends’ Managed Intake policies is a burgeoning population of intact stray animals undermining animal welfare and public safety.

The Mirage of Managed Intake

Over the past decade, national organizations like Best Friends Animal Society and the ASPCA have championed managed intake as a way to reduce overcrowding in shelters and improve animal outcomes. This policy allows shelters to limit the number of animals they accept based on their capacity for care. On paper, it’s been a success: California’s shelter intake dropped from 710,769 animals in 2019 to 573,024 in 2023—a decline of nearly 20%. Texas saw a similar trend, with intake falling from 696,214 in 2019 to 568,325 in 2023.

But these numbers don’t tell the whole story. Managed intake doesn’t reduce the number of homeless animals; it simply doesn’t count them. Animals turned away from shelters often end up abandoned on streets or left in unregulated environments where their survival is far from guaranteed. One reader, reflecting on the involvement of Best Friends Animal Society in their local shelter, described it this way: “Watching Best Friends become involved in our city shelter and seeing firsthand the downright scary tactics they are implementing leaves me holding my breath for the tragedy that is inevitable. Managed intake helps no one; it’s an out of sight, out of mind mentality.”

The San Diego court ruling has called into question the legality of managed intake policies in California, ruling these practices violate shelters' legal and ethical responsibilities to care for homeless animals. The court's decision challenges the notion that shelters can prioritize live-release rates over their role as safety nets for vulnerable animals. If this ruling leads to the curtailment of managed intake statewide, California’s shelter system could face a significant increase in animal admissions, exposing years of neglect and a lack of preparedness to meet the true scale of the crisis.

The Ghosts Left Behind

The consequences of these policies are starkly visible in states like California and Texas, where save rates remain below the no-kill benchmark despite declining intake numbers—79% in California and just 76.2% in Texas as of 2023. These figures suggest that even as fewer animals enter shelters, many are not receiving care elsewhere. Instead, they join the ranks of ghost animals—unseen and uncounted casualties of a system designed to protect metrics rather than lives.

Esther Mechler emphasizes that this crisis is not just about numbers but about accountability: “When we focus solely on save rates and intake reductions without asking where these animals are going, we create a system that ignores its most vulnerable members.”

The Spay/Neuter Gap

Compounding this crisis is another troubling trend: national organizations’ deprioritization of spay/neuter funding. Spay/neuter programs have long been the cornerstone of efforts to control animal overpopulation, preventing millions of unwanted litters from ever being born. But in recent years, funding for these programs has dwindled as organizations shift their focus toward adoption campaigns and other initiatives.

The pandemic only worsened this gap by disrupting sterilization services nationwide. The result has been a rise in unaltered animal populations—and an inevitable increase in stray and homeless animals over time. Without robust spay/neuter programs to address the root causes of overpopulation, shelters will face mounting pressure as ghost animals continue to multiply.

A System at Risk

The combination of managed intake policies and reduced spay/neuter funding has created a perfect storm for America’s shelter system—and a fundraising bonanza for national organizations, whose annual revenues have risen significantly during this self-inflicted crisis period of shifting priorities.

The net result has been:

• Rising Stray Populations: Animals turned away from shelters or born due to lack of sterilization services are flooding communities unprepared to care for them.

• Overcrowded Shelters: If managed intake is curtailed following legal challenges like the San Diego ruling, shelters could see a surge in admissions that overwhelms their resources.

• Widening Disparities: States like Delaware (94.5% save rate) and Montana (93.9%) highlight what’s possible when resources are abundant—but states like North Carolina (73.4%) and Texas (76.2%) show how far others have to go.

The Path Forward

To address this crisis, national organizations must rethink their priorities:

1. Reinvest in Spay/Neuter Programs: Prevention remains the most effective way to control animal populations and reduce shelter admissions sustainably.

2. Reevaluate Managed Intake: Shelters must balance their responsibility to protect live outcomes with their role as safety nets for vulnerable animals.

3. Count Every Animal: Transparency about ghost animals is essential if we are to address their plight effectively.

The story of America’s ghost animals is one of invisibility—but it doesn’t have to be one of inevitability. By confronting the hard truths behind today’s shelter numbers and committing to real solutions where every animal counts, we can ensure that progress isn’t just a numerical illusion—but a reality for every life we aim to save.

*Statistics sourced from Best Friends’ National Animal Shelter Statistics Dashboard

Ed Boks is a former Executive Director of the New York City, Los Angeles, and Maricopa County Animal Care & Control Departments, and a former Board Director of the National Animal Control Association. His work has been published in the LA Times, New York Times, Newsweek, Real Clear Policy, Sentient Media, and now on Animal Politics with Ed Boks.