When Kelli Urbina and Melissa Roth found out local animal control agencies euthanize nearly 10,000 pets annually, they knew they had to try and make a difference.Urbina and Roth, second-year students at the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine, are co-presidents of the University’s student chapter of the Association of Shelter Veterinarians, or the Shelter Club, which actively works for the humane treatment of animals in the Baton Rouge area. “Our goal is to decrease the number of animals euthanized, whether it’s through spay/neuter or through increased adoption from shelters,” said Wendy Wolfson, Vet School instructor and faculty adviser for the group. Roth said the East Baton Rouge Parish Animal Control Center has a 90 percent euthanasia rate.Hilton Cole, EBR Parish Animal Control Center director, said the shelters make the decision to euthanize a pet based on available space at the shelter, the health condition of the animal and the pet’s personality. Cole said his facility receives more animals in tough economic times.”The economy has definitely resulted in an increase in the number of animals signed over and released to us by the owner,” Cole said.The club is hopeful its efforts to raise awareness about pet overpopulation and euthanasia in Louisiana will have a big impact on the community, Urbina said.”There is such a big problem with pet overpopulation,” Urbina said. “One of the main ways to impact it is through spay/neuter and pet adoption. It’s not going to fix itself. We have to be proactive.” As part of the Vet School’s open house Feb. 7, the club will put on a “parade of breeds” from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., showcasing adoptable pets from local shelters. Potential pet owners can select a pet and obtain applications for adoption. The group will promote the Vet School’s monthly “Spay Day”, when veterinary students assist with the alteration of 70 to 100 cats each month. Pet owners must make appointments and pay a $25 fee. The group will also promote spay/neuter education throughout February as part of the Humane Society of the United States’ Spay Day USA, which takes place annually on the last Tuesday of February.  Not only does spaying or neutering pets reduce the potential pet population, it can also improve the pets’ behavior.  “It lowers testosterone levels, specifically with males. It lowers the tendency to roam and it lowers aggression,” Roth said. Recently the club raised money for medication and equipment to donate to local shelters, including the East and West Baton Rouge Parish Animal Control Centers and the Walker Animal Control Center. The club requires its members, totaling around 20 Vet School students, to volunteer at least four hours per semester.Urbina said the group “adopted” the West Baton Rouge Parish Animal Control Center in Port Allen, which has only two employees. Richard Summers, the shelter’s director, said the volunteers are a big help. “Every little bit helps when you only have two people,” he said. “They just bring happiness to the shelter. They bring so much optimism.”If pets housed in local shelters aren’t adopted, the shelters must eventually euthanize the animals. By volunteering at the shelters, the group hopes to contribute to the overall health of the animals there, which enhances their “adoptability,” Roth said. “It’s a huge problem. There are quite a lot of animals that get euthanized,” she said. “It’s a matter of getting people to take these animals into their homes.” Roth said lovers of purebred dogs and cats will have plenty of choices at local shelters. She said adoption prices are relatively low at about $75 at the East Baton Rouge Parish Animal Control Center, a fee that already includes all the necessary vaccines, a spay or neuter operation and a microchip implant. The West Baton Rouge Parish Animal Control Center does not charge an adoption fee.Summers said he values all of the pets at the shelter in Port Allen.”I keep them until I can’t keep them anymore,” said Summers. “I see something good in every one of them.”—-Contact Matthew Barnidge at [email protected]