VALPARAISO | Animals are no longer being euthanized at the Porter County Animal Shelter, but many people are questioning whether their current living conditions are any better.

Not only is the shelter dealing with overcrowded kennels, but many of the animals are sick -- with entire litters of kittens so ill their eyes are swollen shut and dogs suffering from constant wheezing known as "kennel cough." Numerous animals are housed in single cages.

Conditions at the shelter have drawn criticism from local residents and animal rights organization PETA.

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals received complaints regarding the treatment of a severely injured kitten taken to the shelter. After investigating the situation, PETA officials could not obtain verification that the animal was treated in a timely fashion. The kitten may have sat in a cage with its injuries for up to four days, said Theresa Chagrin, PETA animal care and control specialist.

The caseworker who visited the facility also expressed concern regarding the conditions of the shelter.

"We are very concerned," Chagrin said. "Obviously these are upper respiratory diseases that are very contagious. Animals may be suffering or dying."

Shelter director Judy Bonaventura said animals have not died at the facility and many were brought in already sick.

Poor living conditions for animals are a common consequence of shelters that adopt no-kill policies too quickly, Chagrin said.

"We see this a lot," Chagrin said. "As long as you're having thousands of animals coming into your facility, you can't stop euthanizing them unless you're turning animals away -- in which case they die slowly and painfully -- or accepting them and overcrowding them."

Chagrin said the county should not focus on euthanization rates, but instead try to curtail the birth rate by making a significant push for spay and neutering.

"When your euthanization statistics become more important than the animals themselves, there is a problem," Chagrin said.

Residents hoping to assist the shelter also have run into problems. Valparaiso resident Ella Bell said she was "turned away" when inquiring about fostering a litter of sick kittens and paying for their veterinarian bills. Bell said she and her fiance have fostered animals before -- in Porter County as well as former residences -- and were trying to help with the overcrowding.

Bell said her offers to help clean the facility also were denied.

"We were told there was no cat litter," Bell said. "So we went to Wiseway and bought 150 pounds of it. Then we asked to brush the dogs and they said we couldn't because we hadn't gone through 'orientation.'"

Bonaventura said the situation never occurred and employees are scheduling home visits for those interested in fostering.