If you scroll through the Brown County Humane Society’s Facebook page, puppy dog eyes and kitten whiskers meet you, along with short biographies of pets in search of their forever homes.
There aren’t many of them, though. As of Friday, only three dogs and 13 cats were available for adoption.
With stay-at-home orders in effect in the spring, and people working from home or having extra time on their hands since COVID-19 began, adoptions have been happening at a rapid pace, humane society board President Sue Ann Werling said.
“We have definitely seen our animals being adopted pretty quickly,” she said. “They’re in and out pretty quick.”
[sc:text-divider text-divider-title=”Story continues below gallery” ]Last year, the humane society aided in the adoption of 378 pets. This year so far, there have been 394.
Animals’ length of stay also has been shorter. In 2019, cats averaged 41 days in the shelter and dogs averaged 23. This year, cats have been staying in the shelter an average of 33.5 days and dogs for 21.5.
The humane society also has been able to aid other agencies in finding homes for their animals, importing animals from other places. The shelter’s community relations manager, Megan Gushwa, said that assisting other agencies is a “double benefit.”
“We’ve had the import program for several years,” she said. “What we saw this year is that so many people wanted to adopt.”
Shelters and potential adopters across the nation have seen this same increase, according to multiple news outlets. The rush to adopt was reported by USA Today as early as March 27, right after stay-at-home orders began. The Washington Post reported on the continuing surge just last month.
One shelter in Chicago simply “ran out” of pets, according to CNBC.
For families who cannot adopt or pets that are not ready for adoption, the local humane society offers the option to foster a pet. With the pandemic, they’ve also seen an uptick in fostering applications.
The foster program places shelter animals into temporary homes where they can grow, heal, socialize and become or remain adoptable while they wait for their own forever home.
Werling said they have been “very pleased” with the interest in fostering.
There are currently 34 dogs and cats in foster care. Last year, a total of 158 animals were fostered. Total foster numbers are up this year, too, with 200 pets having spent time in temporary homes already.
New shelter home
Not only are they pleased with adoptions and fosters, humane society volunteers and staff members are seeing progress on the building of a new shelter next door.
Construction began in early September and is on schedule to be finished in the spring.
“We are so pleased with our progress,” Werling said. “We have just forged forward; we have not stopped.”
The shelter has operated for more than 30 years out of a 4,000-square-foot building on State Road 135 South, with rooms frequently serving multiple purposes.
The new shelter, at 9,100 square feet, will have indoor meet-and-greet rooms for potential adopters to get to know animals; an area for people to privately meet with shelter staff to surrender their pets; and an education center for community events; as well as larger and redesigned spaces for animals to live until they find homes.
With fundraisers and donations, the humane society reached its initial $3.2 million goal to build the structure. It’s now in the second and final fundraising phase: “Let’s Make it a Home,” to add finishing touches to make the space functional.
The kitchen needs shelving units, Werling said. They also need things like desks, chairs, tables and a refrigerator. An interactive blueprint on unleashbc.com shows what items are needed in particular spaces, along with how much money is needed to fund them.
In general, Werling said that funding for the humane society is “okay.” Fundraising events have been postponed due to the pandemic, and Werling said that they do not know how those will go. The annual barn sale happened in August as planned, but the Dawg Gone Walk was postponed from May until this weekend, and the downtown Chocolate Walk is scheduled for next month.
“Everything this year got pushed,” Werling said. “Are we out there trying to do everything we (normally) do? Absolutely.”
People have been showing interest in volunteering, but the humane society is asking them to get involved with events instead. “We’re being very cautious to keep staff healthy,” Werling said.
The pandemic has forced some adjustments, but overall, staff and volunteers have been pleased with how things have gone.
“It’s just a different dynamic,” she said.
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For more information about the upcoming Dawg Gone Walk this weekend, read this week’s Pet Tails column on page B2.
Visit bchumane.org and unleashbc.com for more information about shelter operations and needs.
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