The Woodford Humane Society in Kentucky is offering free dog adoptions this week until Friday, Mar. 22, in an effort to address significant overcrowding.
The shelter has waived adoption fees for dogs aged six months and above to help ensure as many animals as possible at their facility, which is currently stretched to capacity, find forever homes. In doing so, the shelter management hopes that the dog population will at least be under control.
Woodford Humane Society offers free dog adoption for this week
Beth Oleson, Marketing Director of the Woodford Humane Society, spoke to LEX18 News about the overcrowding challenge they’re facing at the moment. According to Oleson, the number of dogs they receive at the shelter is way higher than the number of dogs who eventually end up getting adopted.
“Dog intake in particular, is very high, and dog adoptions are very slow,” Oleson shared. “We’re a pretty small shelter, so it doesn’t take very much. It could be one really busy week that we’re so far past capacity that we’re out of options,” she added. Continuing, Oleson stated, “Right now we’re at 135% capacity for dogs and puppies.”
Furthermore, Oleson noted they have dogs who have stayed at the facility for a prolonged period due to the low adoption rate. One lovely pup, in particular, named Pearl, arrived at the shelter almost two years ago.
“Pearl is just such a sweet, she’s such a little ray of sunshine,” Oleson stated. “She just has this cute little smile, like she sits perfectly for a treat every time, and she just has this cute little smile on her face when she’s so excited she knows you’re going to play with her or give her a treat,” the marketing director added.
Apart from the overcrowding issue, the organization is also dealing with a staffing crisis. For this reason, they highly encourage those interested in meeting the dogs who are up for adoption to book an appointment, as per ABC36 News.
You can visit the Woodford Humane Society website for more information.
