Shelters in Fulton and DeKalb counties are making an urgent plea for people to adopt or foster animals. Last week alone, they took in nearly 360 pets.
To help encourage adoptions and save lives, LifeLine Animal Project is waiving all fees on pets adopted at their shelters through Sunday. Fees for the pet’s castration, microchipping and vaccinations, among other things, are all included in the waiver.
DeKalb County Animal Services shelter director Kerry Moyers-Horton said that they do not know why so many pets ended up in the shelters.
“While the majority of these animals are strays, intake typically decreases some in October, so we aren’t sure why so many are entering the shelter now,” she said.
The sudden influx of stray animals has, however, lead to the shelters running out of space.
This means they desperately need people to help, said Karen Hirsch, who is with LifeLine.
“Even if you can’t adopt, you can foster an animal, you can foster it for just two weeks, and it will end up saving lives,” she said. “We are packed, and so we really need help.
“Otherwise, we are going to have to do the unthinkable.”
The animals not adopted by Sunday may face death by euthanasia. Hirsch said they’ve mostly got kittens and dogs, as well as guinea pigs and rabbits available for adoption.
Those who want to adopt or foster a pet can go to one of the shelters with an ID, and a counselor will try to find a compatible match, Hirsch said.
“First of all, you can see all the animals of our shelters online and see if any of the animals speak to you. You can also come into the shelter, where a volunteer or one of the adoption counselors can match you with the animal that is perfect for your lifestyle,” she said. “If you have cats, you are going to need a dog that is friendly to cats, same thing with kids. If you are an exercise fanatic, you can find a dog that is high energy that can exercise with you. If you are not able to walk a dog, you can find a dog that likes laying around.”
To prevent pets becoming a stray in the first place, shelter director Kerry Moyers-Horton advises “putting ID on your pet, including a microchip and tag.”
Because it is the fall season when kids return to school, adoption rates are low, so animal adoption is even more urgently needed, the representatives of the shelter said.
This article was written as part of the Goethe-Institut’s Close-Up journalists’ exchange programme and Wunderbar Together- The Year of German-American Friendship. More information can be found at www.goethe.de/nahaufnahme and at #GoetheCloseUp and #WunderbarTogether.
