County Animal Shelter Tops Record Adoptions

Posted on: Jan 12th, 2011 | Announcements

The Mobile County Animal Shelter adopted out a record 3,216 animals in 2010, increasing by 30 percent the number of abandoned animals placed in new homes through the shelter. ?There is no doubt that these numbers reflect the dedication of a small staff and growing participation of rescue groups,? said Commission President Merceria Ludgood. ?It?s really a relatively small group of people working tirelessly to get these animals into homes.? Unique to the year past is the number of owner-surrendered animals that came into the shelter, increasing in number from 4,390 to 5,826. An additional 2,609 strays were picked up from the streets, bringing the total for the year to 8,435. Most of the owner-surrendered animals come from people who have reported that the cost of pet care is too high for them. ?It?s a staggering number of unwanted animals coming into our shelter,? said Commissioner Connie Hudson. ?The real answer is to increase the numbers of spayed and neutered pets so that the population doesn?t continue to grow.? Of the animals adopted out, 884 were adopted by rescue groups that have their own channels to find prospective homes. Usually the agencies must send the animals out of state, as far as Illinois and Connecticut, to communities that don?t have a glut of unwanted animals. Often, the groups have to raise funds for veterinary care. Many of the animals arrive at the shelter with illnesses, many of them too profound or too expensive to be treated at the shelter. In addition, most of those owner-surrendered animals have no history of medical care when they arrive at the shelter. Of the dogs coming into the shelter, almost all the healthy ones were adopted out in 2010. ?We are required by law to control the animal population, both for the sake of the animals and for the safety of our residents,? said Commissioner Mike Dean. ?But we need the public to help us by confining their pets and spaying and neutering.? The shelter provides vaccinations and initial shots and other minor medical treatments to all adoptable animals. No animals are put up for adoption unless they are without apparent symptoms of health problems for at least a week. To see the animals at the shelter online, go to www.mobilecountyanimals.com. Or you may visit the shelter at 7665 Howells Ferry Road. Volunteer opportunities also are available by calling the shelter at 574-3647.