TACOMA, Wash. — The Humane Society for Tacoma & Pierce County is temporarily waiving adoption fees after the shelter reached critical capacity.
The shelter has taken in an influx of lost pets. There are currently 122 dogs and 189 cats being cared for at the shelter, according to a release. They are completely out of kennel space.
"The shelter is in a state of emergency," said Leslie Dalzell, chief executive officer for the Humane Society for Tacoma & Pierce County. “With our limited facility, we are not able to keep up with the number of pets coming in. We are placing dogs in temporary crates and housing multiple dogs in single kennels because there is nowhere else for them to go.”
Since June 16, the shelter has taken in 343 lost pets, which is a 38% increase from the time period of mid-April to mid-May.
The shelter usually uses an appointment-based intake system which helps to lessen the high volume of animals at the shelter. However, the overwhelming number of lost pets flooding the shelter, paired with a consistently large number of animals being brought in by animal control has caused the shelter to run out of space within a short period of time, Dalzell said.
Dalzell told KING 5 on Wednesday that the shelter is also receiving more intakes than usual because of the housing crisis.
"We are getting hit by the housing crisis," Dalzell said. "Financially people are finding increases in their rent, increases in their mortgage and they're finding homelessness in our area, and when that happens, they're forced to make a decision with their animal that we would hope no one would ever have to make."
Community members can help by adopting a shelter pet during the shelter's Crisis Adoption Special, during which adoption fees will be waived from July 18 to July 23. Every adoptable pet has had a wellness exam, been spayed or neutered, received an initial round of vaccines and is microchipped with national registration. Click here to view adoptable pets.
For people who find a lost pet, the Humane Society asks that they take these steps before they bring them to the shelter to help conserve space:
- Provide the pet with a temporary home, if possible.
- Walk the dog around the area – most dogs don’t wander far from home!
- Have the pet scanned for a microchip at your local veterinary clinic.
- Post online and put up signage around your community to help locate the owners.
- Call the shelter to give our staff a description of the pet for it to be included in our found pet records.
The community can also help by donating to support the shelter's medical efforts and the continued care for hundreds of animals.