ST. LOUIS COUNTY—St. Louis area residents have a chance to get a free gift for someone that they’ll love and cherish for years.
“Our first waive adoption event was a huge success,” said Dr. Kanika Cunningham, Dir. of Public Health for St. Louis County. “We were able to get so many animals into loving homes and so, we are able to plan one more event according to ordinance.”
The County’s Animal shelter is holding its second ordinance-permitted free adoption event on Friday and Saturday which comes with microchip and numerous vaccinations including rabies.
Free adoption event times
- 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 19
- 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 20
“We saw, I believe 79 animals leave the facility over those two days, which is huge,” said Malik Johnson, Division Director of ACC. “It’s huge. For the animals to be in loving homes is also huge for our staff here.”
As of Monday, the shelter has 156 dogs and a few cats. The ideal max-capacity for dogs is 80 for humane housing.
“Humane housing is dogs to have one place where they can play their activities and then have another place to where they can go and potty,” said Cunningham. “What we do know is that the longer that we have animals stay here where the dogs or cats, they decline in our care.”
Cunningham added it’s not the care being administered to cause that decline and later called the staff’s efforts “phenomenal” but the facility they’re forced to operate out of is an issue for animal care.
“This is not the ideal condition, ideal location for animals to stay long term—They’re in an enclosed space, it’s not humane. We’re not able to provide a hotel type luxury for some of the animals here. So it’s really important, for as quick as we bring them in, we have to definitely move them out even faster.”
She’d love to see even more pets go home to a new loving home this weekend, just before Christmas. For the ones that currently reside in the shelter’s care, Cunningham remains committed in improving the care they receive.
To do so, she notes less animals will make more of an impact on the future-pets in the shelter as the shelter aims for humane housing. Currently, the county ordinance allows for two free adoption events.
Cunningham is looking forward to bringing the success of the first event and potentially this upcoming event to St. Louis County Council. She’d like to see an expansion to the ordinance that permits free adoption events.
“I think with this fee wave adoption event, that was the first for the county. We’ve never adopted out that many animals—This is something that we need to do.”
For more information on pet adoption at the shelter, visit the county’s website.
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