For volunteers at Harris County Animal Shelter, in Houston, Texas, the Memorial Day weekend was probably the busiest of the year. In total, no fewer than 200 animals were left at the shelter within a few days.
Source: Harris County Animal Shelter
On Friday 25, 100 abandoned and stray animals entered the shelter.The shelter itself can only accommodate about 150 animals. On Saturday and Sunday, another hundred animals were added to this already impressive number of abandoned animals.But this influx of new arrivals didn't stop there with the shelter continuing to welcome even more.On Tuesday, even more dogs and cats continued to pour in — one dog was even abandoned in the parking lot. At the end of the day, shelter workers found themselves caring for a huge 375 abandoned pets, all in need of homes.Kerry McKeel, the shelter’s media specialist, told The Dodo on Wednesday:
When I checked the very first thing this morning, we were at 407 animals that are available for adoption. That’s not including all the animals we currently have in foster care or in our transport section [animals that will be moved to another adoption facility] of the shelter.
On Tuesday May 29, the shelter published a video on Facebook along with a plea for help.In the video, the camera moves through the halls, showing the many dogs and cats stuck in cramped cages, face after sweet furry face poking through the chain-link enclosures inquisitively.https://www.facebook.com/HarrisCountyAnimalShelter/videos/1944014135611056/It's well known that the summer period is often difficult for all shelters, who welcome more animals during this time than the rest of the year. However, this year marked the highest number of animals that the shelter has ever seen. Mckeel said:
Summertime is always busy in Texas, and Houston in particular; we always see our highest influx of animals in June, July and August. We have a longer breeding season, so we receive a lot of puppies, kittens and pregnant moms.
Source: Harris County Animal Shelter
Nobody quite knows how to explain the sheer number of abandoned animals,but McKeel believes it may be related to the area’sslow recovery from Hurricane Harvey.
Some of the feedback we’ve been getting is that people have had ‘lifestyle changes. It’s hard to pinpoint it specifically being Harvey-related, but we do know that a lot of people’s lives have been flipped upside down because of Harvey — they’re moving into rental facilities where their landlords no longer allow pets, they’re moving out of town and can’t take their animal, they can’t board their animal because resources have to be diverted elsewhere.
For now, the shelter is relying on foster families and transport programs to relieve some pressure, but help is still very much needed. Mckeel says that "evenfostering an animal for two weeks can make a lifesaving difference".
Source: Harris County Animal Shelter
The shelter is working tirelessly to find a new home for all the dogs and cats.
Everyone was overwhelmed at first, but I think we have a plan in place, and now we’re in action mode. We’re trying to get as many of these animals into homes as possible, and give them a second chance.
Source: Harris County Animal Shelter
If you would like to help the animals of Harris County Animal Shelter, you can either sign up to volunteer or foster or you can simply make a donation by clicking here.
H/t: The Dodo
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