MADISON, Wis. — Animal shelters across the nation are suffering through a crisis, overpopulation, staff shortages, and inflation.
The Dane County Humane Society may be a lot emptier than it typically is as they recently had their Empty the Shelter event, but they still need help.
“A lot of shelters are struggling with staff,” DCHS spokesperson Lisa Bernard said. “If youre looking for a job, there are part-time and fulltime positions.”
The shelter helped 83 animals find new homes, but like shelters nationwide, they’re seeing overpopulation as a recurring issue.
“The other thing that we are seeing is a shortage of veterinarians,” Bernard said.
The non-profit Best Friends Animal Society found there were about 100,000 more dogs and cats in shelters earlier this year than in 2021. More animals with fewer workers to care for them means places like DCHS are reaching crisis levels.
“There is a big shortage, we won’t get caught up for about 20 years,” Bernard said.
In one year, dogs and cats can each have 8 puppies and kittens, respectively. Coupling that with the current struggles of inflation and lingering effects of COVID-19, the humane society says they are seeing more people surrender pets due to cost or having to move.
“With the economic hardships that are going on right now because of covid for some people, some of them are finding they have to move and their residence may no longer allow for them to keep their pet,” Bernard said. “There are a lot of places that have restrictions on size, and breed, so they are finding it hard to be able to keep their pet.”
This month’s empty shelter event has helped. DCHS had more than 100 animals in its care beforehand.
Still, they’re hoping people will step up in one way or another, either to adopt, apply, or volunteer.
“You try to be a network for each other to help each other out so you can do as much as you can for the animals and the people,” Bernard said.
If you have a pet that you can no longer care for, DCHS recommends starting out the process early. They also have a free site where you can try to rehome your pet before bringing it into a shelter.
“We do have a rehoming service that’s free on our website, just fill out the information, it can help people to know if this is a pet they should meet for their household, and also include a photo,”
For more information, you can visit DCHS’ website.
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