City encourages adoption as animal shelters are full

He adds that the number of cats is a bit high, but nothing out of the ordinary. For dogs, however, it’s a bit more than they’re used to seeing at the same time.

Community Animal Services staff noticed an increase in the number of animals dropped off around Christmas last year, but things really picked up in March.

The problem, says Plourde, is that the increased availability of animals hasn’t coincided with an increased demand for donations.

“We have, like, puppies here, which was – people were knocking on doors to get to these puppies. We are not interested in them at all,” he says.

Having too many animals in a shelter at the same time can have different consequences.

From a medical point of view, Plourde says there is a higher risk of the disease spreading throughout the facility because the animals are closer together and it is more difficult to control them. isolate.

Some cats and dogs may also suffer from mental health issues such as stress and anxiety due to being in an overcrowded shelter.

Plourde, however, urges people not to rush in and adopt a pet immediately without considering the impact it will have on their family’s life in the long term. He thinks that kind of thinking is at least partly what got them into this situation in the first place.

“At the start of the pandemic, there was a lot of talk about these pandemic adoptions and people adopting pets to bring home because they weren’t working or working from home,” says Plourde. “Right away there was speculation that it was all going to be returned, and they are returned. You know, it was hard to say at the time what it was going to look like, and this could be the result.

Instead, he encourages families to view adoption as a lifestyle decision, not as short-term happiness or something that could help teach their children responsibility.

Another thing Plourde says to consider is having your pets spayed or neutered. He thinks many of the problems currently seen with overpopulation could be solved by having fewer puppies and kittens coming into the world.

A list of all the pets available for adoption at the municipal shelter can be found on the Community Animal Services website.