The Estevan Humane Society desperately needs to see some adoptions happening in the near future.
The local non-kill shelter is filled to capacity with both cats and dogs.
"We currently have seven dogs here. And our kennels are all full of dogs. For cats, I actually don't have an accurate number at the moment, but every single kennel is full and our kitten rooms are very overcrowded," said shelter manager Michaela Pho.
The shelter currently has all kinds, colours and ages of cats and kittens. None of the animals have any serious medical conditions that come with bigger expenses.
"It's a lot of really friendly cats that just need a home," Pho said.
As for the dogs, there is also a good variety of medium and big dogs, including some husky mixes, sheppard mixes, boxer mixes and others. Pho said that they all are medium to higher energy levels, so they're going to need active families. One dog has been at the shelter since November.
While shelter staff and volunteers always hope to see animals finding their new homes, Pho said it takes the right situation to adopt.
"When you apply to adopt, we are making sure that the home that you're able to provide is a good fit for the animal just so that we can prevent the return to the shelter. Sometimes you can't really help it. But we just want to avoid that altogether because then we can continue to help more animals in the future," Pho explained.
If you are looking at taking a pet, all it takes to adopt is to stop by the shelter, pick an animal you like, fill out the application and you'll hear back from them within three days at most. The humane society also offers trial adoption, so people could take an animal home to check if that's the proper fit for everyone. If everything works out well, they just keep the new pet, but if not, they have options before they need to make the final decision.
"If you're not sure quite yet, if you have other pets at home, or if you have kids at home, and you're not really sure, if the animal’s a good fit, we give you 14 days to try obligation-free. And if it doesn't work, it doesn't work. You just bring them back. And then if it does work, you just finalize the adoption, pay the fee, and then you're good to go," Pho said.
All animals come with an adoption fee. It's $150 for adult cats, $200 for kittens and $395 for dogs. While some people may assume that it's the price for the animal, Pho pointed out that this fee doesn't even cover the money they put into the medical and living expenses of each animal. And in reality, people still save a lot of money by adopting rather than buying a pet from a breeder.
"That fee covers spay and neuter, which is a huge saving right there alone. Their rabies vaccine, deworming and …at least one of their distemper vaccines is covered as well. You're saving like $500-700 depending on the animal. So it's a pretty good discount," Pho said.
"Our adoptions, we're not making any money at all. It's a loss actually. It's just enough to cover the basic expenses, and then to get the animal out and into a new home."
Animals from the shelter can become a great addition to the family. With a wide variety currently available, anyone can find the right fit for their situation.
"If you're active or camping lots, it's a great partner to bring with you to protect your campsite. But it's also for everybody. We have some cats here that would be good in a nursing home environment and older couple environments. Pretty much anybody that's just looking for a little bit extra companionship (can find it here)," Pho said.
All animals are social and are used to people. The Estevan Humane Society posts pictures of animals available on their Facebook page and website at estevanhumaesociety.ca.
If someone wants to help out with the animals, the humane society also always welcomes monetary donations, as well as animal food, litter and cleaning supplies such as bleach and paper towels, which can be dropped off at the shelter.
