The shelter is housing over 30 dogs in isolation kennels, crates, offices and other spaces within the facility due to operating at a critical capacity of 165%.
The shelter has operated at canine critical capacity for about a year, O’Keefe said. The facility has 64 canine kennels, of which only 30 are designated adoption kennels.
"It's been really hard, but we want to remain no-kill," O'Keefe said.
Despite reaching critical capacity, the shelter continues to remain no-kill and does not euthanize animals for space.
The shelter held a variety of adoption events over 2022, which have helped increase adoption numbers by 15%, according to O’Keefe. However, the shelter needed to reach a 30% increase just to break even with the number of animals being taken in and adopted out.
"No matter how many walks or toys [dogs] get, it's not the same as being in a home," O'Keefe said. "There's this level of stress that [the dogs] have here, so the goal is getting them out."
Free adoptions include the standard spay/neuter surgery, microchipping, deworming, heartworm testing and treatment, if necessary, and updated vaccinations.
If the goal is not met, then the shelter might continue the program into February or offer canine adoptions at a 50% discount, according to O’Keefe.
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