Crowded Houston animal shelters are offering free adoptions – Houston Chronicle

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Many shelters are offering free or low-cost adoptions for the rest of July as part of the Bissell Pet Foundation’s “Empty the Shelters” campaign. 
The adoption event comes at a time when local shelters are overflowing with adoptable animals.
One Houston shelter has over 400 dogs in a building that can comfortable hold 250, Harris County Pets, the animal control division of the county, posted on its Facebook page Friday.
“We cannot continue to house this many dogs,” the post reads. “It’s not only a staffing and resource issue, but a humane issue for the dogs.”
Montgomery County, Galveston County and other suburban animal service are also operating near maximum capacity. 
The Bissell Pet Foundation’s national campaign donates to shelters so that adoption fees are reduced to no more than $50 for a fully vaccinated, spayed or neutered and microchipped pet. 
Shelters across the country have seen more owner surrenders as economic conditions worsen. Some families are struggling to pay for veterinary care and food. Others are moving to apartments that don’t accept pets or are facing eviction.  
Scott Jeansonne, director of veterinary public health at Harris County Public Health, said the increase in owner surrenders has made it difficult for the shelter to get stray dogs off the streets. 
“We have a lot of people call us up and say they’re bringing their dog because they’re moving to a place where they can’t have it or the dog has become inconvenient to their lifestyle,” Jeansonne said. 
If people need to re-home their dogs, Jeansonne said, the municipal animal shelter isn’t the best place to put them. These dogs take up kennel space and prevent animal services from picking up strays. Instead, he recommends contacting rescue organizations that specialize in placing dogs with vetted families. 
Texas does not require owners to spay or neuter their animals. Stray or unaltered animals have litters that contribute to overcrowding in the shelter. People may think they’re doing the right thing by taking a stray litter to a shelter, but Jeansonne said this is misguided. 
“If you see a litter of kittens or puppies, please leave them alone,” he said. “Even if you don’t see the mom, she’s most likely nearby and freaking out because you’re stealing her babies.”  
Newborn litters separated from their mother strain shelter resources. For example, puppies under four weeks need to be bottle fed every three or four hours. Staff barely finish one round of feeding before they have to start the process over.
The babies have a better chance of surviving if they stay with mom before being brought to the shelter, or if mom is brought to the shelter with them, Jeansonne said. 
Here are the local facilities participating in the Empty the Shelters campaign: 
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Stephanie Lamm is a data journalist for the Houston Chronicle. She looks for stories in datasets and public records.  She also creates interactive graphics for online stories. Stephanie previously worked for the Dallas Morning News and attended The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
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