The San Diego Humane Society asked people to open their homes to a shelter dog during National Dog Week to help alleviate the overburdened shelters.
The nonprofit set a record this month with 711 dogs in its care, despite having only 405 kennels. That puts the shelter at 177% of capacity. A total of 621 adult dogs and 134 puppies are available for adoption.
"This level of overcrowding puts immense strain on both pets and staff," a statement from the organization read. "With limited space and resources, animals receive less individualized time and attention, and the stress of shelter life can lead to medical and behavioral decline — even in otherwise healthy dogs."
To help, SDHS asked the community to consider adopting or fostering a shelter dog or spaying or neutering your pets.
To see dogs available for adoption, residents can visit sdhumane.org/adopt. For information on fostering, go to sdhumane.org/foster. To book a spay or neuter appointment, visit sdhumane.org/spay.
SDHS said multiple health benefits are linked with pet adoption, including increasing activity levels, lowering stress, improving heart health, providing an outlet to connect to the community and helping other dogs in the shelter by giving them more space.
San Diego Humane Society is open for walk-in adoptions Tuesday through Sunday at campuses in El Cajon, Escondido, Oceanside and San Diego: Tuesday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
