Marin IJ: Marin Humane Society sees stellar year for pet adoptions
By Mark Prado
It's been a banner year for adoptions at the Marin Humane Society.
The Novato animal care agency placed about 600 more pets with families in 2008 than it did last year.
"We are not sure of the exact reason, but it has been a big year for adoptions," said Carrie Harrington, spokeswoman for the Marin Humane Society. "We are very pleased."
There are some theories about the pet adoption boom.
There was a lot of attention this year on the plight of dogs after ex-Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick was convicted for his role in a dog-fighting ring. Also, Oprah Winfrey did a nationally televised feature on unwanted animals. And the Marin agency had many dogs to offer: It received about 100 Chihuahuas from an Arizona puppy mill.
Harrington also theorized that the downturn in the economy has curbed people's travels and focused more attention on the home and house projects - including picking up a pet.
One of the biggest boosts may have come from president-elect Barack Obama and his public declaration that his family is considering adopting a dog from an animal shelter.
"It might be the first shelter dog in the White House," Harrington said.
The Addicks family of Novato adopted 2-month-old Kiwi, a black dachshund-terrier mix, as an early Christmas present for children Mairead,8, and Casey, 5.
"The kids are getting to the age when they could take on more responsibility, so we settled on a small dog," mom Kristen Addicks said. "He has been great.You might think a dog from a humane society might have issues, but that has not been the case at all."
Kiwi was dog No. 2,500 adopted from the Marin Humane Society this year. In all, 2,839 animals had been adopted through Monday, compared with 2,234 in 2007. The number of adoptions is the highest since 2005, when pets affected by Hurricane Katrina ended up at the shelter.
Marin is not seeing much of an impact of pets abandoned because of home foreclosures, but the humane society is taking in pets from other areas, including Calaveras, Fresno, Lake County, Madera and Stanislaus counties that have been affected by the real estate market.
"Marin County is one of the best places in the country to be a homeless dog or cat," Harrington said. "While many communities are challenged by pet overpopulation - and struggle to find homes for animals housed in 'bursting at the seams' facilities - for more than a decade the demand for adoptable animals in Marin has been greater than the supply."
Contact Mark Prado via e-mail at mprado@marinij.com
