Lost and forgotten four-legged friends at the Santa Rosa County (SRC) animal shelter have their best opportunity to find their forever homes Saturday, October 18. Announced Monday at the SRC Board of County Commissioners meeting, SRC Animal Services will hold its 7th annual Adopt-a-thon a week from Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the shelter located at 4451 Pine Forest Road. The county will waive the $20 fee to adopt a cat or dog and provide a spay/neuter voucher at no cost. According to Dora Thomason, kennel supervisor, said micro-chipping is also available but requires a $15 donation.
This year’s theme, Thomason said, is “superheroes wanted.” While the event promotes adoption and encourages spaying and neutering, Thomason said the event invites pet owners and their animals to participate in the various contests throughout the day. These include a best pet costume contest at 10:30 a.m. followed by best talent, an all bark and no bite talent show, a dog and owner look-alike contest, and finally best of show at 12:30 p.m. The all bark talent show, Thomason said, judges what animal has the best bark.
There will be plenty to do for the children as well including a bounce house, a Home Depot kids’ workshop, meet and greet with the Blue Wahoo’s Kazoo, fire safety prevention with Smokey Bear, and a performance by the Hallelujah Hounds.
“We just want people to know we’re here and give back to the community. People come in weekly and donate newspaper and other things you might not think would be needed,” Thomason said. She said the staff at the shelter has huge hearts for caring for the SRC lost and strays.
“There is no shame in turning an animal into the shelter. We do our best to re-home animals or get them to a rescue,” Thomason said. According to Thomason, Florida law requires a minimum of 3 days for a shelter to hold a stray. She said SRC holds for 5, but the end of those 5 days is not the end. They are then evaluated to see if they’re adoptable, Thomason said, and if owner information is available, a letter goes out to the owner. An animal goes through a series of tests for temperament and typical animal maladies. The next step, Thomason said, was going into holding for adoption. There’s no real time limit she said on how long to wait for adoption, although if it’s been a few months they may contact a rescue shelter.
Thomason said euthanasia still may happen, which is why she’s so passionate about spaying and neutering. However, she said taking animals to the shelter is their best opportunity to being adopted.
The shelter tries to match families with animals looking for the best fit in the household. “They deserve that,” she said. The shelter does hold an interview with families looking to adopt. “It’s not just a mad mayhem,” she said. At last year’s adoption event, Thomason said 75 animals went into homes with only 3 returns.
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: County to offer free animal adoptions