AUSTIN (KXAN) — Clear The Shelters, a pet adoption and donation campaign, helps find homes for animals in need, and here in Central Texas, the 2024 event is underway.
This year is the 10th annual campaign, and since its inception in 2015, Clear The Shelters has worked with more than 1,400 shelters across the country to help more than 1 million animals find their forever homes.
The campaign runs now until Sept. 10.
To learn more about Clear The Shelters 2024 and search for adoptable pets in your area, visit cleartheshelters.com.
KXAN anchors Will DuPree and Erica Brennes spoke with Luis Sanchez from Austin Pets Alive! about the event and how you can help.
Read an edited transcript of the conversation below or use the video player above to listen.
ERICA BRENNES: Let’s talk about the pet population in our area. There are so many animals that need homes. What can we be doing—through the community, through the efforts? How can people at home help Clear The Shelters?
LUIS SANCHEZ: I think if you are a pet owner, it’s great to spay and neuter your pet. That’s one of the really important things to help control the population of animals, especially stray animals and things like that.
But if you’re looking to help the shelters, adopting or fostering is really helpful. If you can’t adopt or foster, volunteering is also a great way to get the dogs out of the shelter–get them on a little walk and help them get out of the hot shelter kennels.
WILL DuPREE: We’ve been dealing with such hot temperatures right now. It goes without saying—it’s August here in Austin, but how is the heat affecting what you all are doing and the help that you’re providing the pets?
SANCHEZ: As you know, our shelter kennels are outside. We have misters, fans and things like that to try to keep them cool, but there’s truly nothing more comfortable than an A/C—an air-conditioned home. So that’s really what we’re looking for—trying to get these dogs out of the shelter kennels into comfortable homes.
We’re trying to do as much as we can to keep up with our facility, but it’s kind of falling apart. So, we’re going to upgrade it in the next three to four years—hopefully, demolish it and rebuild something new. But in the meantime, the Texas weather isn’t holding up.
BRENNES: Let’s talk a little bit about the City of Austin. Earlier this year, they passed a resolution that makes some changes to animal welfare in our city, including changing how dog bites are handled and how found pets should stay with the person who found them until they can be re-homed, which could be tricky if you find a lost dog and have to take that responsibility on. But how have the shelters reacted to these changes that the city has implemented?
SANCHEZ: I think it’s really important to open up intake—being there for the community and being able to open up intake. Austin Pets Alive! is a nonprofit that rescues shelter pets from the euthanasia list, so our city shelter is kind of the main support system for the community. For us, it’s people being able to step up and support each other, re-homing pets, assistance with low-cost vet resources, and things like that so that way the pet doesn’t have to go in the shelter in the first place.
A lot of the things that we’ve seen, too, is that the demand for shelter pets is there, but we just have to improve the amount of people that actually leave with the shelter pet. So, we’re seeing people coming through our doors. Luckily, Austin is a very pet-loving community. They love to rescue pets. So, adopting and not shopping is really one of the great things that you can do as well. You can find perfectly amazing dogs at the shelter. You don’t have to go and buy a dog.
DuPREE: Talk about this weekend. Obviously, it’s Clear The Shelters, what do people need to know if they want to come to the Austin Pets Alive! shelter there and adopt a pet?
SANCHEZ: At APA, we’re doing 50% off all of our adoptions. All the dogs at the shelter and in foster as well as cats. So if you’re looking for a cat, it’s a good opportunity to do that, and of course, all the other shelters are holding their promotions. I believe Austin Animal Center is doing free/waived adoption fees. Take a moment this weekend to go to the shelter, see what’s available, and hopefully, you’ll find a new friend.
Credit: Source link
