After a recent urgent call for community support, 26 dogs were adopted from the Montgomery County Animal Services and Adoption Center and 10 more went to foster homes.
That sets the number of dogs in the Derwood facility at 75, which is the targeted capacity for care, according to a MCASAC spokesperson.
“Our population in shelter is down to a manageable level and we are no longer at critical capacity,” Maria Anselmo, MCASAC’s community relations manager, told Montgomery Magazine on March 11. “Everyone at MCASAC is extremely grateful to the community for stepping up after our plea for help. For our population to come down as much as it did, was such a relief for everyone here.”
Every kennel at the shelter was full just last Friday, according to a Facebook post by MCASAC.
The shelter announced that it had reached “dangerously full” capacity on March 6 after taking in 29 dogs within just two days. Anselmo spoke to an influx of stray dogs during this time, of which only about half were reclaimed by the dogs’ owners. Some other dogs arrived at the shelter as a result of evictions, she said.
The rush of dogs drove MCASAC’s canine population to more than 100, exceeding the shelter’s capacity, according to a March announcement.
“We’ve never put out an urgent list or euthanized solely for space, but with what we’re facing now, that possibility is hanging over our heads,” Anselmo said in the press release at the time.
In particular, the shelter needed adopters for large dogs to help alleviate MCASAC’s space shortage, especially because bigger dogs tend to wait the longest for homes.
“Dogs are arriving faster than staff and volunteers can safely place them, and available kennels are extremely limited,” the announcement read, reflecting a similar issue the shelter faced in the fall.
Anselmo said the shelter’s maximum capacity is 112 dogs, but some of the shelter’s kennels are unable to accommodate larger dogs — creating the 112 kennels requires cutting some of the kennels in half.
With 26 dogs adopted over the weekend, the MCASAC staff said it was grateful for the recent community response.
The shelter was able to reopen kennels that had been split in two and dedicate more one-on-one attention, enrichment and training to the dogs currently there, Anselmo said. Staff are also able to allow scared or shy dogs more time to settle in.
“However, it is important that people continue to come in and adopt as dogs are still entering the building every day, and without adopters, our population will just climb back up,” Anselmo said.
Potential adopters continue to be encouraged to visit the shelter on Muncaster Mill Road between noon and 7 p.m. on weekdays — except Wednesdays — and between noon and 5 p.m. on weekends.
“We have such a strong, animal-loving community, and it is thanks to the community that MCASAC has never had to euthanize for space,” Anselmo said. “When we call for help, our community answers — and we are humbled by the response.”
See more adoptable pets on MCASAC’s website.
