Humane Society’s plea for adopters and fosters in response to COVID-19

To all animal lovers, the Humane Society of Warren County has a few announcements:

1. Hours are changing: HSWC will be closed on Sundays until further notice.
2. We are operating by appointment only!
3. This Friday and Saturday, 4/3/2020 and 4/4/2020, we will extend our hours for adoption appointments. We will schedule appointments from 10am-6pm.
4. You must have an approved application for an appointment and they can be found on our website.
5. Adoption fees will be waived through Saturday, 4/4/2020. Please share far and wide!

WE NEED YOUR HELP!

Now more than ever, we need adopters and foster homes. We are preparing for the worst at this point, as we are entering kitten season and we don’t want to be inundated with more animals than we can handle. HSWC currently has 111 animals in our care and anticipate those numbers rising in the coming months.

Several staff members have already chosen to self-quarantine, and we have had to cut hours for staff members; layoffs are merely days away. Much of the work — cleaning, feeding and walking — is falling on a skeleton crew. Meanwhile, adoption events and fundraisers — the life blood of our organization — have been cancelled.

A new pet offers a way to help ease the isolation that comes with orders to shelter in place. Animals provide company and comfort during times of uncertainty. Being forced to stay home is not only optimal for house training, but it gives humans and their new animals plenty of time to bond.

We absolutely do not want to resort to euthanasia as a source of population control, which many shelters are facing the harsh reality of this being a possibility.

If you are not in a position to foster or adopt, please consider making a donation – whether it be companion animal food for our pet food pantry or monetary. We want to keep our pantry stocked and available for members of the community who are financially strapped due to the virus. Before this all started, HSWC was already helping nearly 50 families with pet food.

If you are interested in adopting or fostering, please fill out an adoption/foster application on our website and call us at 540-635-4734.