County’s animal shelter is at capacity as more dogs and cats show up in need of homes.

Reese was a plain brown dog, a shepherd mix, easily overlooked by people searching for a new dog to adopt at Hitchcock Road Animal Services, a joint shelter run by Monterey County and Salinas. Outwardly, Reese didn’t look special. But spend a little time with him, as the staff and volunteers did, and his sweet personality shines. The well-behaved dog quickly became a favorite. “Someone had put some training into him,” says Cynthia Burnham, Animal Services administrator for the county.

After not succeeding on the adoption floor, a foster home was found for Reese on May 25. On Saturday, May 28 the foster parents called to say Reese would not be returning. A happy staff member texted Burnham the good news about the “foster failure.”

Nevertheless, on May 24, the shelter reached a maximum capacity of 125-percent, around 70 dogs, many of them high-energy working breeds.

In addition to a larger number of adult dogs, the shelter is also seeing 50-percent more puppies this year as well as a higher number of kittens during kitten season – two weeks ago, they were intaking more than 20 kittens a day. Burnham sees a direct correlation between a decrease in spaying and neutering services during the Covid-19 pandemic and this year’s population increase. Overall, the shelter has experienced a 22-percent increase in dogs and cats so far this year over the same period last year.

The reasons why are varied. Animal Services staff have seen more pet owners let dogs out unattended and running loose to go to the bathroom, thinking it’s OK as long as the dog returns. The cost of reclaiming a dog has deterred some people from doing so. Fees vary for sheltering a dog depending on if the dog is spayed or neutered, and whether or not it is licensed. A five-day stay could cost between $200 to $250. The high cost of caring for a pet is another reason they are seeing more animals given up by owners, as well as people losing their homes.

“We need people to reclaim their animals, we need people to adopt, foster. It really takes a community to help us help [the animals],” Burnham says. Last week they announced that the normal $240 adoption fee for dogs was being reduced by 50 percent for dogs weighing 40 pounds and over. They also reduced the fees for reclaiming a lost animal by half if the owner comes within the first three days. Those fee reductions are continuing into June.

Animal Services officials also began releasing a weekly shelter report card that details how many animals by each type are in the shelter, how many are in foster care, and outcomes, including euthanasia. So far this year the live release rate is 86 percent, with 14 percent euthanized for medical or safety reasons if behavior turns dangerous. Burnham says the staff keeps animals as long as possible and makes every effort to place unadopted animals with around 25 rescue organizations they partner with.

HITCHCOCK ROAD ANIMAL SERVICES is at 160 Hitchcock Road, Salinas. 769-8850, bit.ly/montereycountyshelter