Saturday’s Free Adoption Event sponsored by People Assisting Animal Control (PAAC) at the City Animal Care Shelter was a tremendous success, according to officials close to the event. On Saturday between 1:00 and 3:00 pm, PAAC paid the adoption fee for all dogs and cats housed in the Adoption Kennels at the City Animal Care Shelter. As a result of the event, 40 dogs and 16 cats found new homes with caring owners.

A line of over 50 people wrapped around the sidewalk of the Animal Care Shelter before the facility opened at 1:00 PM, and city officials estimated well over 200 attended the event before the doors to the Shelter closed at 6:00 PM. Animal Control employees and PAAC volunteers struggled to keep up with the long lines of people submitting applications to adopt, but the excitement of adopting a new pet seemed to make the wait worthwhile for most. “I can’t thank PAAC and their dedicated volunteers enough for making this event an incredible success,” said Commander Todd Green, whose duties include supervision of Animal Care and Control Services. “Our Veterinarian, Dr. Draper and our staff worked very hard alongside PAAC to make this event successful, and based on the turnout, it certainly was. I certainly commend everyone who came out and adopted a pet, and thank them for their patience while we processed the paperwork.” Commander Green added that he looked forward to continuing to work closely with PAAC and other local volunteer groups and shelters to make events like this a regular occurrence. Animal Care officials remind the public that for every pet adopted, two strays are saved: the pet that is taken home and the stray that then takes its place at the shelter.