The kennels are full at the Alberta Animal Rescue Crew Society after the organization saw an influx of animals over the last two weeks.
“We just reopened our doors two weeks ago and it was just an influx of animals that came in, and once again we’re at the maximum capacity of what we can care for currently,” AARCS executive director Deanna Thompson said.
Thompson said the number of pets being surrendered isn’t the only reason AARCS is sitting at maximum capacity.
“The lack of available veterinary care is tough,” Thompson said, noting this is another contributing factor. “We’ve had to outsource some of our care to local clinics, so getting those animals ready for adoption has been a bit slower.”
An influx of large litters of pets has also added to the problem.
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“We’ve had a couple of large cases of animals coming in, so we recently took in 35 cats from a family whose keeper passed away,” Thompson said.
She noted that there is a solution to help get those numbers back down so AARCS can once again start taking in animals.
“Foster homes are key right now,” Thompson said.
“The key to saving lives right now is having people who can care for these animals temporarily and that’s been a really big struggle for us right now.”
AARCS only relies on foster homes to care for animals while they wait for their fur-ever homes, but with COVID restrictions gone and summer here, people are heading off on holidays and Thompson said they’re having a hard time finding those temporary helpers.
“Even puppies that normally get scooped up really quickly from foster care are sitting waiting here for someone to come and house them temporarily until we can find new homes for them,” she said.
Thompson hopes the freeze on intakes will only last a week or so, but added that all depends on how many animals they can get into foster care in the next little while.
For information on AARCS or how you can help, click here.