Shelters overflow as turn-ins and surrenders increase

Across the US, shelters are beginning to overflow as the pandemic adoption spike begins to level out. 

According to the Shelter Animals Count National Database Q3 2023 Analysis Report, national shelter intakes for dogs continue to rise. Unfortunately, the number of dogs returned to their owners is decreasing— 3.5% less than 2022 and 0.4% less than 2021. Overall, return-to-owner rates are lower than the past two years (19.4% in 2021 to 18.1% in 2023).

Sheridan Dog and Cat Shelter Operations Manager Cindy Popp and Unleashed Foundation Founder Mairan Eccles said Sheridan is not immune to this concerning trend as the local shelter has seen an uptick in turn-ins and surrenders as the adoption numbers have become stagnant. 

When a dog is found as a stray in Sheridan, Community Services Officers and Patrol Officers of the Sheridan Police Department bring the animal to the shelter. In many cases, owners conducting a search will make the shelter the first stop and are reunited. According to Eccles, recently this has not been the case. 

M. Eccles 

More often than not, the kennels are full and shelter staff are forced to make wire kennels in the garage.

C. Popp

Eccles began to research shelter numbers from around the country, hoping to find a solution or at least discover new ideas on how to increase adoptions. Her research led to disheartening news, the problem is national and numbers of strays and turn-ins are increasing as adoptions nationwide have slowed. 

M. Eccles 

One of the founding values of the Sheridan Dog and Cat Shelter is a “no kill” policy, something that many hope never changes. According to the above analysis report, nationwide, organizations of all types have continued to grapple with ongoing increases in non-live outcomes for dogs, which have risen by 30.9% by the third quarter of 2023, compared to 2022.
Learn more about the Sheridan Dog and Cat Shelter by clicking here.