LICKING COUNTY, Ohio — A new program in Licking County is working to address the stray animal crisis. Shelter organizers said they've seen a big uptick in animals being surrendered to them over the past few months.
Asher is the first successful case from the Licking County Humane Society's Buddy Brigade program. The program is a shortened version of the shelter's foster program, which helps match dogs into forever homes.
Kelley Cowden was the first foster parent to take on the challenge.
"They have the program for dogs that have been in the kennel for a while and haven't gotten adopted," said Kelley Cowden.
The Buddy Brigade program was created this summer because the shelter is overflowing with animals, especially dogs. The shelter is seeing more people surrender pets solely because they lost their houses.
"We've had a number of people who have to surrender their animals because they have to go to the shelter, or they're living on the streets, or they're living in their car," said Licking County Humane Society Director Lori Carlson.
The Humane Society of the United States is seeing this same trend play out across the country. Carlson said they take about three to four calls every month solely from people who have to surrender a dog because their living situation is changing.
They're hoping this new program will move dogs out of their shelter faster, especially because there isn't always room for them.
"If the shelter is full, we can't always take additional animals. And so people have limited choices about what to do" said Carlson.
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