On Tuesday, Fort Wayne Animal Care and Control announced a new program aims to connect petowners with resources to avoid the surrender of a pet to the shelter.
Director Amy-Jo Sikes said the shelter takes in about 10,000 animals each year. She hopes the Pet Assistance and Rehoming program will help bring those numbers down by connecting owners with resources such as basic medical care and basic pet training assistance, after assessing a family and pet’s needs.
"We’re trying to empower pet owners to keep their pets because they’re the ones that initially made those commitments to begin with. So if we can provide them with those resources, they can keep them in their homes, Sikes said."
The program also helps the shelter manage surrenders by teaching owners how to rehome outside of the shelter or setting up appointments to surrender at the shelter.
Sites says communities around the country are setting up similar programs that have been proven to work. So far the program has been awarded a $5,000 matching grant from the Best Friends organization to help with to help with costs. The program now has until September 15 to raise an additional $5,000 to get the maximum grant amount.