Long Beach’s Animal Shelter has been over capacity since February due to a sudden influx of dogs arriving and the shelter could possibly resort to euthanasia in order to reduce the overflow of their kennels.
“There are no open kennels to take in more dogs. There are dogs in conference rooms, the lobby, and offices. If you found a dog, please hold onto that pet for at least a few days and look for the owner using social media and community neighborhood forums,” Long Beach’s Animal Care Services said in a post on its Facebook page.
The shelter previously said that adoptions continued at a steady pace in 2022 after reaching a milestone of 1,968 adoptions last year. But the tipping point for the shelter came recently when an influx of a dozen dogs, nearly half of which reportedly came from a homeless encampment cleared by law enforcement nearby, overfilled the kennels, according to the Long Beach Post.
“This is the first time in almost 15 years that I have had to authorize and make the decision to euthanize a dog for space,” shelter director Staycee Dains told the Long Beach Post. “It’s not OK. It’s not right, but there’s nothing else for me to do.”
For now, dogs in line to be euthanized are those that have bitten someone but aren’t deemed dangerous and those with behavior issues worsened by a long stay at the shelter.
Another problem is that well-intentioned people often bring animals into the shelter before checking with neighbors, shelter officials said. The shelter said the vast majority of lost dogs have a family, but few are found once the arrive at a shelter. They encouraged anyone who finds a lost dog to check around before bringing it to a shelter.
For information on adoptable pets or how to help Long Beach shelter animals, those interested are asked to call Long Beach Animal Care Services at 562-570-7387 or visit their website.