MARICOPA COUNTY, Arizona — When a staff member at the Maricopa County Animal Control Center rescued a stray dog ​​from its kennel and returned it to its owner on Tuesday afternoon, another staff member took the small dog to the shelter. returned.

Here’s a scenario that shows how full MCACC It’s before the typical ‘busy season’ of shelters.

“As of this morning, we have 697 dogs,” said MCACC communications officer Kim Powell.

That’s almost 200 more dogs than Powell says is a “comfortable” level for county shelters.

In late March and early April, the number of dogs in MCACC care began to outnumber the dogs that were adopted, Powell said. This is not normal for this time of year.

“It’s always a little scary, especially when the busy season isn’t technically here,” Powell said.

The peak season is usually summer, when stray dogs come to shelters due to fireworks and rainstorms.

“Things really started to change after the pandemic,” Powell said.

In some circumstances, thousands more dogs arrived at the MCACC between January 1st and April 24th in the last two years than in 2021.

In 2021, 2,538 dogs entered shelters during that period. By 2022, that number will exceed 6,000.

During that period of the year, 4,743 dogs entered the shelter.

As for why the numbers are so high over the last two years, Powell says, in addition to the impact of other pandemics, a shortage of veterinarians has led to fewer dogs being spayed and more puppies.

“A lot of people went back to work after the pandemic. And they said, ‘I’m too busy to have a dog. I can’t have a dog anymore. I don’t have time.'” So they come to shelters,” Powell said. “Also, because of financial issues, some people can’t afford to have a pet because of financial issues post-pandemic.”

Powell said the dogs will not be euthanized because of their space or length of stay at the MCACC, and there are several events scheduled to help keep them home and adopt more dogs. The “Empty the Shelters” event, which runs from May 1st to May 15th, will waive adoption fees for all dogs over 6 months old.

In addition, MCACC is working to innovate and create new capacity for care plans.

“It’s about knowing exactly what action to take if such a situation occurs and not overburdening staff,” Powell said.

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