August 1st is the National Birthday for Shelter Dogs, known as Dogust, and Woods Humane Society is celebrating by throwing a month-long birthday party full of surprises for shelter dogs and cats throughout the month. The festivities will include a $10,000 match birthday fundraiser that will double each donation made to the organization to help twice as many homeless pets.
“We are so excited to announce that our amazingly generous friends at The Marianne and Stacy Cocks Fund, a Fund of the Community Foundation of San Luis Obispo County, will match every gift this month to make twice as many homeless dogs’ and cats’ birthday wishes come true,” says Woods Director of Development Emily L’Heureux. “This is an incredible opportunity to make twice the impact with a donation for animals in need.”
In addition, Woods Humane Society will treat the pets in its care with Dogust birthday surprises (which they will share on Facebook and Instagram), and will offer fee-waived adoptions for any pets who have been at the shelter longer than 30 days.
Two animals to benefit from this adoption special are Snowy and Sherlock (pictured), who are Woods’ longest residents. They have been at the shelter for six months—well over the average length of stay of just 13 days for dogs.
“Snowy and Sherlock are a bonded pair that need to find a home together. They are also seniors, they came to us in need of medical care, and they are large dogs. Each of these qualities contributes to the reason they have been in search of a home for so long, despite the fact that they’re sweet, well-behaved and ready for a family,” says L’Heureux. “Each of these qualities would also put them at risk for euthanasia in many shelters with less space and fewer resources. At Woods, we are grateful to be able to be there for hundreds of animals with special needs like them each year, no matter how long it takes, thanks to the generous support of the community.”
She says the average cost of caring for an animal at Woods is $800, and that cost goes up dramatically for pets in need of specialized training or medical care, or extended stays. Woods currently has 26 long-term animals—many of them large dogs, a trend that is currently widespread in the animal shelter industry—who have been in search of a forever home for more than double Woods’ average length of stay.
“Not only are we not giving up on these long-term guests, we’re doubling down and waiving their adoption fees this month to remove barriers to adoption by loving families. We know their people are out there.”
All Woods animals have been spayed or neutered, vaccinated, microchipped, licensed, and treated for fleas and other parasites prior to adoption. Adoptions also include a free wellness examination at local veterinary clinics and 30 days of pet health insurance (if adopters choose to enroll).
Click here to donate to the Dogust Double Your Donation fundraiser. To view animals currently available for adoption, visit www.WoodsHumane.org/Adoptions and look for the “fee-waived” symbol next to an animal’s profile to determine if their adoption fees have been waived. To see the shelter’s birthday surprises for the animals this month, follow Woods on Facebook and Instagram.
Woods is also open to the public daily from 12-5 p.m., with adoption hours from 12-4 p.m. For more information about Woods, visit www.WoodsHumane.org or call (805) 543-9316. Woods Humane Society is located at 875 Oklahoma Ave., San Luis Obispo, CA 93405 and at 2300 Ramona Rd., Atascadero, CA 93422.
