More than a dozen dogs are being taken to Massachusetts from New York amid what animal rescue organizations are calling a “national dog population crisis.”
The Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (MSPCA) is taking in 14 dogs from Animal Care Centers of NYC (NYACC), an organization that runs several shelters around New York City. NYACC has double the number of dogs in its care than it has capacity for, “mirroring challenges that animal shelters across the country are experiencing with too many animals and not enough adoptions,” according to a statement from the MSPCA.
“People in the Northeast often think that the national dog population crisis is something that only Southern and warm-weather states are dealing with,” Mike Keiley, MSPCA-Angell vice president of animal protection, said in the statement. “But that’s not true, and no one knows that more than NYACC.”
NYACC has more than 300 dogs in its care when it only has the capacity for 180. Dogs are doubled up in kennels, and the organization is using pop-up crates in offices and hallways to expand capacity, according to the statement.
The 14 dogs are expected to arrive at the Northeast Animal Shelter in Salem on April 13. They range in age from one to eight years old and are mostly large, bully breed mixes, according to the MSPCA.
The group of dogs is scheduled to arrive just days before the MSPCA hosts a fee-waived adoption event for all dogs ages six months and older across all four of its shelters called “Run, Walk, Dog!” in honor of the Boston Marathon, the MSPCA noted.
The MSPCA expects eligible New York dogs to be available in the “adoptathon” after they have completed their state-mandated 48-hour quarantine and received any medical attention they may need, according to the statement.
The transport of the 14 dogs could not come at a better time, Jessica Vaccaro, NYACC’s director of placement, noted in the statement.
“NYACC is so grateful to the MSPCA for this partnership,” Vaccaro said. “Our shelters in NYC are beyond overcrowded, with double the number of dogs we have room to comfortably house. Being able to relocate so many large breed dogs opens up much needed kennel space and assists us in our mission to end animal homelessness in NYC.”
The MSPCA seeks to rehome more than 100 dogs during the week-long adoption event, including Dove, a nearly two-year-old mixed breed dog who came to the organization on April 9 in a transport with 19 other dogs from the Charleston Animal Society South Carolina,
“Dove has experienced a lot of trauma in her short life,” said Keiley. “She was found as a stray and had endured a gunshot wound to her face.”
“But Dove is really special and resilient. She underwent successful surgery in South Carolina and, despite her trauma, staff there said she’s loving and affectionate,” Keiley added.
More information about Dove and the adoptathon can be found at mspca.org/dogs.
