56 puppies in 56 days: It’s been raining dogs on Bellingham’s animal shelter this winter

The Whatcom County Humane Society has been at full capacity in terms of the number of dogs it shelters for more than two years now, and a recent wave of puppy litter drop-offs has the facility searching high and low for adoption options.

Since Jan. 1 the shelter has taken in more than 56 new puppies, including a litter of nine on Sunday and another litter of seven Tuesday, according to Executive Director Laura Clark.

“That number is bonkers,” Clark said.

The Whatcom county facility is one of the only open-admission shelters in the Northwest, meaning it’s their policy not to turn away animals.

Despite being at capacity, Clark said there are no plans to change the open-admission policy, which has been a point of pride for the shelter since it opened more than 120 years ago in 1902.

“We have become a bit of a dumping ground, and that is not fair to our community’s animals,” Clark said. “We will always remain a proud open-admission animal shelter. It is a foundation of what we do.”

Clark said there is a “tremendous pet overpopulation problem” driving the ongoing capacity issues at the facility.

“We as a community have to actively tackle it together in order to reduce the number of animals needing homes,” Clark said.

The two best ways to reduce the number of animals is to spay and neuter pets and to adopt and take care of local animals, according to Clark.

A lot of animals are being brought in from out of county, and there are already enough in Whatcom County that need attention, Clark said.

The shelter is running a special canine adoption program that launched Wednesday and runs through March 9. Adoption fees for dogs or puppies are 50% off during that period.

“When we get this crowded we have to get creative in terms of how we are trying to get animals adopted” Clark said. “The goal is still permanent, responsible and loving (homes). So we want to never lose sight of what the adoption needs to be. It needs to work for the adopter and the adopted pet, but sometimes doing something like having a small reduction in the adoption fee can motivate people to come in and take a second look.”

Before a dog is adopted the staff at the shelter do their best to make sure the animal is going to a home that can appropriately care for it. That includes making sure a home has enough space and giving adopters time with an animal to make sure it’s a good match.

For an animal shelter, being at capacity full time means having to “juggle” animals between rescue partners, foster homes and the facility. In some cases, a euthanasia decision is necessary, usually if an animal has a behavioral or health problem. The shelter is currently keeping 74 dogs in Whatcom County foster homes and rescue centers, 25 of which are puppies under the age of 6 months, Clark said.

The shelter took in more than 1,000 dogs and another 1,000 cats in 2024 alone. It is very rare for a dog to be euthanized because there is not enough space. According to records provided by the shelter, only one dog was put down for spacing issues in 2024, along with five cats, while more than 100 dogs and cats each were put down for behavioral, health and other reasons.

“It is our staff’s struggle every day, from the start of the day to the end, trying to figure out our capacity to care, and where we can humanely house all the animals that are coming into the building,” Clark said.

The 16 new puppies the shelter has taken in need to be medically cleared before they can be put up for adoption. Clark said the process takes a couple of weeks, and puppies are usually pretty popular when it comes time for adoption. However, Clark said there also are some older and larger dogs that have been in the shelter for far too long.

On average, a dog may spend about 30-40 days at the shelter before adoption. There are some dogs that have been in the shelter since October.

“We are almost in March. That is so long for an animal to sit in a kennel,” Clark said. “We really are having to re-examine how we are caring for those animals, how we are marketing those animals to the public, what are our options for those animals? They are sitting in kennels waiting to find homes. All the rescues, all the shelters are full, and you go back and say, ‘It’s just a really hard time to be an animal.’”

Most of the dogs that have been waiting for months for a home are larger dogs that require special accommodations. Clark said small- and medium-sized dogs can be taken by most homes, but larger breed dogs need more resources and space.

“The small dogs, the puppies tend to be adopted quicker because they are cuter, they show better,” Clark said. “A 5-year-old German shepard is a tougher dog to find a home for than the 8-week-old mixed-breed puppy.”

The shelter still has some room for cats, but that’s not expected to last. Cats usually only start breeding in the warmer weather, meaning there are a lot less of them in the winter. Clark said they are expecting an increase in kittens within the next few weeks.

Anyone interested in adoption can view currently available animals at the Whatcom County Humane Society website, which also provides information on volunteering and fostering opportunities.

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