PITTSFIELD — In an attempt to find room for animals from shelters in the South affected by hurricanes, the Berkshire Humane Society cut adoption fees in half for all dogs and cats over the age of six months.
But instead of clearing out the shelter to make room, the shelter took in an influx of new animals, reaching peak capacity last week.
Mina, a 9-year-old deaf pit bull terrier mix, is a senior dog available for adoption at the Berkshire Humane Society. Mina has been at the shelter since the end of August.
When John Perreault, executive director of Berkshire Humane Society, announced the change in adoption fees two weeks ago, he had hoped residents on the fence about caring for an animal might find that extra incentive an enticement to adopt.
It worked: 39 animals were adopted.
But the influx of locally incoming animals has outpaced adoptions. The peak last week was 134, at or over capacity. One dog was briefly housed at the front desk.
“It hasn’t stopped,” Perreault said, adding the shelter is still near capacity, with about 125 animals at the Barker Road building on Thursday.
“My goal ultimately is to still help some of our southern shelter partners that right now don’t even have buildings,” he said. “So hopefully, and someday soon, we might be able to get there.”
In an effort to get to that goal and free up space, for the next two weeks, Perreault is continuing the reduced adoption fees for dogs and cats over the age of six months.
Nine ferrets, all of whom have been well cared-for, according to shelter staff, were surrendered together to the Berkshire Humane Society in Pittsfield when their owner faced eviction.
Some of the animals who came to the shelter in the last few weeks include nine ferrets. They came from a person who was facing eviction and had cared for the ferrets well, Perreault said, but was now looking for housing for himself and could not care for the mustelids.
“We’ve taken in a few more rabbits, and we’ve taken in many more dogs,” he said.
Among the dogs are Foxy, a female German shepherd, who also came to the shelter because her owner was evicted. Eviction is among the most common reasons for surrender, Perreault said.
Berkshire Humane Society Executive Director John Perrault leads a community “Woof Walk” back to Haddad Subaru in Pittsfield during a day of pet-themed events, including health checks, contests, raffles and more to benefit the Humane Society.
A surrendered dog stays at the shelter on average for about 21 days, which costs the humane society about $800 to house, feed and care for the animal.
Zelda, a 10-year-old senior brown tiger cat, came into the Berkshire Humane Society as a stray and is available for adoption.
Adoption fees, even at full price, don’t come close to matching the actual costs of caring for animals at Berkshire Humane Society, Perreault said.
Stacey Broderick gets a hug from Cleo, a Cane Corso mix. She came into the shelter on Oct. 16.
“We are taking a financial hit, no doubt,” he said. “But that means I just have to work a little bit harder about talking to our donor base about the importance of supporting us, especially in this time.”
Perreault said staff at the Berkshire Humane Society evaluates calls for surrender and prioritizes them.
“We evaluate every phone call that comes in and then if it’s an emergency we take care of it right as soon as we can, and if’s a nonemergency, they just don’t want it anymore, we put them on a list until we can create a space.”
Dogs new to the shelter include Cleo, a cane corso, who’s 2. Weighing in at 100 pounds, she may look intimidating to some but seems mostly intent on nuzzling up to newcomers.
Some long-term residents still waiting for owners include Teddy and Rose, two chihuahua mixes, who make a ruckus on seeing strangers but greet them warmly.
Perreault said, “My goal is let’s see if we can’t get our numbers to the point where we can help another shelter out right now.”
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