Asheville Humane Society breaks record for lives saved

• Many of the animals coming to the Buncombe County Animal Shelter are lost.
• Incoming animals are scanned for a microchip and photographed.
• Photos of lost pets are uploaded to the shelter’s website, available 24 hours a day.

ASHEVILLE – There were fewer puppies and kittens in Western North Carolina last year — and that is actually a good thing.

The Asheville Humane Society announced Tuesday that the organization broke all previous records for saving Buncombe County animals last year, totaling 5,599 “saved lives” at the close of its fiscal year in June.

The Humane Society saw an increase of 21 percent in animal lives saved last year, the organization said, and a 110 percent increasing of lives saved since the organization moved into their new Adoption Center four years ago.

“We took a hard look at many of our programs and tried to really re-evaluate what was working and what more had to be done to help animals and families who needed it,” said Jennifer Brehler, interim president of Asheville Humane Society.

“A big part of that was changing our programming, but it was also a matter of just communicating to the community what we needed,” she said.

Brehler said the community has taken up the call, through a major volunteer force and financial support. About 1,800 animals were fostered by over 480 families, and 895 volunteers donated over 80,000 hours of their time to AHS this past year.

AHS operates its own privately funded Adoption and Education Center and since 1990 has managed the Buncombe County open-admission Animal Shelter contract.

More than 3,000 animals were adopted last year, 900 cats and dogs were transported to other agencies throughout the country, and almost 1,000 animals were reunited with families through AHS’s Lost and Found Program, which has one of the highest return rates in the nation.

Asheville Humane Society maintains relationships with other animal rescue organizations, both locally and nationally, and never charges a “pull fee.” “We make aggressive efforts to transfer animals to other organizations, including breed rescues, humane societies, and shelters who may have the capacity to accept animals for adoption,” Brehler said. “We operate regular transports to transfer animals to organizations in the Southeast, Northeast, and Midwest.”

The society’s Lost and Found program, which included a full-time coordinator dedicated to matching missing and stray animals with their families, has been a huge part of their success.

About 60 percent of the animals coming to the Buncombe County Animal Shelter are lost, she said. Incoming animals are scanned for a microchip and photographed, then photos of lost pets are uploaded to the shelter’s website so worried families can search photos 24 hours a day.

The safety net program also provides counseling and support to pet parents who are faced with surrendering their pets to help keep them together, including access to free pet food and other low-cost and no-cost assistance.

One of many smaller program shifts in recent years has been changing strict adoption standards and offering education in lieu of simply turning many potential pet parents away.

“As many shelters do, we were just turning people away a lot more often in the past, and we realized that working with people and helping families understand how to be better pet owners is the better way,” she said. “Some people came in thinking, ‘pets don’t need to go to the vet,’ because that’s how they were raised. A lot of people with great intentions were being turned away, and sometimes just teaching them what works and what doesn’t is all they need to be great pet parents.”

ADOPTION FEES REDUCED

• Bark Week. It may be Shark Week on the Discovery Channel, but at Asheville Humane Society, it’s Bark Week, meaning the nonprofit is “taking a bite out of our adoption fees.” This week through Saturday, dogs older than 6 months, as well as all cats and kittens, may be adopted for must $14.

• The adoption center, at 14 Forever Friend Lane, off Pond Road at Brevard Road, is open 10 a.m.-6 p.m. except Sunday. To learn more, visit www.ashevillehumane.org or call 761-2001.

BY THE NUMBERS

• 5,599: Buncombe County animals’ lives saved, a 21 percent increase of lives saved over the last fiscal year and an increase of 110 percent since opening the Adoption Center four years ago

• Over 3,000 animals adopted out

• Over 87 percent of the animals saved out of the Buncombe County Animal Shelter were saved by AHS

• Over 900 lives saved via Relocation Program

• Almost 1,000 lost animals reunited with their families

• Nearly 500 animals remained in homes rather than being surrendered

• Nearly 1,800 animals fostered by over 480 families

• Over 80,000 hours donated by 895 volunteers

• 20,000 pounds of pet food provided to citizens and pets in need

• 100 percent success rate in placing adoptable animals