WESTOVER, MD - All 23 kennels at the Somerset County Dog Control shelter are full, limiting its ability to rescue all the canines in need throughout the county.
Employees tell WBOC they have been dealing with a capacity issue since COVID.
"They were adopting dogs and or purchasing dogs, and now they've gone back to work, and it's just too much," Dog Control Supervisor Cindy Tawes said.
Director Scott Sturgis said the shelter is lucky if they can facilitate one or two adoptions each week. The number of dogs they rescue every week is double that.
"The majority of the dogs we get here since COVID's been owner surrender, and unfortunately, what we pick up is strays," Sturgis said.
Tawes, who herself adopted a rescue from the shelter, said there had been times when the room was so limited they had to temporarily house dogs in the office space.
"We are bombarded," Tawes said. "We adopt a dog; we get two in."
The lack of room complicates the shelter's ability to continue saving the lives of dogs like Pete.
"A little over a year ago we picked up a dog named Pete. He was actually found on Pete Hill Road," Tawes said.
Pete was so emaciated that the family who found him thought he was deceased until he lifted his head. That is when Dog Control intervened and returned him from death's door.
"He is living the good life now with the people that found him," Tawes said. "He's fat and happy."
To encourage more adoptions, the shelter got permission from Somerset County Commissioners to start a volunteer dog walking program.
They hope that volunteers will fall in love with the dogs they walk. The program is expected to launch within the next few months.
Anyone interested in adopting a dog from Somerset County Dog Control can schedule a meet and greet by calling the shelter at (410) 651-0986.