Mainly clear. Low near 65F. Winds light and variable..
Mainly clear. Low near 65F. Winds light and variable.
Paris is a happy guy without a family.
Owners are surrendering both dogs and cats to the shelter in higher than usual numbers, leaving more pets looking for a home.
Connie is available for adoption at the Preston County Animal Shelter.
Shera is available for adoption at the shelter. All pets are spayed or neutered.
Corvair would love to go to a forever home.
Paris is a happy guy without a family.
Owners are surrendering both dogs and cats to the shelter in higher than usual numbers, leaving more pets looking for a home.
Connie is available for adoption at the Preston County Animal Shelter.
Shera is available for adoption at the shelter. All pets are spayed or neutered.
Corvair would love to go to a forever home.
KINGWOOD – The number of pets being turned in at the Preston County Animal Shelter is increasing.
Jenna Felton, office assistant at PCAS, said more dog owners are relinquishing their dogs. She said the number of abandoned dogs also has increased.
“I believe it is partially due to people who got pets during COVID and now don’t have time to take care of them, and the increase in the cost of living,” she said.
She said when the shelter receives calls from people who say they don’t have the funds to buy food for their pets, the office staff will tell them about any resources available.
“We took in approximately 500 animals last year, and it’s already at 300 this year,” Felton said.
She said it is also not just older people who are relinquishing pets due to health problems, but people of all ages.
“The calls we get are usually from people between ages 30 to 50. They cite COVID and increased prices,” she said.
Felton said more strays than normal are being reported. She said the shelter receives five or more calls a day from people reporting strays.
“We picked up five stray dogs over the weekend. We don’t know if they were dumped or what,” she said.
“I could easily get 20 to 25 cats a day, but we only have room for 25,” Felton said. “We try to refer them to the Humane Ssociety but they can only do so much.”
She said finding people to foster cats can be difficult because most of the people who are willing to keep them already have their own cats.
Felton said the shelter seems to be making a dent in the population of feral cats.
“I think we are slowly making a dent but until we get the public on board about spay and neuter the problem will persist,” Felton said. “There are still dogs out there that need to be spayed or neutered.”
She said people rarely think about calling for a free spay/neuter voucher in the fall, instead they wait until spring and summer when the kittens and puppies season starts. Spay and neuter vouchers are provided free to low income families.
Felton said although the shelter usually gets only dogs and cats, occasionally an unusual pet shows up looking for a home.
“We had a rooster dropped off that we were able to get a home for, and once there was a few pigs,” she said.
Donations of Purina dog and cat chow, Walmart or Tractor Supply gift cards, and kitty litter are needed at the shelter. Send checks to: The Preston County Animal Shelter, 278 Poor Farm Road, Kingwood, WV 26537.
Staff Writer Jeniffer Graham can be reached at jgraham@prestonnj.com.
Your comment has been submitted.
There was a problem reporting this.
Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language. PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK. Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated. Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything. Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person. Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts. Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.
Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device.
Please disable your ad blocker, whitelist our site, or purchase a subscription
News from around the State and World. What you need to know for today! Don't Miss it!
Find out what's happening around the state with this weekly email alert sent every Thursday evening!
Sign up to get our statewide obits delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign up to receive our daily newsletter about all things business and politics in West Virginia.
Morgantown News Delivered Each Day!
Morgantown News Delivered to Your Inbox Each Week!
Special offers from businesses around your area.
Get the latest headlines on local WVU, College and High School sports!
Get latest breaking news from around the state when it happens.
Daily News, Sports and Events from The ET.
Sign up for the only WV Government and Business newsletter delivered each week!
This week's most popular news from around the State. Don't Miss it!
Daily News, Sports and Events for Marion County.
Weekly Fairmont news emailed every Thursday evening!
Daily News, Sports and Events for Garrett County and surrounding areas.
Find out what's happening in Garrett County with this weekly email alert!
Get the Jackson Star & Herald Delivered to your email everyday!
Get the Jackson News Weekly delivered to your inbox!
Daily news from the Mineral News & Tribune delivered to your email!
Get the news for Mineral County, Keyser and Frankfort delivered to your email on Tuesdays and Fridays!
Daily News, Sports and Events for Preston County.
Weekly email alert sent every Tuesday and Friday afternoon for Preston County!
Get the River Cities Tribune & Register Delivered to your email everyday!
Get the River Cities Tribune and Register Delivered to your email less frequently!
Daily News, Sports and Events for Weston and Surrounding areas.
Sign up for local job offers sent to your inbox.
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Invalid password or account does not exist
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the e-mail address listed on your account.
Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
A receipt was sent to your email.