Owner-surrendered pets are putting a strain on rescuers, according to Animal Care Services.

S.A. Animal Care Services and local rescues have too many pets and not enough room.

We are maxed out, said Julianne Marchbanks, president of God's Dogs Rescue.

We're just seeing needs, said Debbie Davis, the rescue's operations director.

God's Dogs Rescue's kennels are filled. Sadly, their foster homes are also full.

Davis stated his rescue has over 500 dogs.

The rescuers said they'd never seen anything like it. Exponentially, owners are handing up their dogs.

We get 25, 30 emails a day asking us to remove their dogs, Davis added.

Colonnese said that as the number of dogs in their care grows, placement prospects shrink. They're thinking beyond the box.

Asking citizens who find strays to hold onto them and try to find their owners, Colonnese said.

Due to a statewide veterinarian scarcity, it is now more difficult to get pets spayed or neutered. Colonnese stated that a long-term solution to canine overpopulation would require meeting demand.

The one resource we actually need for a long-term solution is diminishing. Sadly, we're witnessing the repercussions now, Colonnese added.

Davis and Marchbank believe that greater community spay and neutering is needed to reverse the trend.

Rescuers aren't the only ones affected. It's the same at Animal Care Services.

We have a high owner surrender rate. In the past month, we were booked out three to four months, said Bethany Colonnese, ACS COO. We would love to see street spay and neutering return. They had a mobile spay-neuter clinic. You had to get inside those neighborhoods, Marchbanks added.

The rescuers hope more people would consider fostering instead of giving up their dogs.

It would help tremendously if more fosters helped bring animals into rescues and care for them until they could be adopted, Davis says.

ACS also conducted a large-scale community survey.

Access to resources was a hot topic. They realized that long-term solutions to problems like feral animals and backyard breeders depended on education and resources, Colonnese added.

The results are still being collected, and ACS will make a recommendation in a few months.

Meanwhile, a group of area rescues is hosting a private town hall with elected leaders on Sunday, May 1, at 2 p.m. at Braun Hall.

Details Here