SAN DIEGO (KGTV) – It’s tears of joy for Emilce Marambio.
She found her beloved pup Bailey after calling the San Diego Humane Society after she got out of the house on Wednesday afternoon.
“I didn’t think so. I was really worried that she might have gotten hurt, maybe somebody pick her up and hurt her. So that’s how I felt,” Marambio said.
It’s a satisfying sight seeing a lost dog be returned to their owner. But that’s not the case for all of the dogs in the Humane Society at the moment.
“We still have a lot of dogs that have come in, a lot of them are stray. We are seeing dogs come into our care and they’re not being picked up by their owners.” Nina Thompson of the San Diego Humane Society said.
The shelter’s at 125 percent capacity for dogs across all campuses as of Thursday.
“That means we have more dogs in our care than we have kennels,” Thompson said.
In fact, in 2022 alone, the shelter saw more than 9,000 stray dogs come into their care with about 41 percent being returned to their owners.
“However, we do have the space so, we’re being creative. We’re putting up kennels in classrooms. We have a facility down the street where we don’t typical don’t house dogs,” Thompson said.
They’re still willing to help the animals that come into their care and are juggling the challenge of construction at the San Diego site.
So, to lessen the stress at the shelter, the Humane Society's asking for the public’s helping in a few ways.
“If you find a stray pet, if you can hold on to that pet and possibly locate the owner on your own by posting about that pet on social media, skipping a trip to the shelter; that would be a huge help. We’re also asking the community if they can temporarily foster a dog right now,” Thompson said.
They also ask for people to re-home their dogs on their own.
Another hope to resolve the current capacity situation is an adult dog adoption event sponsored by San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria.
“We’re really hoping that this adoption promotion this weekend is going to help us and get some dogs into homes that they deserve,” Thompson said.
Whether it’s a lost pet or a pet finding a new forever home, giving them that home is all that matters.
“I do hope everybody comes and find their dog. You know, you have these animals and they’re like you family members. And I don’t see how anyone can leave their family member out there,” Marambio said.
If you want to attend this weekend’s adoption event, you can find out more here.
