The number of dogs and cats that came through the St. Joseph Animal Shelter was up this year, but so were adoption rates.

According to Kappy Hodges with the Friends of the Animal Shelter, this year 1,300 dogs came through the shelter, compared to 900 last year. This year, 1,200 cats came through the shelter compared to 950 last year. Hodges said those numbers include pets brought in for cremation and deceased animals that were picked up by Animal Control. 

Hodges said of the adoptable dogs that came through the shelter this year, 100-percent were adopted. That means they were placed in a new home, went to a rescue or they were returned to their family if they were lost. The cat adoption rate went up this year to 95-percent, up from 82-percent last year.

Hodges said there are many programs that help in reaching the adoption rates each year.

“Some of the things that have been successful that the staff at Animal Control and also the volunteers with Friends of the Animal Shelter have done and are always continually working on are the Puppies for Parole program, we have the adoptions through PetSmart and Petco,” Hodges said. “We have volunteers that bring in foster mamas and help the babies… and then we have adoption promotions that we do, so all of these ways we want to keep doing.”

Hodges said this is the fourth year the shelter has had a 100-percent adoption rate for dogs.