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A Chattahoochee Humane Society staff member will tell you that any time of year is a good time to adopt a pet and give it a forever home. But for the next two weeks, it is an especially good time to visit the shelter while the Bissell Empty the Shelter event is going on.

From May 1 to May 15, all adoptions at the humane shelter will have reduced adoption fees thanks to the Bissell Pet Foundation. The company will partially sponsor adoptions for any animal in the shelter. 

This campaign is just one of the ways that CHS has worked to lower their capacity and by doing so, eliminate the need of euthanizing for space. The shelter has worked hard in the last two years to maintain a no-kill shelter status. To remain means that no more than 10% of animal intakes are euthanized to make space. 

Bissell Pet Foundation is a national nonprofit organization that works to “support animal welfare organizations and provide resources to underserved communities” by reducing the number of homeless animals. They have programs to support adoptions, spay/neuter resources, vaccinations, microchipping and disaster response. 

The Bissell Pet Foundation sponsors local shelters for a quarterly Empty the Shelter event, which is the largest funded adoption event in the country. The foundation supports partner organizations like CHS with reimbursement for each pet adopted to allow for more affordable adoption fees. 

According to the Bissell website, adopters will pay no more than $50 plus local license fees. 

Since 2016, the event has helped nearly 190,000 pets find their forever homes across the United States. 

CHS staff applied to participate in the program several months ago and received notice that Bissell would be partnering with them. 

The shelter is once again full, with a total of 82 animals in the system, including foster homes and the 15 outdoor kennels on the hill.  

“When you reduce the rate like that, it sometimes brings more people into the shelter, and also it’s given us resources,” said Phalisha Hadaway, CHS staff member.

One of the benefits of partnering with Bissell is the expanded resources and visibility online. Each participating shelter is linked on the Bissell website and social media pages.