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With 75 animals crammed into every corner of a 32-kennel shelter, the Chattahoochee Humane Society has decided to open its doors to the public every Saturday from 12 to 4 p.m. ET.

The change comes this summer thanks to the unrelenting heatwaves. The shelter is only open Monday through Friday until 5 p.m., so many people do not get off work in time to come by. 

The shelter does accept appointments for visits. Also, every other Saturday, Volunteer Dale Frazer takes five to six dogs to the Petsmart in Opelika for an adoption event. 

“We’ll do anything to get a dog adopted,” she said.

The adoption events are a great way to get the dogs out of the shelter and usually end in at least one or two adoptions. But the recent high temperatures have made it too miserable for the dogs as well as the volunteers, Frazer said. 

“It’s gotten so hot, it’s too much for us,” she added. “And it’s not fun for the dogs either.”

Now that the shelter will be open on the weekend, Frazer hopes that more people will be able to come out on their day off. It will also allow them to meet all of the animals rather than the few that would be chosen for an adoption event. 

Right now, the shelter is holding well beyond its capacity of animals, at 63 dogs and 21 cats, and that’s not including the dogs currently in foster homes. The shelter only has enough kennel space for 32 dogs. 

“Every shelter is in a crisis right now,” Frazer said.

After a year of revamping, the shelter was recently awarded No Kill Shelter status from Best Friends Animal Society. To qualify for no-kill status, a shelter must remain below a 10% euthanization rate. 

“The community has just been awesome,” Frazer said, adding that the community has donated dog food when the shelter is running low. “… They see from what we were to what we are now.”

Chattahoochee Humane Society never euthanizes for space, only for fatally wounded or aggressive animals that are deemed unadoptable. 

Outside of adoption or fostering, the best way to help the shelter, Frazer said, is to volunteer. Many Point University students came out to take a dog for a walk or on an outing for the day. Getting them out of the shelter and socializing with them helps the shelter staff better understand a dog’s personality and needs.  

The other way to help the shelter is by getting to the source of the problem. It’s important to spay and neuter your pets and not to dump them rather than asking for help. Frazer said the shelter is willing to help with food supplies for those struggling to afford their pet’s needs.