Hundreds of pets found forever homes during Saturday's 2018 Clear the Shelters event in South Florida.
Nine shelters in Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach and Monroe participated in NBC 6 and Telemundo 51's event, which is part of an annual national campaign to find forever homes for animals in need.
All of the shelters waived or reduced adoption fees to help families find and adopt a new pet. Other services were also free, depending on the location.
More than 1,300 animals were adopted in South Florida in the days leading up to Saturday's big event. More than 400 more were adopted Saturday. Since this year’s event was launched on July 28, more than 56,000 pets have already been taken nationwide.
From older dogs to kittens to rabbits and iguanas, the NBC- and Telemundo-owned stations' Clear the Shelters pet adoption campaign has inspired local communities to take action and open their homes to pets in need.
At Miami-Dade Animal Services in Doral, about 500 animals were up for adoption, and new animals came in throughout the day.
"We got two sister cats and we're super excited about it," Kimberly Sierra said.
Hundreds of animal lovers lined up early to find a pet to take home.
"I feel like overwhelmed right now, he's so cute and he was the last one, I just felt like it was meant to be," pet adopter Jenna Rojas said. "The fact that they're doing this event, it's great, it gives everybody a chance."
For Courtney O'Connell, it’s about showing her three daughters the true meaning behind "adopt don’t shop."
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"It's giving more room for other dogs, homeless dogs that need to come in to have homes and families," she said.
