With more than 700 shelter dogs and cats in its care, Miami-Dade County Animal Services hosted a 12-hour Mega Match-A-Thon pet adoption festival Saturday, hoping to find the animals their permanent homes.
The annual event began at 10 a.m., with a line of potential adopters already stretching across the front of the building before the official start. By noon, several matches had already been made, with a number of both cats and dogs marked as "adopted."
"They help us engage with the community," Animal Services Department Director Annette Jose said of Saturday's event. "They let the community know we have a crisis of overpopulation. It's not just us; it's nationwide. But this is the best way for us to tackle that. It's a day of festivities, fun, food, music, and we hope that that's what's going to make families come out and open their doors to a puppy dog or a cat."
For the duration of the 12-hour event, adoption fees were waived for dogs and cats that were at least four months old. Adopters taking home a dog four months old and older were only responsible to may a $30 tag fee. All pets for adoption have been spayed or neutered, vaccinated and microchipped, according to a department spokesperson.
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"We were looking for a new dog for my mom. Her dog passed away very recently, and we just need another one to fill the gap," one woman said, attending the event with her mother, who was brought to tears when holding her newly adopted dog. "It's very nice to see her happy."
The Mega Match-A-Thon also featured resources for new pet owners, including from DoodyCalls of Miami, offering pet waste removal services.
"We walked around and we noticed that a lot of the pet waste stations here were in really bad shape, and so we reached out to our national partner, The Farmer's Dog, and worked out a deal where we could both donate the new stations -- seven stations, plus 14,000 bags, to the center," DoodyCalls of Miami Co-Owner Francisco Reyes told NBC6. "To see this event come true and support the community, particularly as dog lovers, to see that people are adopting dogs, is phenomenal."
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For those unable to attend Saturday's event, Jose said that there are a myriad of other ways to get involved.
"If you don't feel like you can make the commitment to adopt, we can foster for a little while. You can open your home for two weeks while we find a match for that dog. There's also volunteer opportunities, she said. "If you can only dedicate one day, there's Pawventures where you can come take a dog out for the day and bring them back at the end of the day."
