WE HAVE NOT HEARD BACK. PET ADOPTIONS ARE DOWN 25% AT GREAT PLAINS SPCA, AND THAT MAY HAVE PLAYED A ROLE IN A 500 DAY STAY FOR ONE DOG. KMBC NINE S ALAN SHOPE SHOWS US THE STORY WITH A HAPPY ENDING. WE OFFER EXCELLENT CARE, BUT IT’S STILL REALLY, REALLY SAD TO THINK OF ANY ANIMAL HAVING TO BE IN A SHELTER SYSTEM FOR 500 DAYS. YEAH, THAT’S BEEN THE LIFE FOR GREAT PLAINS SPCA SHELTER DOG LUCAS. THIS THREE YEAR OLD GOLDEN LAB MIX SPENT 520 DAYS IN THIS MERRIAM SHELTER. TAM SINGER SAYS IT’S A HARD TIME FOR SHELTER ANIMALS RIGHT NOW. IT’S BEEN A REALLY TOUGH YEAR FOR ANIMALS AND SHELTERS, SPECIFICALLY LARGE DOGS. WE’RE JUST NOT SEEING AS MUCH INTEREST IN THEM, ESPECIALLY LARGE DOGS. TAM SAYS THE SHELTER’S FOSTER ADOPT PROGRAM HAS REALLY HELPED, AND THAT’S WHAT HAPPENED FOR LUCAS. A FAMILY RECENTLY FOSTERING HIM. AND ON FRIDAY, THE SHELTER ANNOUNCING THE FAMILY DECIDED TO KEEP HIM COMPLETELY HOUSE TRAINED. FINE WITH KIDS. JUST A BIG OLD GOOFY LARGE PUPPY, SHE ADDS. THE AVERAGE STAY FOR A DOG IN THE SHELTER IS 21 DAYS. WHEN AN ANIMAL LIVES THERE. AS LONG AS LUCAS DID, THEY BECOME A FIXTURE OF SORTS. THEY BECOME KIND OF LIKE ANOTHER EMPLOYEE THAT YOU JUST ARE USED TO BEING AROUND AND YOU KNOW THEM SO WELL AND THEY KNOW YOU, AND THEN EVERYBODY KNOWS THEM BECAUSE THEY’VE BEEN HERE SO LONG. AND SHE SAYS, LUCKILY FOR THIS PUP, THAT LENGTHY STAY IS OVER IN MERRIAM ALAN SHOPE KMBC NINE NEWS, THE SHELTER’S LYNDON TO PAUL FUNDRAISER RUNS THROUGH THE END OF THE MON
Long-term shelter dog Lucas finds a home after 520 days in Kansas shelter
Lucas, a 3-year-old Golden Labrador mix, has spent most of his life in a shelter. After 520 days at the Great Plains SPCA shelter in Merriam, he has finally found a home.”We offer excellent care, but it's still really, really sad to think of any animal to be in a shelter system for 500 days,” said an anonymous shelter worker.Lucas' story is not unique. “It's been a really tough year for animals and shelters, specifically large dogs. We're just not seeing as much interest in them, especially large dogs,” said Tam Singer, CEO of Great Plains SPCA.The shelter's foster and adopt program has been a lifeline for many animals, including Lucas. “A family recently decided to foster Lucas, and on Friday, the shelter announced that the family had decided to keep him,” Singer said.Lucas is described as a “completely house trained, fine with kids, just a big old goofy large puppy.”The average stay for a dog in the shelter is 21 days. “When an animal lives there as long as Lucas, they become a fixture of sorts,” Singer said.”They become kind of like another employee that you're used to being around, and you know them so well, and they know you, and then everybody knows them because they've been here so long,” she said.Fortunately for Lucas, his lengthy stay at the shelter is over.
Lucas, a 3-year-old Golden Labrador mix, has spent most of his life in a shelter.
After 520 days at the Great Plains SPCA shelter in Merriam, he has finally found a home.
“We offer excellent care, but it's still really, really sad to think of any animal to be in a shelter system for 500 days,” said an anonymous shelter worker.
Lucas' story is not unique.
“It's been a really tough year for animals and shelters, specifically large dogs. We're just not seeing as much interest in them, especially large dogs,” said Tam Singer, CEO of Great Plains SPCA.
The shelter's foster and adopt program has been a lifeline for many animals, including Lucas.
“A family recently decided to foster Lucas, and on Friday, the shelter announced that the family had decided to keep him,” Singer said.
Lucas is described as a “completely house trained, fine with kids, just a big old goofy large puppy.”
The average stay for a dog in the shelter is 21 days.
“When an animal lives there as long as Lucas, they become a fixture of sorts,” Singer said.
“They become kind of like another employee that you're used to being around, and you know them so well, and they know you, and then everybody knows them because they've been here so long,” she said.
Fortunately for Lucas, his lengthy stay at the shelter is over.
