The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously on Tuesday to declare October 2023 as “Adopt a Shelter Dog Month.”
Several county supervisors brought their own adopted dogs to Tuesday morning's board meeting in support of the proclamation.
“Living in a shelter is a traumatic experience and the way that dogs behave isn’t necessarily the way they really are. It takes a while to recover from that,” said Supervisor Joan Hartmann, District 3.
Santa Barbara County Animal Services has seen an increase in dogs entering its shelters since the COVID-19 pandemic and it is in need of people to adopt, foster or volunteer.
SBC Animal Services is extending its $10 adoption rate until the end of October. All pets are either spayed or neutered and are also microchipped and vaccinated.
A foster program is also being offered for those looking to foster a dog for a couple of hours or overnight.
“The shelter environment is tough. It’s stressful. There’s lots of barking and noise and sound and isolation. It’s far more humane for us to house pets in homes than in confinement," said Sarah Aguilar, Santa Barbara County Director of Animal Services.
Shelter dogs that are fostered can receive a break from the stress of the shelter while receiving socialization.
“It’s hard for us to assess a pet’s personality in a shelter environment. If you can take a dog home for a couple hours, you can tell us things like, does it get on furniture, does it use dog doors, is it house trained — things that we just can’t learn at a shelter,” Aguilar said.
Those interested in adopting or fostering a dog can visit the county's website.
