“Paws in the Park” helps shelter dogs find forever homes

ALTOONA, Pa. (WTAJ) — Dogs in the Central Pa Humane Society have a chance to find their forever home from beyond their kennel walls.

Paws in the Park is a weekend long event in Legion Park has acted as a fundraiser for the shelter for the past nine years. The main objective is to raise money to pay for medical expenses for the canines in the shelter.

“I know a lot of people think that it’s just a bag of food or maybe some kitty litter,” Becky Felton, the outreach director at the Central PA Humane Society. “But we do a lot. And we never turn our backs on an animal in need.”

Medical costs for the shelter stack up to $400,000 for about 1,500 pets that enter through their doors each year. The event not only gives the pets a fresh scene, but a chance to find a home.

The event may have dog shows, bounce houses and a haunted hayride, but the big ticket item is the adoption area, where each dog showcases their attributes to people looking to adopt. It gives people who cannot make it to the shelter a chance to bring home a new, furry friend.

“It allows us to get the dogs into homes faster because people who are at Paws in the Park will get to see all the dogs there and spend time with them,” Hannah Plummer, care associate at Central PA Humane Society said. “Not everybody can make it down to the shelter.”

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With these outdoor adoptions, the vast majority of dogs are taken to their forever homes. That in turn benefits the shelter.

“That also helps us raise a lot more money to take care of more dogs and keep helping the dogs in the community,” Plummer said.

Paws in the Park kicks off Saturday, Sept. 21 and runs through Sunday, Sept. 22.

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