The Thanksgiving weekend was a special one for many homeless pets thanks to huge turnout by community members at a very special adoption event! From Black Friday through Cyber Monday, Kitsap Humane Society (KHS) partnered with Zappos and Best Friends Animal Society to waive all adoption fees to help pets find homes for the holidays. Zappos, an online retailer that specializes in shoe sales, sponsored all the adoption fees at select shelters all over the county. KHS was one of only 200 shelters and rescues nationwide invited to participated and one of only two in the Puget Sound region. KHS announced the event on Monday, November 21st, and staff wasn’t sure how far word of the event would spread.

On the morning of Black Friday, the first day of the event, it was clear that it was going to be a busy holiday weekend. A line of families interested in adopting formed at 8am- four hours before the shelter was scheduled to open! Tents and chairs were available as a waiting area, but the line grew so long it wrapped around the driveway. The momentum kept up, with long lines of adopters on Saturday, Sunday and even customers waiting at the doors on Monday! Families braved the wet and chilly weather for hours to find the right pet, and a pizza food truck was onsite to keep customers well fed during their wait. Close to thirty staff and seventy volunteers were on site for the event to assist customers and care for the animals.

All customers went through all of KHS’ standard adoption process including completing an application, meeting with a counselor, the pet and their family, and getting approved for the right fit. KHS had more adoption counselors and customer service representatives processing adoptions than ever before, converting offices into makeshift lobbies and adoption meeting rooms to accommodate the large crowds.

After four days and 195 adoptions the shelter was practically empty! Only a handful of cats and dogs had not been adopted during the event, and the shelter was especially quiet on Monday night. Veteran staff and volunteers had never seen the shelter so empty! It was a great opportunity to get group photos showing off all of the empty kennels. In total, over 10,000 animals across the country were adopted from participating shelters and rescues during the four day event. The event helped make November a record breaking month for adoptions at KHS, with 592 pets rehomed into loving homes.

After celebrating the success of so many animals spending the holidays in loving homes, staff and volunteers got right back to saving lives. The empty kennels meant that KHS could take in more needy animals from our Kitsap community right away, but also aid other shelters in need. On the Tuesday following the event the Rescue Me Program teams covered over 600 miles saving 35 at-risk pets from five different partner shelters and rescues. These pets have gotten a second chance and now have the opportunity to find a wonderful new family.