Bloomfield Animal Shelter Is Full; Dog, Cat Surrenders Put On Hold

BLOOMFIELD, NJ — The Bloomfield Animal Shelter has hit capacity and is temporarily putting the brakes on new dog and cat surrenders, staff reported Monday.

The animal shelter put out a call for adopters on social media, also asking for help with donations to help feed its new wave of adorable-but-in-need furry residents. Staff wrote:

“The shelter is full and unable to accept surrenders until our current available dogs and cats get adopted. We've experienced an influx of stray dogs and cats this past week, resulting in few empty cages to help those in need of surrender! Please consider meeting our available dogs and cats to not only help the current pets in need, but also help a pet on our surrender wait list. We offer same day adoption appointments for approved applications.”

Learn more about adoptions at the Bloomfield Animal Shelter here. Download an adoption application online here. See available dogs and cats via Petfinder here. General adoption inquires can be emailed to adoptatbas@gmail.com.

According to the municipal website, donations of dog and cat supplies can be left at the shelter entrance gate between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. daily. Donations must be new, sealed, unexpired and in their original packaging. The shelter is located at 61 Bukowski Place.

• Read More: New Dogs, Cats, Pets Up For Adoption In The Bloomfield Area
• Read More: Bloomfield Will Keep Providing Animal Control For Maplewood

The Bloomfield Animal Shelter isn’t the only facility in Essex County to recently hit a wall when it comes to dog and cat admissions.

Montclair Township Animal Shelter workers and volunteers have also noted that they’ve been dealing with a spike in intakes lately – possibly driven by the high prices of pet services and food, Baristanet reported.

“We’re seeing something we’ve never seen before,” said Liz Morgan, director of the township shelter. “We’re used to kitten season. What’s different this year is we’ve never had this amount of dogs.”

In April, the Associated Humane Societies put out a call for help at its Newark shelter in an email newsletter, saying that it has seen a dramatic rise in the number of animals coming into the shelter over the past year.

“So far this year our intake numbers have increased by over 19 percent,” administrators said. “Though we are adopting our more animals than ever before in AHS history, it isn’t enough.”

“Between lost animals, owner surrenders, cruelty cases and more, our kennels are completely full – although we continue to have new animals arrive daily,” AHS administrators reported.

“It really is a nationwide issue, and the number of stray animals – in addition to those surrendering animals due to financial reasons or they cannot afford to live in pet-friendly housing and are forced to surrender – is rising,” AHS-Newark staff said. “In less than two weeks, our shelter has taken in almost 50 dogs, only eight of them being reclaimed by families looking for their lost pets. There are a myriad of reasons, but many of them stem back to financial difficulties.”

• See Related: Newark Animal Shelter In 'Crisis Mode' After Deluge Of New Dogs, Cats

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