Over July Fourth weekend, KC Pet Project took in 189 animals — and counting

Maia Bond
·2 min read

The KC Pet Project, a nonprofit that runs the city’s animal shelter, took in 189 animals over the holiday weekend from Friday to Tuesday, and the number continues to grow.

The shelter holds animals for five days and then they are typically put up for adoption. All lost animals can be found on their website or on their lost and found Facebook page.

During Independence Day weekend when there are often loud fireworks going off, pet owners should keep their animals at home and indoors to mitigate the risk of them escaping and getting lost, Tori Fugate, a spokeswoman for the KC Pet Project said.

To help keep pets from winding up at a shelter, Fugate encouraged people who find lost pets to ask around the neighborhood and post on social media before taking the pet immediately to a shelter. Most pets are found within a few blocks of their home, she said.

She said owners should make sure their pet’s microchip information is up to date, otherwise they have trouble finding current phone numbers to contact the pet’s family.

This cat was taken in by the KC Pet Project on July 2 near N Church Road and N Evanstone Avenue. There are two days left of his five-day mandatory stray hold, then he will be put up for adoption.
This cat was taken in by the KC Pet Project on July 2 near N Church Road and N Evanstone Avenue. There are two days left of his five-day mandatory stray hold, then he will be put up for adoption.

Record high number of animals

The nonprofit is no stranger to an increase in animal intakes because Fugate said they have taken in a record high number of animals this year.

Outside of the holiday weekend, Fugate said they take in about 1,300 pets per month, mostly due to owners surrendering them. She said they have well over the number of animals that they had at this time last year, and have been consistently at or over capacity recently.

Many owners cannot find affordable housing in Kansas City with their pet due to landlords increasing rent for pets, requiring pet deposits or not allowing pets at all, Fugate said.

This Chihuahua was found near E 26th Street and Troost Avenue on July 3 and taken in by the KC Pet Project. He will be held for three more days as past of a mandatory five-day hold on strays before being put up for adoption.
This Chihuahua was found near E 26th Street and Troost Avenue on July 3 and taken in by the KC Pet Project. He will be held for three more days as past of a mandatory five-day hold on strays before being put up for adoption.

To help with these problems, KC Pet Project has several programs and services geared towards helping pet owners keep their pets. These programs include financial assistance for food or veterinary care and emergency boarding for victims of circumstances like natural disasters, domestic violence or being evicted.

Fugate said they adopted out 972 pets in June, and continue to adopt out animals, put them in foster homes and reunite them with their families.

This past weekend Fugate said the shelter offered free adoptions, and they will most likely have another adoption event later in July.