ROCKINGHAM — Since taking over operation of the Richmond County Animal Shelter in October, Director Tessie Caulder-Brigman has had two main goals: getting animals placed in caring homes; and educating the public on spaying and neutering.
On Friday, the shelter is hosting its inaugural “Adopt, Don’t Shop” event in the hopes of achieving both goals.
The event, from 11 a.m.-6 p.m. on March 7, will be an opportunity not only for residents of Richmond County and surrounding areas to take home a pet at a discounted rate, but also for the community to see upgrades that have been made to the shelter.
There will also be activities and arts and crafts with the adoptables, as well as three food trucks: Puckered Up Lemonade, Tacos Mr. Pancho and Jammin’ Jack’s Cookin’ Shack.
As of Wednesday afternoon, Caulder-Brigman said there were around 40 dogs and close to 20 cats that were ready for adoption, in addition to three dogs on a bite quarantine.
The shelter has the capacity and license for 50 dogs.
On Sunday, Caulder-Brigman said the shelter was beyond packed, but the staff was able to get several adopted or sent to rescues within three days.
“Honestly, every single day is a gamble,” she said. “We will get 15 adopted or sent to a rescue and take in 20 the same day. But we work our butts off to move them.”
While Caulder-Brigman aims to make the shelter as close as possible to a no-kill facility, there are several dogs that have recently been posted that are at risk of being euthanized due to capacity if no adopter or foster can be found.
Screenshot from RCAS Facebook page
From Oct. 1, 2024-Jan. 1 of this year, the shelter took in 78 animals and started the year with 57 dogs and seven cats.
In the first three months, the shelter was able to return 11 to their owners, adopt out 33 and transfer 35 to rescues.
The shelter also had to euthanize eight dogs and four cats in that time period.Caulder-Brigman noted on her personal Facebook page that they were put down for being aggressive.
When Caulder-Brigman started at the shelter, she said there were more than 20 animals being housed on criminal holds — some that had been there more than a year. But after spending weeks with lawyers and the district attorney’s office, she was able to get them all off of hold to go to homes and rescues.
As of March 3, there were no criminal holds.
However, there has been an issue with people illegally dumping unwanted pets at the shelter during non-business hours, as well as on county roadsides.
In a personal post on Jan. 3, Caulder-Brigman vowed to take out warrants “once confirmation is made on any person dumping in this county.”
“There is a process to follow for anyone dumping their animals at the animal shelter,” she said. “Best advice is to call or come during business hours and allow us to assist you and come up with a plan of action.”
A sign posted to the door reads that the shelter is not accepting owner surrenders or public strays because it is a max capacity.
During a Dec. 9 state inspection, the shelter was found to be in compliance, with several discussions on how to improve on concerns noted.
At the end of the report, the inspector noted: “New shelter operator has been in contact with me regularly since licensing to ask questions and ensure compliance since issuing the new license. Housing areas are clean, odor free and well maintained in safe conditions. Animals housed here appear healthy and well cared for, random records reviewed today were easily located and seen in compliance."
For more information, visit the shelter in person, call 910-895-0335 or follow its Facebook page.
