NBC and Telemundo Connecticut are proud to celebrate the 10th annual Clear the Shelters campaign, which helps find loving homes for pets.
On Saturday, our team was at participating shelters around the state, including the Connecticut Humane Society in Newington, as they held their annual Adoption Day.
CHS staff says across all three facilities, nearly 60 animals were in need of homes, including about 30 at the Newington location.
And there were a variety of pets up for adoption.
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"Dogs and cats, that's what most people think of. We have a chinchilla at one of our facilities, we have a hamster at one of our facilities," said executive director James Bias.
Bias says Clear the Shelters has made huge difference nationwide.
"For over a decade, we've had NBC and Telemundo partner with shelters across the country. Over a million animals have been placed in homes as a result of this Clear the Shelters program," said Bias.
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He encourages those interested in becoming pet owners to turn to shelters first.
"We're hearing stories every week now of shelters being at maximum capacity, and we need adopters to really consider shelters their first option for adoption."
People got in line early on Adoption Day in Newington to make a pet part of their family.
One couple was there adopting an older cat. There were also several kittens and puppies up for adoption as well, including a mixed breed named Zen.
Staff at the Connecticut Humane Society says his personality lives up to his name, but he's an energetic pup as well. He's expected to be anywhere between 40 to 50 pounds when fully grown.
"We've been looking for a dog, and so we've seen him on the website, which is actually really nice. And then they brought us, and they told us all about him," said Haley Langevin, of East Windsor.
The Langevin family says they can't wait to call him their own.
"This was just a really fun experience. They make it really nice and very easy, but also very informative, so i'm glad that we stopped here today," said Langevin.
