By Carolyn Speed
The Haven for Animals in Fairhope recently celebrated a huge milestone — its 10,000 th pet adoption. The lucky dog is a 3-year-old black Labrador Retriever, named Kaiser, who had been waiting patiently for a forever home. The happy adopter is Lindsay Walker, of Gulf
Shores, who fell in love with Kaiser, after finding him on The Haven’s website.
Lindsay had no idea that she was the 10,000th adopter. When she arrived at the shelter to pick up Kaiser, she was greeted with a big celebration, including the song, “Celebrate”, balloons, cheering by the staff, and a huge box of treats, toys, and food for Kaiser. Kaiser
was excited, too! Kaiser’s adoption was a “curbside pickup” to continue with contactless adoption procedures during COVID-19. The small staff practiced safe social distancing during the adoption and celebration.
Lindsay said she expected the adoption to be a hard process, because of the virus, but the people at The Haven were “so helpful, understanding, and quick to reply”. She recommends that other people adopt now, as it was an easy process and a great experience. How good was it? “I’m thinking of getting a second dog in the future and will definitely use The Haven again.” Excited about the 10,000th adoption, the Haven’s Executive Director, Michael Graham, said, “The Haven continues to have a significant impact on the animals and people of Baldwin County, due to the many programs we provide to the community.
Rehabilitating and rehoming abused and neglected animals like Kaiser is a critical part of our mission to end pet homelessness. We are thrilled to celebrate this exciting milestone, especially during these challenging times. Our life-saving mission has never waivered, as our doors continue to remain open during COVID-19, as we implement new, innovative, and safe ways to keep saving homeless pets.”
Of the area’s support, he said, “These pivotable achievements would not be possible without the dedication and passion of our staff, volunteers, and other stakeholders in the communities that we serve.” The Haven is an adoption guarantee, nonprofit animal shelter, leading Baldwin County in ending the euthanasia of dogs and cats in our animal control shelters. It relies on donations for its wonderful work. You can help, by making a donation to The Haven, P. O. Box 1063, Fairhope, AL 36533, or on the website, www.havenforanimals.org. Every dollar counts!
The Haven has worked on the no-kill movement since 2000. In addition to the shelter, and adoptions, The Haven has many helpful programs, including emergency pet food assistance, veterinary care for their animals, educational programs, and much more. To see pictures of their adoptable animals and to begin the adoption process, please visit the website. For every animal that is adopted, another is saved by The Haven. To become a fan of The Haven, go to Facebook.com/havenforanimals, twitter (@HavenforAnimals), and Instagram (@theHavenForAnimals).