Kauaʻi Humane Society out of kennel space

The Kauaʻi Humane Society in Līhuʻe is in a capacity crisis with all 58 kennels in the facility filled, most with two to three dogs.

It is urging the community to adopt and foster shelter dogs.

The capacity crisis is despite staff and volunteers working all year to keep kennels open for sick and injured animals by transferring about 500 animals off island, returning more than 350 animals to their families, and adopting out more than 1,000 pets.

There are about 20 dogs currently in foster care.

Executive Director Nicole Schafer Crane said shelters nationwide also are facing capacity crises. 

“The nation has been seeing animals, especially dogs, residing in shelters longer,” Crane said. “The Kauaʻi Humane Society is also seeing longer lengths of stay as adoptions are less than last year and our shelter partners on the continent are remaining full, so they are unable to take in our animals and help them find homes outside of Kauaʻi.”

Crane said animals continue to come into the shelter faster than the society can find animals new homes.

Interested adopters can view available pets and apply for adoption at https://kauaihumane.org/adopting/dogs-available/. All animals who have been in the shelter for more than 100 days are free to adopt.

Otherwise, adoption fees range from $25 to $150. The Kauaʻi Humane Society can offer zoom meet-and-greets for off-island adoptions which are $300 to neighboring islands or the West Coast, or $500 past the West Coast. 

If community members are able to house a shelter pet temporarily, the Kauaiʻ Humane Society will offer all supplies needed, and help match the foster volunteer with an animal who will be best suited for them.

There is no time commitment to fostering. Ideally, a pet can stay in foster care until he or she gets adopted, or a minimum of two weeks. For those interested in fostering, please text or call 808-631-2844 or email [email protected]. More information can be found at https://kauaihumane.org/volunteer/foster/.

If you find a stray animal, please hold onto it. Walk the dog around the area in which it was found and ask if anyone recognizes it. Most dogs are found within two miles of their homes.

Post the animal on social media, specifically these Facebook Groups: Kauai Lost and Found, Kauai Community, Kauai Pets, Lost N Found, Rehoming, Foster, Kauai Live, Kauai Craigslist. Nextdoor and Craiglist. 

If you bring a stray animal into the shelter, we will scan it for a microchip to see if there is a phone number we can call for the owner. We will ask if you can hold onto the animal and help us find the owner, and we will offer you all the supplies you will need. Fostering the animal is ideal. The more overcrowded the shelter is, the higher the risk there is for disease spread.

The Kauaʻi Humane Society offers low-cost spay and neuters every week. Appointments and an application to reduce the fee to only $25 for qualified applicants can be found at https://kauaihumane.org/service/veterinary-services/. Spaying and neutering your pets is a vital step in solving the problem of overpopulation and keeping animals out of the shelter. 

“A puppy and kitten can be safely spayed or neutered by the time they are two months old,” Crane said. “It curbs undesirable behavior, improves their health, and keeps unwanted litters out of the shelter.”

If you need to surrender your animal, please email [email protected] and see if we can help you first. We can offer certificates of care for landlords, low-cost veterinary care, pet supplies, kennels, leashes and pet food to those needing assistance. We will try our best to help you keep your pet with your family.

You can donate to the year-end fundraiser at https://bit.ly/KHSyearend to help the shelter continue to care for these animals, find them homes and help the community keep their pets. 

The Kauaʻi Humane Society is located at 3-825 Kaumualii Highway in Līhuʻe.