Doggone it! One look was all it took

Bruce Bisping, Star Tribune

(left to right) Linnea Sorlien, Rose Kessler and Anna Schmid met Dex, a four year old lab mix at the Golden Valley Humane Society. Anna's parents, Mike and Stefanie Schmid of Mpls were looking for a dog to adopt, along with hundreds of others who flocked to the center after last weeks announcement the Humane Society had a huge influx of dogs being dropped off due to the bad economic times.

Hundreds of abandoned dogs find new homes, giving area shelters breathing room after an overcrowding problem brought on by the weak economy.

By CHRIS SERRES, Star Tribune

Last update: September 28, 2009 - 1:49 PM

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For Anna Schmid, 14, the image of institutional buildings packed to the limit with unloved and abandoned dogs living on concrete floors just proved too much to bear.

This weekend, she and hundreds of other dog lovers across the Twin Cities responded to a rare plea for help by the Animal Humane Society in the Twin Cities, which has seen its shelters overrun with dogs left behind by the families who have lost homes and jobs.

A line of about 40 people began forming outside the Humane Society facility in Golden Valley at about 10 a.m. Sunday morning -- an hour before it opened. By early afternoon, people outnumbered pooches available for adoption by at least four to one. And by day's end, the overcrowding crisis was no more. All five area Humane Society shelters were operating at normal capacity.

"I have not lost faith in humanity," said Deb Balzer, a public relations manager for the Animal Humane Society. "People came out like we hoped and the burden has been lifted."

With school and fall sports starting up again, Schmid and her family had not planned on getting a dog until next summer.

But when a floppy-eared Labrador named Dex came bounding across the Humane Society's floor, Schmid and her two dog-loving teenage friends fell to their knees and let out a collective, "Ooooh." The girls liked the way Dex's tongue hung sidewise; how his tail stood straight up when it wagged; and the way he sat patiently instead of jumping all over them.

Excited but not in a hurry, Schmid and her parents decided to put the dog on hold until they talked it over as a family at home Sunday night. "You can see he has a gentle and playful spirit," Schmid said. "No dog this cute should be without a home."

They expected to be back at the shelter today.

This weekend had marked the first time in recent memory that Humane Society officials put out a call for help, and they remained concerned Sunday that overcrowding could occur again as the economy continues to languish. Many families are giving their pets up for adoption or abandoning them after losing their houses to foreclosure. And adoption rates tend to slow in the fall and winter months.

"We have breathing room," Balzer said. "But our work's not done."

Chris Serres • 612-673-4308