LANCASTER, S.C. — Like most animal shelters across the country, the Lancaster County Animal Shelter struggles to find homes for all of its animals. In fact, the shelter is continuously over its capacity. Every time spots open, they are immediately filled. Sometimes, even though the animal has been adopted, they are returned because of extenuating circumstances.
An example of that is what happened with a beautiful Lab mix named Luke. It’s one of the saddest stories at the shelter.
Luke came to the shelter in March and was adopted in June by an older gentleman, who absolutely adored him. Unfortunately, his new owner was diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer and had to return this sweet dog to the shelter. So, Luke is now back at the shelter, not understanding why he’s back or what happened to the man who loved him so much.
READ MORE: Adopt or donate to help Clear the Shelters
Clear the Shelters is a month-long campaign to find homes for all the dogs and cats who are waiting in animal shelters across the United States. NBCUniversal Local, a division of NBCUniversal, has teamed up with hundreds of shelters across the country. Starting in 2015, Clear the Shelters has become a nationwide pet adoption and donation campaign, helping to find loving homes for animals in need. More than 860,000 pets have found their forever homes since that first year.
Besides Luke, the Lancaster County Animal Shelter has a number of dogs that have been there for a long time. That list includes Conway, Carolina, and Chowder. They are excellent dogs. They all love people and other dogs. For cat lovers, they have a lot of felines too! You’ll find all ages and sizes.
Last year, Clear the Shelters set a new record nationwide with 161,000 pet adoptions and raised over $540,000. Almost 1,400 shelters and rescues — across every state, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, and Guam — participated in the 2022 initiative.
Mark your calendar for Saturday, Aug. 26, when they “clear the shelter” at the Lancaster County Animal Shelter. Their Clear the Shelter event will feature half-price adoptions, food trucks, snow cones and the chance to learn more about the adoption process.
Lancaster County Animal Shelter is located at 2074 Pageland Highway in Lancaster, South Carolina. Their phone number is 803-286-8103. Check out their website for hours and more details about adopting or donating.