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WARREN -- Volunteers with the Healthy Hearts and Paws Project have spent the summer painting, cleaning and doing other work for the nearly completed 4,200-square-foot addition to its building that will allow for more animals to be sheltered.
Jason Cooke, founder of Healthy Hearts and Paws, said the addition will open to the public Oct. 10.
The addition will house more than 30 dogs and includes a main kennel area to accommodate more dogs and give them more space. Cooke said the addition also includes combination indoor/outdoor kennels so the dogs can exit to outdoor play areas. There is also an indoor play area.
He said when completed, the shelter will be able to house more than 100 dogs. The addition includes a work area and food preparation area for the volunteers who help at the shelter by feeding and taking care of the dogs. There is also a storage area.
"The volunteers have been great in helping in whatever ways they can,'' Cooke said.
He said fundraising events have taken place to raise money for the addition and other needs of the shelter.
Cooke said the dogs will be brought to the new area from the current building for the Oct. 10 opening.
"There has been a lot to get done, but we are on schedule," he said.
He said the addition is needed because the shelter is almost always at capacity because of the number of dogs taken in because of abuse, neglect or abandonment.
"We have been so crowded we had dogs in crates and dogs in bathrooms. This addition will provide the needed space to house the many dogs we have," Cooke said.
He said he originally thought about building an addition for as many as 70 dogs, but decided on 34 dogs, which will give them extra accommodations and make it easier on the volunteers.
The $500,000 project had various contractors, including Kondos Koncrete, Ballard Masonry, AJ Electric and North Park Services.
"To be able to get a building of this size for half a million is good,'' Cooke said.
He said the dog situation has sadly gotten worse with not enough room to house all the stray, abandoned and neglected dogs. Cooke said in August, the shelter peaked with 120 dogs. That number dropped to a little over 100 following adoptions.
Cooke said there is a sponsorship campaign taking place where people can sponsor a suite, a room, or gallon of paint so the project can be completed.
CAT BUILDING
Cooke said there is also a plan to add onto the cat building, which is separate from the dog building.
"Just like with the dogs, there are too many cats out there," Cooke said.
He said he is hopeful the Trumbull County commissioners will be able to get a new dog pound built in 2027.
"That would help us out tremendously," Cooke said.
He said another key to controlling the pet population is to invest in spay and neuter programs. Cooke said there are people who want to get their animals fixed, but can't afford it.
Cheryl Bertolasio Lawson of Newton Falls said she loves to spend time with the dogs at the shelter and help in whatever way she can.
She spent days painting sections of the addition with light brown paint.
"I want to help and that is why I and others spend time here," Lawson said.
She said often the dogs and cats need to be shown love, which they have not known.
Lawson said she has three dogs at her home, two of which came from Healthy Hearts and Paws.