ROANOKE, Va. – With the year coming to an end, it’s time for everyone to gather around and enjoy some holiday cheer.
However, hundreds of shelter animals sadly don’t have that family to snuggle up with, which is why Angels of Assisi held their Mega Adoption event at the Berglund Center.
It’s the seventh year that people have filed into the venue for Angels of Assisi’s mega adoption event.
11 different adoption centers joined forces at the Berglund Center, with the goal of getting animals adopted.
“We’re all here for the same reason so if we can be under one roof and kind of celebrate the love for the animals in our care and also celebrate when they go home,” Angels of Assisi Director Lisa O’Niell said.
There was a wide array of animals looking for their forever home - dogs, cats, rabbits, guinea pigs and even ponies.
Stephanie Key of Roanoke Valley Horse Rescue explained the process of getting their horses and ponies ready for adoption.
“They come in through either neglect or abuse. We get them, we retrain them to trust people again,” Key said. “We fatten them up, we get them healthy and we adopt them if we can.”
Those up for adoption had already been microchipped, spayed and/or neutered, and have all their vaccinations.
Staff were on hand to help with adoptions to make sure as many pets as possible could find their forever homes.
“The shelters tend to fill up and a lot of people are home on vacation,” Anita Finkle of Regional Center for Animal Care and Protection said. “So it’s a good time to get a pet into a home and get them adjusted before they have to go back to work so you can spend a little bit more time with them.”