Thanks to a grant from the ASPCA Northern Tier Shelter Initiative, Milwaukee Area Domestic Animal Control Commission (MADACC) is announcing that they are now able to expand their in-house adoption program to include a wider variety of animals. In addition to the cats and pit bull type dogs that are already offered for adoption, MADACC will be also be able to offer many other breeds of dogs that come in for adoption.

This new program is called “Pre-Selection” adoption, allowing animals on stray hold to now be offered for adoption. If the animal remains unclaimed after its stray hold, it will then be sterilized and sent home with a new family on the day the animal becomes MADACC’s property.

Currently, MADACC has a limited adoption program (“kitties and pitties”) and a robust transfer program, where the dogs that have not been reclaimed are taken to shelters all over the state for adoption. Due to the high demand for dogs in Milwaukee County and the surrounding communities, MADACC has decided to keep these unclaimed stray dogs in our community and adopt them back to people who are looking to expand their family by a furry friend.

“We saw a trend where so many retail rescues were popping up to supply people with new dogs right here in Milwaukee, yet we found ourselves sending perfectly adoptable animals to other communities. It no longer made sense,” said Karen Sparapani, MADACC Executive Director, “MADACC has been evolving in order to better meet the needs of our community and it is time for us as an organization to be able to provide these animals directly to adopters from our facility instead of sending them to other organizations. Thanks to the ASPCA Northern Tier Shelter Initiative, we were able to hire the staff necessary to operate a full adoption program right out of our building.”

Potential adopters will be able to go to the MADACC website and look through the stray animals for animals that may be available. Animals offered for pre-selection will be identified and those interested in adopting them will be able to come in and meet them while they are still on stray hold. If they are a good match, they will be able to pick up the animal once the stray hold has been completed and the animal has been fully vetted. MADACC will not offer animals for pre-selection that have identified owners, or animals that are best adopted out in a non-traditional shelter environment. Animals that have not been pre-selected during their stray hold will continue to be transferred to other organizations for adoption to keep animals moving quickly through the shelter system.

Adoption fees for dogs will range from $50 - $300 and for cats $25 - $150. Fees will be determined individually to move animals as quickly into new homes as possible. Milwaukee County residents will be required to obtain a $12 license at the time of adoption. Finders of stray animals will still have the first option to adopt an animal that they have found and brought into MADACC to complete the stray hold.

“We think this program is so meaningful and happening at the right time,” Kathy Shillinglaw, Community Outreach Director offered. “Our organization has been changing to meet the public expectations and to become a leader in animal control practices over the past few years. Most important of all, we have embraced progressive practices that increase live shelter outcomes. This expanded adoption program will not only get animals into wonderful homes, but also increase the awareness of our services, support programs and outreach to help both the animals and residents of Milwaukee County. It is a very important step in our progress toward a humane community we can all be proud of.”

All adoptions will be done in person at the MADACC facility at 3839 West Burnham Street in West Milwaukee. Those who see an animal they are interested in, or are ready to adopt an animal should stop in to MADACC weekdays 1 PM – 7 PM or weekends 11 AM – 4 PM. More information can be found on the MADACC website www.madacc.org.