Every year, 6.3 million companion animals are surrendered to a shelter, and 920,000 are euthanized. The Lawrence Humane Society offers multiple opportunities for community members to help save these local animals.

Anabelle DeFord | [email protected]

The shelter relies on volunteers to help with daily tasks and support staff in caring for animals. Whether they are cleaning cages or taking animals on walks, each volunteer is essential to keeping the shelter up and running. Executive Director Shannon Wells found that community engagement greatly strengthens the organization.

“The Lawrence Humane Society really relies on support from the community in a variety of different ways,” Wells said. “When people choose to volunteer and come into the shelter and perform tasks, it expands our bandwidth beyond just our normal staffing.”

Senior Manager of Operations Liz Adams was able to help a lot more animals around the shelter, thanks to more than 900 volunteers in 2024.

“With the amount of volunteers we had, it was six and a half employees, full-time employees,” Adams said. “So having the volunteers here really helps us out to do the things we aren’t able to do.”

One of the most popular alternatives to adopting is the Lawrence Humane Society’s Mass Street Mutt, which allows people in the community to check out a dog for the day. Participants can take the animal home, out on a walk, or for a drive through town. The event continues to help the shelter learn more about their dogs and how they behave outside of the shelter.

“You can check one [dog] out and go do something with it that helps burn off steam, and tells us a little bit more about how the animal does out in the community,” Wells said. 

Volunteering, fostering, sponsoring an animal and donating supplies are crucial to keeping them safe and comfortable. Fostering provides temporary homes for pets awaiting adoption, reducing their time in the shelter and helping them adjust to a home environment. Luckily, Lawrence is not short of local support.

“The good news is that Lawrence is such an animal-loving community,” Wells said. “I feel really blessed to work in this community and to live in this community because over all the community really shows up for the animals.”

While it may be sad to see a favorite animal go, many at Lawrence Humane find the most fulfilling part is seeing animals transition from the shelter to a loving home. 

“I think it is helping the animals, seeing them get adopted, staying in their homes,” Adams said.

Beyond adoption, the shelter also plays a vital role in assisting pet owners who may be struggling.

“When you can say yes to someone who has a strong need that involves their pet, man, just what you get back from that person, it just makes you feel so good,” Wells said. “And it’s something I’m really proud that the shelter can do for the community.”

Whether through adoption, fostering, volunteering or donating, you can play a part in helping Lawrence shelter animals find their forever homes. To learn more about how you can get involved, visit the Lawrence Humane Society’s website.