HANOVER COUNTY, Va. -- More than 150 people lined up outside the Hanover County Animal Shelter Wednesday morning in hopes of adopting one of the 66 rescued dogs.
Shelter officials said they never expected this many people would show up. The Hanover Sheriff's Office brought out extra deputies to manage traffic and the crowds.
Families from all over the Richmond region showed up to adopt a dog when the doors opened at 10 a.m.
"We've been sitting here since 4:45 a.m. I think," said one person waiting in line.
"We came here around 6:25 a.m.," Stephanie Diaz said.
Kim Curry and her family showed up at 10:30 Tuesday night.
"Every dog should have a home and every home should have a dog," Curry said.
The 68 dogs were rescued from a Hanover home back in May after police found them in unhealthy living conditions.
Their owner was convicted of animal cruelty. When she never appealed her case, the county took control of the dogs and the adoption process was announced.
The Hanover shelter only had 73 dogs in total, so officials said they'd have to turn away families once they adopted away all the dogs.
Officials hope excitement over Hanover dogs up adoption will help shelters in need
Richmond Animal League Executive Director Amy McCracken said she hoped the Hanover adoptions helped to highlight the need for all shelters.
"Shelters are always full and crowded, and we need adopters every single day," she said.
At Richmond Animal Care and Control, there are currently 60 dogs and 25 cats up for adoption.
The Richmond SPCA has a total of 186 animals available.
The Chesterfield County Animal Shelter has 90 dogs and 70 cats for adoption.
"We deal with a lot of dogs running loose, so when we pick them up that challenges the shelter with having a large number of animals," said Steven Ayers with Chesterfield County Animal Control.
