Although the men and women that work in animal shelters are passionate about the animals they care for, all they really want is for each cage to be empty.
Nothing is better than getting to see an animal you cared for in the shelter picked by a loving family and taken away to a forever home. This is why shelter staff and volunteers do what they do.
They love the animals they work with and just want to see them happy.
At 6:00 p.m. on a warm day in July, the Fort Worth Animal Shelter in Texas proudly displayed photos of empty cages from wall to wall.
The national event, Clear The Shelters, started in Forth Worth, and it was an incredible success for them this year.
Of all the cats and dogs that were adopted out of the shelter, however, one dog's story really stuck out from the rest.
Staff from the Fort Worth Animal Shelter spoke with LittleThings about this pivotal day and the special dog that deserved this incredibly happy ending.
Scroll down to find out who this special pup is, and let us know what you think of this amazing event in the comments!
The Fort Worth Animal Shelter proudly posted this photo of their empty shelter at the end of a very successful "Clear The Shelters" event.
This year alone, the event boasted over 45,000 adoptions across the nation!
Ms. Jane, a pit bull, was one of the many animals that would be adopted that day. Her story holds a special place in the hearts of the shelter staff.
"In early May, she was picked up by one of our animal control officers," Jacque Lickteig, Marketing Coordinator for Code Compliance, explained to LittleThings. "She was a stray."
"She was extremely shy when she first came into our care," Lickteig explained.
"So much so that our shelter technicians would have to pick her up and carry her anywhere she needed to go.
"Eventually, that level of interaction led to her bonding with them so she wouldn't really pay attention to people that would come to look at her," said Lickteig.
To make matters worse, Ms. Jane's spay surgery didn't go very well, possibly from an allergic reaction to the tattoo that signifies she was fixed. The care and love the staff offered her during recovery just deepened her attachment to them.
"She started to see them as her caretakers," Lickteig told LittleThings.
Eventually, she was adopted, but was promptly returned. The new owner claimed she had an allergic reaction to Ms. Jane and couldn't keep her in the house.
Although staff were happy to see their sweet Ms. Jane again, they knew she deserved to be in a forever home.
Fortunately, the Clear The Shelters event garnered a lot of attention and over 300 cats and dogs were adopted that day!
At last, Ms. Jane was picked up by her new forever family.
They have since sent the shelter staff plenty of photos of Jane settling into her new home!
As for all the other cats and dogs? They're happy to be paired with people that love them!
Incredibly, since the event, the shelter is already past 50 percent capacity. Lickteig says young people could be a driving force behind clearing the shelters in the future.
"Millennials are the largest pet owning population now in the U.S., but they're the least likely to adopt from a shelter," Lickteig explained.
Lickteig has a message for anyone who has ever thought twice about adopting a pet.
"Shelter animals are just as awesome as the ones you pay thousands of dollars for!" Lickteig told LittleThings.
Lickteig and the staff at Fort Worth Animal Shelter will continue to spread this message until their cages are empty again.
Have you ever adopted a shelter animal? Let us know in the comments, and don't forget to SHARE Ms. Jane's story with the dog lovers in your life!
