The Henry County Animal Shelter hosted its inaugural Dog Days of Summer Event on July 14 to highlight adoptable dogs, along with other participants from the Martinsville Henry County SPCA and the Franklin County Animal Shelter. The event also hosted many local artists, some of which even donated their proceeds to the county shelter.
“I don’t know if we have had any dogs adopted, but it’s good to get them out of the shelter,” Stephanie Davis, Henry County’s Animal Control officer, said during the event that took place at Jack Dalton Park.
The Dog Days event was designed to help shelter dogs get some much-needed public exposure.
“We’ve had several people come up and show affection to them,” shelter manager Allie Keatts said. Some dogs had also piqued the interest of attendees.
“We had a couple really interested in the dogs we have as well, but we don’t have anything finalized yet,” she said, adding that “one of our partners who is here had one adoption.”
Fees for the vendor spots also went to help the shelter, three vendors chipped in to help the shelter financially and to promote adoptions. The vendors were all local businesses and organizations.
For example, Intercept Health representatives were on hand to shed light on adoption options. Other vendors featured a variety of products – everything from earrings from Okay Cutie Clay to henna art from Siren Temptations. Several food trucks were also set up.
The vendor fees went to directly support the shelter, and many event attendees said the price was “incredibly reasonable.”
Terry Lynn Twig, owner of Brigyn Farm donated a dollar from each lotion bar sale, and a percentage of the total overall sales. Owner of Sandy B’s Cozy Crafts, Sandy Blankenship, entered anyone who adopted a dog at the festival into a drawing, with the winner to receive their choice of a hand-crocheted stuffed animal. Tiny Creations offered an engraved dog tag for anyone who adopted to further promote adoptions for the night.
Before the event, the candles were sold for $5 each, for use during a candlelight vigil for lost and deceased animals. At the end of the night, the candles in paper bags, many featuring the names of lost pets, were arranged along the shelter tables.
Twig has adopted two animals from the shelter: a goat rescued by the shelter and now named “Sweetie,” and Mustard, a dog. Twig said that she had also worked with the shelter to get a stray dog adopted.
“I demanded that he not be put down. I talked with Allie, and she got him adopted. I even got pictures of his new home,” she said.
Many other attendees said that they hadn’t adopted directly from the shelter but lived with rescue animals.
While the event is over, anyone who is looking for a new companion can call the Henry County Animal Shelter at (276) 656-4266, or visit during shelter hours, 12:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday.
