Lions, tigers and beagles? Zoo to host pet adoption event

Brookfield Zoo hosts an animal adoption extravaganza this weekend but don't expect to head home with an aardvark or zebra in tow.

Instead, up to 30 local animal rescue organizations will make it rain cats and dogs Saturday and Sunday at the event, which is co-sponsored by PETCO.

Among the hopeful adoptees will be two dogs Carol McGowan is fostering. The general manager at PETCO Naperville is caring for a beagle and a treeing walker coonhound taken from a Crawford County facility, which had too many animals to handle.

"All the dogs pulled out of the shelter were a little thin. They didn't know what treats were or what walking on a leash was," McGowan said.

"But with lots of TLC, my two are doing fine and I hope to find homes for them this weekend."

According to the Humane Society of the United States, 4 million cats and dogs are euthanized at shelters every year.

"We're asking people to give these animals a second chance," McGowan said.

The high rate of euthanized animals is partly due to the lagging economy, animal lovers say. "For people who have lost homes and jobs, the first thing they relinquish is their pets," McGowan said.

The second contributing factor is pet owners who don't neuter their animals. "Shelters are so full they can't sustain this type of crowding," she noted.

In addition to animal shelters and branches of the Humane Society, the adoption event will include rescue organizations specializing in breeds including greyhounds, mastiffs, shepherds, basset hounds and pit bulls.

Animals will be up-to-date on vaccinations and the majority will be spade and neutered.

The event will feature dog trainers and groomers to offer advice for prospective "parents." Each organization will conduct their own screening and charge individual fees for adoption.

People seeking to adopt are advised to bring cash and any necessary identification. New pet owners will be invited to join PETCO's Think Adoption First program, which includes discounts and educational materials.

"We want to make sure we get the proper fit," McGowan said. "Some of these animals have been relinquished once or twice so we really want them to have the proper pet parent."

Brookfield Vice President of Marketing and Communications Anna Clarke said the zoo backed the event because it's committed to animal welfare across the board.

"This partnership with PETCO and local animal rescue organizations demonstrates the connection we feel to the entire animal community in fostering the care and protection of all species," Clarke said.

McGowan is a living advertisement for pet adoption. In addition to the two dogs she's fostering, she's adopted a rescued beagle and a blind Pekingese. "Someone had to love her," she said.

The event runs from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 2 and 3, at the zoo, 3300 Golf Road, Brookfield.

"People should come with open hearts and pocketbooks," McGowan said. "Our goal is to have 500 animals adopted this weekend."