COLUMBUS (WCMH) — On Sunday, 65 dogs found new families through the annual celebrity adopt-a-thon at the Franklin County Dog Shelter.
Several NBC4 personalities were there to help encourage the adoption drive.
Billie Hawthorne said her family adopted a pit bull mix named Gemma from the Franklin County shelter six months ago. They love her so much, they came back Sunday to get another dog to bring home.
“You give a dog a second chance and we couldn’t have done better with her,” Hawthorne said. “She’s very loyal, she’s so sweet. She loves babies, she loves other dogs, she greets us when we come home, she’s the best dog I’ve ever had.
“And we know that the next one we get is going to be great too, she’s perfect!”
The Hawthornes picked a 4-year-old pit bull mix named Stella to be Gemma’s new best friend. “They loved each other, they did real good together,” added Dillon Hawthorne. “We’re going to bring her home today.”
Laura Dixon, a deputy dog warden, sees firsthand how many dogs are taken off the streets and brought here to the shelter — sometimes up to one hundred dogs in a week.
“We see a lot of dogs that come from situations that probably aren’t ideal, and then we see these people here adopting dogs to great homes are great people and we know the dogs going to be loved and happy so it’s a really great feeling,” Dixon.
If you weren’t able to make it out on Sunday, there are still dozens of dogs waiting for their forever home at the shelter. Click here to see which dogs are available.