Local animal shelters tell KSBY they are seeing fewer lost pets this year than is usual after the Fourth of July holiday weekend.
San Luis Obispo County Animal Services said this is usually a busy time for the shelter but with more people at home with their pets this year, they've received fewer animals.
The shelter still saw an uptick in pets by Monday but it wasn't as high as in years past.
"So far today it looks like we have a relatively low intake number coming in," said Animal Services Manager Eric Anderson. "Most years it tends to carry out a little further past the holiday."
The shelter can house about 50 dogs and is usually at about 90 percent capacity at this time of the year.
The shelter said intake numbers have been low during the pandemic but they have seen a spike in adoptions.
Santa Barbara County Animal Services also saw fewer lost pets after the holiday.
Here's a breakdown of intake numbers this year between July 3 and July 6 at three shelters in Santa Barbara County compared to intake numbers from that same time last year.
Santa Maria 2020
- Dogs - 13
- Cats - 4
Santa Maria 2019
- Dogs - 15
- Cats - 9
Lompoc 2020
- Dogs - 9
- Cats - 0
Lompoc 2019
- Dogs - 11
- Cats - 3
Santa Barbara 2020
- Dogs - 6
- Cats - 0
Santa Barbara 2019
- Dogs - 18
- Cats - 12
