Staff members from the Wood County Humane Society recently partnered with volunteers from another animal
rescue in Kentucky to transfer a dozen dogs from a high intake, high kill shelter.
On March 20, the WCHS participated in an effort coordinated by The Way Home Rescue Alliance (TWHRA) to
save the group of 12 dogs from the Estill County Dog Shelter. Based in rural Ravenna, Ky., the Estill
County Dog Shelter is a high intake shelter where animals can be euthanized simply due to overcrowding.
The Way Home Rescue Alliance is a non-profit organization based in Lexington, Ky., and dedicated to
rescuing animals from high intake, high kill shelters in rural Kentucky that would otherwise be
euthanized, according to the organization’s website.
The organization regularly partners with regional, northeastern, and Canadian rescue groups in order to
save more "death row" animals than what it could accommodate through its own adoption program.

WCHS Shelter Manager Erin McKibben, who partners with TWHRA approximately two to three times per year,
admitted that "most of the hard work (setting up the transport) is done by TWHRA volunteers
themselves; I just pick a day that I can drive to Lima to get them that works with their transporting
schedule."
A typical rescue of this sort begins with a call/e-mail for assistance from one of the WCHS’s partners.
In the case of the "Kentucky Dozen," as McKibben and her staffers are affectionately calling
the latest group of rescued dogs, McKibben received an e-mail earlier this month asking her to take in
four dogs. At the time, McKibben recalls, the WCHS had exactly four open kennels, so she agreed to
assist. The next day, McKibben was asked if she also could take in a litter of four puppies and one
additional adult dog, bringing the total of rescued dogs to nine. McKibben agreed. On March 20, the
intake number changed once again-to a total of 12-due to a few last-minute adoptions and substitutions.

Currently, all 12 rescued dogs are being housed at the Wood County Humane Society, Van Camp Road, Bowling
Green. McKibben said that accommodations at the shelter are tight, but that she and staffers somehow are
making it work.
"Some of our dogs that get along are ‘double bunked,’" said McKibben. "We put a couple of
small dogs in wire crates on the floor, and one dog went into foster with a staff member to make
room."
When the dogs came into the shelter, most were in need of some form of care, although all seemed to be in
relatively good overall health and all demonstrated good temperaments. A few of the dogs had ticks and,
according to McKibben, animals rescued from Estill tend to suffer temporarily from intestinal parasites
and fleas. One of the dogs from the most recent rescue is underweight and needs to gain between 10 and
15 pounds. Another is heartworm positive so the WCHS will need donations and a foster home to assist in
her treatment and recovery.
Although all of the dogs appear to be in good health, they will remain on strict quarantine for 10 days.
Because Estill is a high intake facility, the risk for disease and illness among its resident animals is
much greater than in other shelters. McKibben noted that two of the WCHS’s most recent pulls from the
Estill shelter resulted in an outbreak of kennel cough among canine residents, even though WCHS
vaccinates all dogs for kennel cough.
The Wood County Humane Society is a full-service, no-kill shelter providing care for homeless and abused
pets and investigating cruelty complaints in Wood County. In addition, the organization assists Wood
County residents with its Safe Haven and food assistance programs, spay/neuter transport, and
educational presentations. The WCHS provides care for hundreds of animals each year-from dogs and cats,
to horses, goats, and pocket pets.
For information on adopting and/or volunteering, visit the WCHS’s website at: http://www.woodcountyhumanesociety.org/.