Making A Difference: Become A Foster Family For Animals

The Animal Shelter of Northeast Nebraska in Norfolk is currently under construction and is looking for area families, including those in Antelope County to adopt and foster animals until the building is complete. 

According to Sydney Hurley, Executive Director of the animal shelter, "We've been in existence since 1995 doing foster care and we recently purchased a building and are trying to raise funds to actually be able to put this animals in a building. Every day we have to turn down calls, because we just simply don't have a place to put them. "

Hurley says they are currently 100 percent run through foster care. "Right now, we service this community quite a bit and so I wanted to raise awareness about the services that we currently offer and the services we will offer once the building is open."

"I really just wanted to tell everyone about us and what we're about and everything that we do," Hurley stated.

Becky Williams, the Intake Coordinator for Neligh spoke about her duties and her love of animals. 

"I'll take in animals that have been surrendered and match them up with a foster family that would be able to take them in until they are adopted. Sometimes we do foster to adopts, where someone will see the animal and think they want to adopt it and they can foster it and make sure it work and then they can actually adopt it."

Williams explained the foster program, how to apply and the benefits of fostering.

"When you go into the foster system, they expose them to cats, dogs, kids. They take them to parks . . . they work on potty training. When you foster them it makes you feel like you're helping and you really are."

Since the animal shelter takes care of all the supplies, the animal you adopt will be spayed or neutered, have updated shots and will be vet checked and healthy.

Williams spoke of the dog she adopted from the animal shelter that helps her with stress, "He's my buddy . . . I couldn't imagine life without out him."