Keshawn Allen
Many dogs in Carroll County are either homeless or stuck living in the shelter, having to live amongst other dogs who haven’t been adopted. With many different attempts to get dogs adopted, the Carroll County Animal Shelter has discovered a way to help the dogs get adopted much quicker. They founded the Come-Over-Rover program. This program promotes and influences dog adoption by allowing volunteers to take a dog from the shelter and take it out for a day to inform locals about the number of dogs that need to be adopted.
The way that Come-Over-Rover works is that volunteers, who are typically residents of Carroll County, come to the shelter and inform the staff that they would like to participate. Then they are allowed to take a dog that is over four months old and take care of them until the shelter closes.
What the volunteers will do during the day is bring the dogs around people they know, such as friends and relatives, allowing the dogs to get a new environment they are not used to. Volunteers will also inform those around them about the Come-Over-Rover program and how they help raise awareness for the dogs that are in need of a new home. After the day has been done, the volunteers will bring the dog back to the Carroll County Animal Shelter, where they will be taken care of until the dogs get adopted.
“It’s mostly for socializing the dogs, learning more about the dogs,” says Administrative Assistant Shelby Duren. “Here they’re in their cages all the time. They do get walked around, but they’re not exposed to different things like children’s loud noises. So, that really kind of helps them adjust to things.”
By partaking in this, volunteers help the employees at the animal shelter better work with the animals to prepare them to get adopted by families by giving them feedback on what they observed with the dogs.
This event was first initiated in the fall of 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic affected the world negatively, causing everyone to be afraid to leave their homes. This program provides a much simpler way for residents in Carroll County to find the right dog for them. Instead of going to a shelter where there would be tons of people trying to get the same dog, residents could get a one-on-one experience with the dog to figure out if that dog is for them. Since the pandemic, this program has allowed many dogs to be adopted.
Another thing that makes this event special is that the Come-Over-Rover program is an everyday event. Instead of relying on a specific day of the week or weekend, anyone who wants to become a volunteer can come any day the shelter is open and take care of a dog for a day. Currently, there are about 60 to 70 dogs in the shelter that are still in need of a permanent home. More information can be found on their webpage at www.carrollcountyga.com.