Arizona shelters waive, reduce fees for dog adoptions

October has more to offer than autumn, pumpkin patches and trick-or-treating. It's also national Adopt-a-Shelter-Dog month and Arizona animal shelters are offering reduced rates to help dogs find homes in time for the holidays.

Throughout the month of October, visitors can adopt a dog for $20 at Maricopa County Animal Care and Control. The fee will cover the cost of spaying and neutering the animal, rabies vaccinations (for animals 3 months and older) and a dog license.

Maricopa County Animal Care and Control has approximately 800 dogs to choose from among its three locations in Phoenix, Mesa and Scottsdale, with an additional 100 dogs coming in nearly every day, Gable said.

"Right now we still have a lot of dogs in our shelters and we are trying to find them a home," said Melissa Gable, public information officer for Maricopa County Animal Control. "Generally this time of year we start to see a decrease in the number of animals coming in and we are not seeing that decrease."

The Arizona Humane Society is holding several events celebrating Adopt-a-Shelter-Dog month, their pet boutique's one-year anniversary at Norterra and their 5-year anniversary at the Biltmore Fashion Park location. Events include a Dog Wash-A-Thon Saturday, Oct. 4; an ice-cream social Saturday, Oct. 11; and a Petique Halloween Costume contest Saturday, Oct. 25.

This weekend, all four Arizona Humane Society locations are waiving adoption fees for Chihuahuas and Chihuahua mixes. The event, "Ay Chihuahua," is to help adopt out the surplus of Chihuahuas held at the Arizona Humane Society.

"Right now our adoption floor is nearly half Chihuahuas," said Bretta Nelson, public relations manager for the Arizona Humane Society. "We've waived adoption fees on all Chihuahua/Chihuahua mixes and it includes a free microchip. Courtesy of a very generous donor."