Northwest Indiana shelter desperate for help after dogs tied up, abandoned

MUNSTER, Ind. — A Northwest Indiana shelter is desperate for help after dogs have been recently tied up and abandoned amid an already challenging year.

Humane Indiana, which operates an adoption center and clinic in Munster’s 400 block of 45th Street, has hard a hard time keeping up with intakes and the adoption rate continues to fall.

“I have been working in animal welfare for 11 years and this has been the most challenging year of my career,” said senior director of operations Jessica Petalas. “We are out of ideas and have worked so hard to create additional programs to help, but feel like it’s not evening making a dent.”

In addition to a tough summer, shelter employees are dealing with a tough holiday season.

Recently, multiple dogs were left tied up on their property. It includes “Lucky,” who was found emaciated and freezing on their gazebo.

She almost didn’t make it, hence her name.

Like many other dogs abandoned locally and all over the country, Lucky is having an initial tough time adjusting.

“She won’t let us touch her,” Petalas said. “Anytime an animal goes through an abandonment, it triggers a PTSD response in them. They definitely experience emotions the way humans do.”

That’s where dedicated foster parents come in. The hope is Lucky and other dogs like her will reacclimate to humans by the fosters just letting them be.

Humane Indiana takes care of all costs for fosters.

“Fostering for us is nice because it’s free — you just supply the couch,” Petalas said. “Even if you’re working and they would be in a crate, it’s better to be alone in the house than here.”

That’s because they just don’t have the space due to the aforementioned adoption challenges shelters are facing.

Even though their save rate is 97 to 98 percent, the strain on the shelter and shelters like it threaten the lives of dogs who have been dumped and are having a hard time readjusting.

If you want to foster a challenged dog, Humane Indiana said the best advice is to “pretend they’re a living room ornament” and leave them alone.

“When they want to come up to you to solicit attention they will, but when you push them too hard they won’t,” Petalas said. “Once they are okay with that, then we work on petting, cuddling and playing.”

Anyone who wants to test out a foster or an adoption, Humane Indiana is hosting their “Fa la la la Foster” event Sunday through Jan. 2.

People are asked to have a two-week “slumber party” and to fill out information for the staff for them to better know the animals.

Fees are also being waived for dogs and cats through Saturday. After the promotion, the adoption fee for dogs is $50 and cats is $40. That covers the cost of vaccines, according to the shelter.

To learn more on how to adopt and foster, visit humaneindiana.org.