Danville Area Humane Society addition almost complete

The new no-kill adoption center being added to the Danville Area Humane Society is close to completion and will increase the shelter’s capacity by about 50 percent.

Paulette Dean, the shelter’s executive director, said the project will be done the beginning of March, and the animals housed in this new section will never face the threat of euthanasia.

The E. Stuart James Grant Adoption Center, named after the charitable trust that provided more than half of the money needed for the project, will house between 50 and 60 animals, depending on their size.

There will be 12 dog runs, which can each hold one large dog or two smaller dogs. Cats and kittens will each have a room, where they will be free to roam outside of cages most of the time, and a small animal room for creatures such as birds, rabbits and guinea pigs.

The building also has office space for Dean and the shelter manager, April Hogan, and a new reception area. Two luxuries the existing shelter doesn’t have will also include: a conference room for board meetings and other events and an employee break room with room for a refrigerator, microwave and dining furniture.

One room is being used for storage, but Lynn Shelton, president of the shelter’s board of directors, said he hopes one day it becomes an on-site spay/neuter room.

Another room, which will be have seating and places for animals to play, will be used by prospective adopters to interact with animals before making a decision on which one they would like to adopt.

Yet another room will house the animal-lover retail items the shelter sells, Shelton said.

The overall feel of the space is bright and airy. Primary colors brighten the tiled floors and there is a lot of natural light from many windows.

The rooms all have cute names — cats will live in “Camp Meow Meow,” dogs at “Camp Bow Wow,” the bath and grooming room will be the “Critter Salon,” and the restroom has been dubbed “The Litter Box.” But there will also be plaques honoring the donors who made those rooms possible. Other donors will be recognized with plaques on a “memorial wall,” Dean said.

Dean said the initial estimate for the project was $375,000, but some issues with the quality of the dirt and other surprises are giving the project a final cost of about $425,000.

Some items the shelter still needs include a refrigerator, microwave, office furniture and blinds for the windows.

Once the adoption center is completed, other improvements will be planned, including expanding the number of hours and days the shelter is open, saving up to furnish an on-site spay/neuter clinic and increasing the number of animal placements.

Dean said the shelter has expanded its transfer program, making arrangements for animals to be moved to other shelters that are short on animals ready for adoption. Stepping up that program has helped the shelter place 48 animals in new homes so far this year, either through the transfers or local adoptions.