Hartford Animal Control is at the breaking point. The shelter has a capacity of 24 dogs. Two more were picked up in eight minutes last week. The officer who has worked there for over 25 years says it is worse than ever — adoptions are at an all-time low, and dogs are being abandoned daily in parks and cemeteries by owners trying to avoid cruelty charges.

If something does not change, the shelter will have no choice but to start euthanizing healthy, adoptable dogs.

This is not just a Hartford problem. Two years ago, Connecticut shelters across the state faced the same crisis. Individual adoptions help — but they are not enough to fix a broken system. Shelters are full, staff are overwhelmed, and there is no statewide safety net to catch the overflow when a local shelter runs out of space and options.

Connecticut needs to step up. Emergency funding for animal shelters — to expand capacity, support staffing, and coordinate across municipalities — is not a luxury. It is the difference between life and death for dogs that did nothing wrong except end up with the wrong owners.

We're calling on Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont and state lawmakers to provide emergency funding to overwhelmed animal shelters across the state before more healthy dogs are euthanized.

Photo: Hartford Animal Control