Spending time at home with family is a hallmark of the holiday season, and time spent alone often feels more lonely when holiday merriment abounds. Chattanooga-area animal shelters have animals awaiting adoption who have been in their care for several months, and in some cases more than a year.
Shelter staff and volunteers shared the stories of their long-term residents with the Times Free Press in the hopes those overlooked animals will find homes for the holidays.
McKamey Animal Center
Of all the shelters contacted, McKamey is home to the animal tht has lived in a local shelter the longest. Virgil, a 3-year-old mixed-breed dog, has been at McKamey since August 2021.
Virgil was adopted but returned, through no fault of his own, twice in the past year, Director of Advancement Lauren Mann said in an email.
According to his bio on the McKamey website, Virgil wants to be snuggled more than anything else and he's always happy to meet new people and make new friends.
Polite to every person he meets and respectful of property, he loves going on big adventures and then curling up for naps. He's full of energy and enjoys running and playing with other dogs, but can be too much for some other dogs who may have lower energy levels and would do best in an active home, his bio says.
Virgil seems to be housetrained and is expected to be good with most kids, Mann said.
"He has so much love to give," she said. "Last time I personally interacted with him, he gave me so many kisses and was so happy to be out of his kennel!"
Other long-term residents include nine mice who came to the shelter from LollyPop Farms, which asked McKamey to take in about a dozen rats and mice among 800 rodents seized from a facility in upstate New York.
The day after they arrived in Chattanooga, two of the female mice gave birth to a total of 16 babies. All the females were adopted, but nine male mice -- Jar Jar, Olaijah Grififn, Octavius, Provolone, Pepper Jack, Muenster, Manchego, Cheddar and Monterey Jack -- are still waiting for homes, Mann said.
"Mice make wonderful pets and are much more low-maintenance than a dog or cat would be," she said. "They often are great 'starter' pets for kids and families, too."
Tennessee Humane Animal League Pet Placement Center
An orange tabby cat named Pumpernickel has been connected to the Pet Placement Center, a no-kill shelter in Red Bank, for six years. She was originally adopted from the shelter as a kitten in 2016 but was returned to the Pet Placement Center this past July when her owner became homeless.
She was brought to the shelter as a newborn kitten with three of her littermates -- Baguette, Rye and Sourdough. A man was driving down a road in Hixson when someone stepped out of a truck stopped ahead of him and set a box of kittens down on the side of the road, volunteer and part-time administrator George Bartnik said in a phone interview.
One couple who adopted another kitten from the litter occasionally calls the shelter to check on Pumpernickel, but their situation prevents them from taking in another cat, he said.
Like black dogs, tabby cats tend to stay in shelters longer because they are so common, Bartnik said.
"She's incredibly shy and she pretty much stays to herself," he said of Pumpernickel, who he describes as "extremely sweet."
Pumpernickel is kept in a community room with many other free-roaming cats at the shelter, and she spends most of her day in a cave-like cat bed due to her shy nature but is responsive to petting.
"She would probably do well by herself or with one or two other cats that wouldn't pick on her, in a home where there'd be a lot of love put on her," Bartnik said.
Dune is a Labrador retriever/German shepherd mix who has been at the shelter since March. He came from an apartment he shared with three Chihuahuas and a 9-year-old, and he was surrendered by his family due to a lack of space, Bartnik said.
The 1 1/2-year-old has spent most of his life growing up in a shelter. At 55 pounds, he's a large dog, which is likely one of the reasons he has yet to find a forever home.
"He's probably the smartest dog we have here," Barnick said. "He's very well-trained and super active and he would make a great adventure buddy."
Humane Educational Society
Arizona, a 5-year-old boxer/terrier mix, originally came to the Humane Society in February 2021. She was adopted into a home for a couple of months, but her family surrendered her when they moved and couldn't keep her.
A professional trainer who evaluated Arizona when she came into the shelter described her as "brilliant," but shelter life can be hard for energetic and intelligent dogs like Arizona, Animal Enrichment Director Chasity Garrett said in an email.
The shelter's training team has been working with her on impulse control and basic obedience, and she knows how to shake hands and follow several other commands. She's been doing some disc work as well, and the trainer who evaluated her said she would make a great performance dog, doing activities such as disc work, agility or dock diving.
Because Arizona is so active, members of the training team feel she would do best in a home without young children, and she definitely isn't a fan of cats, Garrett said.
"Arizona has a very bossy, energetic and vocal play style, so she can be a bit much for some other dogs," Garrett said, adding that she seems to get along best with male dogs. "If an adopter has another dog at home, we'll do a meet-and-greet to make sure the dogs are well-matched."
Arizona loves the water and going swimming. She is crate-trained and housebroken, although it might take her a few days to settle into a new home without accidents.
Arizona is very loving and loyal to the people who take an interest in her, and she loves doing what will make them happy, Garrett said.
To make sure Arizona is set up for success in her new home, Garrett said several training classes will be provided for her adopter at no cost to them.
Hercules is a 4-year-old cream and white husky/Labrador retriever mix who's been in a foster home for about a year. Although she doesn't know his backstory, shelter volunteer Laura Smith said that whatever happened to Hercules made him very fearful of people.
"His foster has worked wonders with him to gain his trust and show him that the world isn't such a scary place," Smith said. "He's warming up to me where I can now pet him, though he still shies away and jumps a little."
He's showing more of his personality every day, and Smith describes him as the best foster houseguest she's ever had.
"He's quiet and just wants to hang out in his own space or beside you on the couch," Smith said. "He's super easy to walk and enjoys exploring my yard with me, making him a great walking buddy for quiet, uncrowded places."
While Hercules seems indifferent to Smith's other dogs, he has no issues being around them and she thinks he'll become more playful with time, as he has with the other dogs in his foster home.
"He needs patience and a quiet home and someone who will give him time to come out of his shell and not push him faster than he's ready," Smith said, adding that he needs a home without cats or small or really energetic dogs that might overwhelm him.
An ideal situation for Hercules would be an adult-only, preferably female-only home that doesn't get a ton of visitors, because he still finds the world pretty scary, Smith said.
"He's an absolutely great dog and is going to make someone so happy," she said. "He deserves to be happy, too, with someone who understands him and will prove that there are good people in the world."
[READ MORE: Beagles rescued from Virginia breeding facility join Chattanooga families]
East Ridge Animal Shelter
East Ridge Animal Shelter, a no-kill shelter serving the small city of East Ridge, has two dogs who have lived at the shelter much longer than their peers.
Nelson, a beagle mix who came into the shelter as a stray in October 2021, has lived in the shelter for more than a year and two months. He has a few issues that have led to him being at the shelter for far longer than the average dog, East Ridge Animal Services officer Caroline Smith said.
Nelson has a heart murmur that prevents him from being neutered, so he needs to be adopted into a household where he is the only dog. He is estimated to be around 8-10 years old, and older dogs tend to have a harder time finding homes, she said.
Roxy is another older dog who's been waiting a long time -- about eight months -- to be adopted. The black retriever/hound mix is estimated to be between 9 and 10 years old, but she's very spunky for her age, Smith said.
Since black is the most common dog color, black dogs don't attract as much attention and are more likely to remain in shelters longer than others, Smith said. At 45 pounds, Roxy is fairly large -- and large dogs are also more likely to wait longer than other dogs to be adopted, she said.
"She's super sweet," Smith said of Roxy, who was surrendered by her family when they had a baby. "She's a really great dog."
Walker County Animal Shelter
Akira is another black dog who has been overlooked by potential adopters.
A stray found wandering in the parking lot of a Dollar General, Akira has been at the shelter since early August.
"She is an excellent dog, but unfortunately has not had any interest thus far," said Emily Sadler with the Walker County Animal Shelter by email. "We are working diligently to find her a new family!"
Contact Emily Crisman at ecrisman@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6508. Follow her on Twitter @emcrisman.