Along with usual yard sale items such as clothes and stuffed animals, shoppers at Wags and Whiskers thrift store on Saturday will be able to browse through fluffy and furry additions to their home.
At the yard sale and adoption event, hosted by New Beginnings Animal Center, several dogs and cats will be up for adoption. Wayne Boyd, the president of New Beginnings, estimated the nonprofit has provided homes for more than 150 dogs since October 2014. New Beginnings owns Wags and Whiskers, but not the building in which it is located.
The yard sale emerged as a way to sell merchandise that cannot normally be sold at the thrift store — such as bigger items that could not fit — while also introducing dogs and cats to potential new owners.
“These dogs need homes,” Boyd said. “Some of these dogs have made mistakes and just need a second chance. They need to be shown their error.”
In addition to the yard sales, which do not follow a particular pattern but are planned as needed, New Beginnings offers free training sessions on Saturdays for anyone who wishes to bring their dog in for training.
“A lot of the reasons that dogs are in shelters or dogs are put down are simple behavior issues that can be fixed with a little bit of effort,” Boyd said.
Boyd said the shelter makes an effort to ensure the dogs find the right home — not just any home. On the animal center’s Facebook page, hopeful adopters can see pictures of the dogs and cats up for adoption. Michelle Summers, the vice president of New Beginnings, said many people follow the Facebook page to get an idea of the dogs that will be present at events.
“It gets the dogs out there, it gets them seen,” Summers said. “People will talk about them and think about them, and might come back later to adopt.”
At the last yard sale adoption event, Summers said •four dogs were adopted — which is more than usual. She said seeing the dogs in person offers a different perspective than just simply looking at their pictures online.
“This way, they’re out in the public and people can come and meet them, and see how pretty they are in person and how nice they are in person,” Summers said. “You can tell people all you want how nice a dog is, but until they meet, it doesn’t click.”
