Allegany County Animal Shelter Holds Fashion Show at FSU to Raise Money

The Allegany County Animal Shelter (ACAS) became the first No Kill Shelter in the state of Maryland only four years ago. ACAS’s kill rate was once 85 percent of animals. It now saves 95 percent of animals. With an overwhelming amount of animals to take care of, costs run high and finding enough volunteers can be difficult. The shelter is heavily involved in the community in hopes that people will want to be more involved through volunteering, donating money, and donating supplies. In the past year, the shelter busted a puppy mill and saved 33 dogs, known as the Lucky 33. The suffering some of the animals have gone through is unimaginable, which is why Greek Life wanted to get involved.

On September 8, the animal shelter hosted a fall fashion show at Frostburg State, with help from Alpha Sigma Alpha, Alpha Sigma Tau, and Delta Zeta. The fashion show included clothing from the Barkin’ Basement, which is a thrift store in Downtown Cumberland that raises money for the animal shelter while being ran entirely by volunteers. Becky McClarren, the president of the ACAS Foundation; Tina Rafferty, the executive director of the ACAS Foundation; and Amy Armiento, an ACAS Foundation board member, hosted the event on behalf of the animal shelter. The fashion show was free, but donations were accepted and items from the Barkin’ Basement were sold. The following day, the Barkin’ Basement set up a pop shop in the Gira building with volunteers from Alpha Sigma Alpha, Alpha Sigma Tau, and Delta Zeta assisting Ms. McClarren. The fashion show is going to happen every semester to continue to raise much-needed funds to keep up with the growing amount of animals arriving at the shelter.

The shelter is looking for more Frostburg students to get involved and volunteer at the animal shelter and Barkin’ Basement. The shelter has recently received grants to add a veterinary clinic, a dog playground, and a cat porch. With all these changes coming, it is a critical time for volunteers to get involved. Volunteers are needed for events like the fashion show to continue each semester, and also for day-to-day shelter tasks. Each day the shelter walks dogs, launders blankets for the animals, cleans the cages, and more. With so many animals, it is not an easy task to care of. Aside from volunteering, the shelter is always looking for loving homes to foster or adopt pets. On October 17, the animal shelter will host the third annual Barktoberfest, which has activities for people of all ages, and includes an animal adopt-a-thon. All animals adopted at this event will have their fees waived and be up to date on their shots.

To learn more about the animal shelter visit their official website, Facebook, and adoptable pet list . The animal shelter will offer community service hours to volunteers.