good morning. this is "news 4 your sunday." hello there, i'm pat lawson muse. this will be a great week to consider making room in your little new fur friend. this coming saturday shelters hereun and a the country are teaming up with nbc owned tv stations and telemundo for a whole day of adopting. it's the fourth annual clear the shelters day. they'll waive or reduce their adoption fees. last year more than 1,300 animalor founder homes in the washington area. joining thus morning are lauryn lipsy, vice president of community programs for the humane rescuealliance, gina harder is senior manager of public relations for the animal

welfare league of alexandria, and wendy wayrick from hills pet nutrition, inc. welcome to "news 4 your subrnda" han 61,000 pets across the tion. what's your goal this year and what's new? >> we have more organizations involved in our area. we're going to beat 1,300. i know our shelter is more full than it's been in a really long time. there will be plenty of animals looking for homes. >> shelter pre some of the best pets ever. just about every petve i've had came from a shelter or was a stray. why do they make suchood companions, gina? >> i think there areo many different opportunities with shelter pets. you can come in and meet any kind of animal. we have dogs, cats, hamsters, guinea pigs, rabbits, birds. anything you're looking for you can find at a shelter, and we

have so a much informatiut them. we can answer any questions you have and help find the right pet for you. w >>t's the most unusual animal you've had in your >>ve had some unusual ones. welter? we've had a couple pigs come through, believe it or not. most properties aren't allowed to own pigs and when people realize how big they get,hey come to us and we help them find homes outside of alexandria. >> pot bellied? >> a lot of people think they're going to get pigs thinking they're gsmng to be l. you don't know what kind until they get bigger than you anticipate. dr. wayrick, what are some of the things that people need to consider in terms of bringing an animal into the home? >> well, y dinitely want to consider whether you have animals in the home already or not, and if you have pets there whether theide will be interested and willing to have another pet. most of them, i would say, com

around. if you have an animal that will not interact well with another pet, tt's something to keep in mind. and then pets are a big responsibility. they're wonderful. they're great for children. they're great for families, but they do have some health needs that have to be addressed basically on an annual basis. >> how many are waiting to bed adop here in the dmv? ve>> we have 300. >> and are they dogs and cats? i assume they are? >> and lots of small animals. >> like hamsters? >> hamsters, guinea pigs, rabbits, snakes. we,ia in the district of colu we accept any and all animals and so that means we d get a wide range including ferrets and chin chill las and lizards of all types. >> it'sea kittenn and we have one. nina is joining us also this morning. need are so many cats tha homes.

in fact, there's now a no cancy sign that's bee posted at the shelter in fairfax county. they're running over. and cats are a big problem. and is are a big problem think you can attest to this, they have -- they can have severa litters peryear, a lot of kitten per litter that results in a lot needing homes. if they are unneutered, they come in and are replacing kind of -- when people look fo a kittens we have adult cats that need homes. it's a cycle every year that occurs. >> nina is awfully cute. she's 2 months? >> she's spayed and has had her vaccines and a microchip. that's what's great about shelters i 2018 and our area they all come with a baseline health and wellness review and basic medical that gets them

ready for your home. >> that's one of the reasons adopting at a shelter is a good idea. >> absolutely. >> you all are the experts. you deal with them, you see them, you're experts in veterinary medicine things that relate to their care. >> we work with them on a daily basis and know what to look for and what to share with you as you're trying to find the amal that fits your family best. >> all right. we're trying to find animals to fit your family. clear the shelters is happening on august 18l th. wentinue our talk right after this.

when a new breast cancer patient comes to cancer treatment centers of america in philadelphia, she's coming for the multimodal therapy where the specialists form a treatment plan together. we were loing for a cancer team that would help us decide the best course of action. we have so many tools at our center. thy is what attracted l the way from new york. these were people who were experts in their field. and for us that was the best choice. learn more about our breast cenr at cancercenter.com/philadelphia we' clearing the shelters on august 18th. a great time to find a new friend for your family. dr. wen weirich, how do you

matc a new pet with your family? >> the adoption counselors can helpith that. they know the animals, spent time with them, and know how they react to different situations. that'sphe main thing to k in mind. you certainly want to think about size and is somebody ready for a long-haired cat or better with a short-haired dog. matching the personality to the family and the family situation is the most important thing. >> and, also, inerms of adopting a pet at the age of your family, i assume, should be consideration what should a family with children look for? >> i think you want to look for an animal who will be fairly confident, so not intimidated bo al the activity of a family with young children who can -- who have shown to be toleran in stressful situations because children are learning to interact with animals just as animals -- not every animal has had exposure to children whether

lile or high activity. so you want to consider an animal who maybe does have a history of that. so have tho questions, ask the counselors, can you show me a dog or cat who has a history of living in a home with children or you kno to be comfortable in high energy, high noise ldtuations because that w be a good starting point just because you want to make sure it's a safe situatind that you are making the best match possible. leaving out as few unknowns as possible. >> aot of people would shop according to breed. is that a good or not so good idea? >> esry animal an individual. it's more about temperament than breed. if you do know you have living restrictions that mean you need a smaller dog, keep that in yind wh're looking. but it's all about the temperament and what will work best for yourfamily, if your family has kids, you're looking for the calmer dog. if you are living a more sedate lifestyle, maybe you want an animal that doesn't need as many walks or cats that don't need walks at all. >> when people are looking for a

breed, i get to what is it about the breed you look, temperament or personality type pr an energy level so that we can then h direct you to an animal who may fit what it is you're actually looking for as opposed to just an animal that is thisbreed. even that is not a guarantee of what you might be looking for. >> dr. weirich, older pets, are they better pets? >> in many situations they are. when older pets come into the shelter, a lot of homes they have been in h es andthey may not show as well as the younger pets. when older pets get adopted they know they're backn a good place and have so much love to give. many times they're trained and they might be quieter and you can get muche history from your adoption counselor. i think older pets are wonderful. >> what are some of the health needsou should be aware of?

>> pets are like people. they may slow down a little bit. you have to see if they're developing arthritis over time. their dental health because vert import because they're not brushing their teeth every day like people do. that can be important. also, we've done such a good job of keepi a petsund longer that we do have to deal with some of the old age diseases in ey disease, diabetes, obesomy becomes moren as they get older but all of those things can be addressed. >> there have been some stories about the kind of food that you should give dogs in t news recently and a lot of people give their pets people food, people medicine. you have to be careful about that. >> you do. pets being overweight and obese is the biggest health problem we've seen. there are so many good choices for food outhere that are appropriate for pets at tages that it's best to get them on a good food

sesigned for pets and you can avoid some of t problems. >> and a lot of the pets we talk about are cats and dogs but there are lots more at the what's the most unusual pet you've had at snurs. >> i think we've had eiguana. we can only adopt out what is legal. if someone can have it, we've probably gotten it in. >> if someone can care f it in their home, we always find either aransfer partner or a home to adopt. >> what about you, gina? >> about ar y ago we had some lizards which a smaller form of monitor lizards left outside ou buildingovernight. we weren't sure what they were and called on someo experts tell us more about them, help us learn about them. one went to reptiles alive and

we found appropriate homes for the rest of them. >> you got some adopted, so to speak. >> one is with reptiles alive right now. we met her recently and she's doing great with them. the other three i believe all found good homes locally. >> all right. >> we're talking about the shelters here in the wa washington area.

welcome back. we're talking abo clear the shelters and lauryn and gina, both of your shelters have pit bulls and pit bul mixes. are we seeing a change? >> it really is changi. ihink our organization years ago used to have a ban on adopting out the dogs for fear of bad things happening. now we adopt out any animal whoo

comes i our care included any of these block-headed dogs who are loyal and friendly and love bugs, and that's truly what we focus on is the individual characteristics and not the breed. >> i've read that the number of dogs going into shelters is on the dethine. why is ? >> absolutely and that's the hope. we want that number to be on the decline. there's a very different way people are looking at pets right now. pets used-e to co-exist. now they are part of our. famili people are treating their pets differently, living longer, more health options for them, more behavior options. they're looking for more ways to sop pets with their families it it's a behavioral issue, we want to make that happen. if we can help tied someone over with pet food for a lean mont we want to make that happen. pets will do the best in the t homey're loved. we want to find ways to keep

that option open as much as possible.>> r. weirich, for people who might be concerned about whether they can afford a dog because they're concerned about buyg th food, the other supplies that a pet may needr medicine, what are your suggestions? >> i think do a lot of research before you decide what kind of pet you want to have. if you have a big dog that's potentially going to need a lot more food, more food, more medicine, i work with some people and they bring in a big dog and they're surprised how much sometimes the medicine costs. interestingly in pets as opposed to people medicis by size. if you have a big dog, you may need to spend more on medicine. cats aren't always smaller and eat le option, too. a good >> do you recommend insurance for someone who is concerned about heah problems down the road? >> if that's aoncern there's a

lot of pet insurance, several different companies. ooi would recommendng into that and seeing what the insurance covers, what itrs of what the premiums are. i think it makes a great option for some people especially if you start young and then you have that insurance coverage as your pet gets older just like any of us. >> and what are some of the other ways, lauryn, that a person who is considering adopting can save money weyn ring this new family member in? >> adoption is the first way to do it. it's already been spayed and neutered, is microchiped. aside from a visit with your vet you don'tac have to go until the next year for another round of vaccines. reach out to the shelter or organization because they will often have free or low-cost options for fd or medical care, even behavior tips. and i think that really

networking with the other pet owners in your communy. i know a lot of people are concerned about leaving their animal at home during the day while they're working. people trade o watching their animals during the day when they work from home. there are lots of options. there should bearewers to adopting an animal. i think our organizations are here to help inform people of what they can do to make it easier to bring ano animal i their home. >> and that's part of the consulting process you referred to, gina. you don't do home studies anymore. >> that's right, we don't. we don't wantak to any barriers to adoption. we want to help people find the right pet for them. we want to make sure they know what they'reeally looking for. we ask a lot of questio but we ask you to ask a lot of questions. everythi you ask gives us more information about what you're looking for, what your concerns and needs are. our consultation process isn't long but it's very in-depth. we feel it's a wonderful way to

make sure people are finding the animal that's right for them and have as much information about the animat but just about ownership in general. >> dr. weirich, how soon after the adoption shouldou take the pet to the vet? >> i would recommend within the first weeks. the veterinarian can make all the recommendations that pet's going to need over the years. ank that goes b to your last question, one of the best ways to reduce the overall cost of having a pet is preventative medicine, good food, checking their teeth, making sure they have vaccines. as soon as possible after you get your pet settled into your home. >> and start brushing the dog's teeth early. >> yeah,eah. you can. people brush their ps teeth. the sooner you do that, the more they get used to it absolutely.

>> we're clearing the shelters. get to the ross shoe event and get the shoes you want...for way less. oh yeah. ross has the top brands at big savings. for the latest styles and trends... at prices that make them even cuter... ...get to the ross shoe event. yes for less.

...which means you can saynally hyes... ...to the shoes your family wants. find top brands at big savings... ...for men, women, boys and girls

all for a whole lot less... ...at the ross shoe event. yes for less. we're talking about clearing the shelters this saturday, auguth 18, and, lauryn, what should people expect when they go to thete sh? >> i think people need to come with patience but also understanding we're t make a joyful day for everyone. come with an open mind, water, maybe an umbrella for heat. we are tryingur to make animals can get out and get the ay going and have it be a celebration. >> and, gina, it's probably a good idea to go aonline look around before you go, right? >> absolutely. we and a lot ooc other shelters have adoptable animals to see online at anytime. you can see everybody who is available for adoption now. and on friday night youevan see ybody who will be available for adoption saturday. >> you want to get the one that

you pick but you might need a backup. >> see who is there andet an idea of who is in the shelter. >>r. weirich, hilde is edonsoring? >> exc to be a sponsor for clear the shelters. we have a long history of supporting shelters and shelter pets. we've helped over 9 million pets find good homes. free bags of food to go home as they get adopted. 're really excited about this and hope we can adopt out even more animals. we will have hill's people at the different shelters. wh people adopt new pets they can get a gift bag for new pet rents. there are coupons. there are posters and banners. you can see us in all the shelters >> and discounts. >> yes. >> discounts. >> we have discounts so if you go online and look at the animals today and decide i don't want to wdat until sat because i want to make sure i get the animal i'm looking for,

we alws have regular adoption discounts on certain animals. for example, cats are buy o o ge on a regular basis f. you're over 50, you can adopt an animal 5 years or older for free. t still want make sure it's the right match, but we want to make sure every animal in a nee home can find one and every person who is looking for an animal hasccess to get one. >> pets have taken on a new n' role, wou you say? they've always been a part of our lives and our work and our families, but it seems today they mean more to people than ever. i think now more than ever pets really are part of your family. before they may have been in yourouse but now they are referred to my four-legged furry child. it's something wen value w people know they're going to be able to provide an animal with a lovinghome. >> and, dr. weirich, i know that you treat animals but people -- research shows areealthier and live longer.

>> oh, absolutely. >> when they have animals as pets and tcompanions. re's such neat research going on and the animal bond is what we cl about it and the pet benefit and people benefit, your heart health is better, people who have pets tend to be in better physical shape because they have to take dogsor a walk. just petting a cat can lower your blood dpressure. th as much for us as we do for them when we adopt them. >> all right. we're going to try to clearour shelters out between now and saturday. >> that's right. >> dr. wendy weirich, thank you for being with us. you canpl get a ce list on saturday, august 18th complete with links to theirebsite so you can see which animals are available for adoption and wouch ones want to take home. go to nbcwashington.com and search clear the shelters. i'm pat lawson muse. thanks for watching. see you next time.

d.c. police are preparing to shut down roads as the white supremaci supremacist rally will start in just a few hours. >> and after a bombshell report on the state of the university of maryland football coach has put on leave. we arehoxpecting