CAMDEN, Maine — Walking into the PAWS Animal Adoption Center's kennel room in Camden, the sound of dogs barking immediately filled the room.
"This is nugget, he is a mix of a chihuahua, and we don't know what else, but he's the sweetest guy ever," Manager's Assistant Destiny Moulton-Moors said while holding the light-brown puppy.
For Nugget and five other dogs at the shelter though, their past few days have been more hectic than others.
The dogs were displaced from their homes at Jefferson Protection Animal Welfare in Harvey, Louisiana in the wake of Hurricane Francine and then transported more than 1,700 miles to Maine.
"The shelter we got them from needed to clear out their shelter so they could take in community animals that needed housing during all the flooding," Shelter Director Meghan O'Connor said.
While playing with a few of the dogs outside, O'Connor and Moulton-Moors said one of the rescues' biggest priorities has been getting the dogs more comfortable with their new surroundings.
"We do a lot of enrichment with the dogs like treats, we play games with them and just get them comfortable with us," Moulton-Moors explained while Nugget excitedly pulled her around.
Despite their tough circumstances, Moulton-Moors said the dogs have all been sweethearts.
"The want to be held, they'll walk up in front of you, and they'll jump up and they just look like they always really want to be held," Moulton-Moors said.
And once they're more comfortable and are up to date on health-related things like booster shots, O'Connor said they'll be ready for a new, loving home.
"When someone is interested in adopting from us, they do a trial sleepover to make sure it's a good fit in their home, to make sure they're doing well in that home, and to make sure they're happy in that home," O'Connor said.
Something that Kim Alboum, director of field operations for the Bissell Pet Foundation, said over a Zoom interview is one of the best parts of a collaboration like this.
"When we see adoption posts our whole team celebrates and gets excited and imagine how the staff at the Jefferson Parrish Animal Shelter where those pets came from feel," Alboum said.
If you're interested in adopting one of these dogs, staff at PAWS Animal Adoption Center said you can visit their website or stop in during business hours from noon to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday.