Midcoast Humane is in the process of moving its Brunswick location. Kathleen O’Brien / Times Record file photo

Midcoast Humane is on the cusp of consolidating its Brunswick facilities at a new location as the nonprofit rebounds from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The administrative staff has already transitioned from the old facility at 30 Range Road to the new building at 5 Industrial Parkway off Pleasant Street. The nonprofit’s administrative offices have been off Route 1 near the Interstate 295 interchange. 

The new location is in a building that formerly housed a Maryland Bank National Association Call Center. The facility is a single floor and 24,000 square feet, featuring a cat, dog and small animal adoption areas, a clinic and a community room for training and other group programming.

“Our new building will allow us to not only give the pets in our care more comfortable, lower stress housing while they wait for new homes, but it will also give our community a more welcoming space to meet our pets and enjoy the shelter’s expanded services,” Jess Townsend, executive director at Midcoast Humane said. 

Townsend added: “Our old building was built in 1950, and she has done her service and is ready to retire. It is an old, dilapidated building and it was so far gone that renovations were not an option; we needed to start over.” 

Midcoast Humane’s new facility is still undergoing renovations and is expected to be open this summer. It operates another facility in Edgecomb.

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Currently, Midcoast Humane houses 222 animals — 141 cats, 69 dogs, and 12 small animals including rabbits and guinea pigs. It serves 39 communities in Cumberland, Androscoggin, Lincoln and Sagadahoc counties.

Midcoast Humane was closed to the public on March 16, 2020. During the pandemic, it saw a significant decrease in pet adoption services. In 2019, 2,460 cats and dogs were adopted from the facility. In 2020, 1,466 animals were adopted during the pandemic. In 2021, the numbers increased slightly to 1,524 animals.  

“The pandemic reduced adoption numbers significantly,” Townsend said. “It also reduced animals coming and going through the door, and it even caused a reduction in our staff. Everything went down in 2020. That was a tough year for us. In 2021, we started to rebound, but we still have not gotten to 2019 numbers yet. We are still recovering from the coronavirus and getting back to where we were before.” 

Midcoast Humane is not the only shelter to witness a significant decline in pet adoption numbers. Animal Refuge League of Greater Portland also had a similar experience during the pandemic. In 2019, they had 4,135 adoptions, and in 2020, they had 2,912 adoptions.

“Due to the pandemic, we pivoted many of our services and programs in 2020 and 2021 to serve our community safely,” Jeana Roth, director of community engagement at Animal Refuge League of Greater Portland, said. “We held appointment-only adoptions, and we also held virtual offerings like dog training classes. We have resumed many in-shelter programs like adoptions, education classes, training, etc.”


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