BRATTLEBORO, Vt. — Outside the Windham County Humane Society shelter on River Road, it’s a brisk and gray November morning. Huddled in clumps of twos and threes, a small crowd of about 20 people in warm hats and coats are waiting for a chance to make a new best friend Saturday morning.
Some have waited from the wee hours of the morning to secure a chance to meet one of the six German Shepherd puppies that captured the hearts of hundreds on social media after their mother arrived at the shelter. After eight weeks of sneak peeks, the shelter scheduled the puppies’ debut for Saturday.
When a rescue agency picked up Greta, pregnant, and more than a dozen other shepherds, the Windham County Humane Society was one of the shelters who stepped up to house them. The shelter took Greta and three other adult shepherds.
The mom, Greta, underwent an emergency c-section at the shelter two months ago. With the pups now weaned, she’s happily retired with a family of her own, who adopted her after the puppies were born.
But on Saturday morning, the puppies were still on the hunt for forever homes, and each person gathered outside the shelter was hoping to take one home.
For Celyne Godbout, of Antrim, N.H., and Katy Hillsgrove, a Brattleboro, Vt., resident, friendship was the name of the game.
They’ve been friends for more than 30 years, Godbout explained, and they were hoping to add two fresh faces to their friend-group.
Godbout drove over to Vermont at 4 a.m. to claim a spot in line.
Just ahead of her was Pat, whose Vernon, Vt., farm is a puppy’s dream, with chickens to herd and woods to roam. Pat said he’s also hoping to give his toddler son a lifelong pal.
People drove from as far as Connecticut to meet the pups, a turnout Canine Care Specialist Chris Tobin credited to the social media posts the shelter made about Greta and her babies.
“People became very invested,” he said.
Inside, Kathy Andersen is just arriving with the day’s cohort of celebrities: six eight-week-old German Shepherd puppies. They’d been living with her to limit stress and exposure to germs and help them learn how to live in a home.
They trot into the shelter from a side door in a chaotic formation, checking out the sights and sounds of the lobby as they follow their foster mom into a glass-front meet-and-greet room.
Each of the six puppies, distinguishable primarily by collar color, has its own personality and demeanor, Andersen explained as the dogs descended on her for kisses and cuddles: Pink is a drama queen, while yellow is mellow. Red can be a little cheeky, and green is always watching her person. Brown is the littlest, and loves to cuddle.
The last pup — and the only one not sporting a collar — seems to be a perfect fit for Addison Worsman, an Athens, Vt., resident who arrived late Friday night at the shelter, prepared to spend the night if necessary.
Shelter staff handed out tickets with numbers in order of arrival to the first six people who wanted a puppy. They then brought them in one at a time to meet the dogs and make their pick.
After spending some time on the floor with the pups, whose naptime has arrived, he settles on his dog, the one that promptly snuggled up in his arms.
“You wanna go home?” Worsman asked the floppy-eared pup. “You wanna go party for, like 10-15 years?”
The pup didn’t know it yet, but she was heading to a life of culinary luxury. A former chef, Worsman said he plans to buy a second freezer so he can meal-prep all his dog’s food from scratch.
About an hour later, Godbout and Hillsgrove emerge with a puppy each and wide smiles all around.
The snuggly, wriggly dog in Godbout’s arms would be a surprise for her two teenage daughters, who didn’t know she was at the animal shelter.
“I blocked my location so they wouldn’t know where I am,” Godbout said, laughing.
By shortly after noon, all the puppies were off to start their new lives. And while they were the big show Saturday morning, staff said they hope the pups’ stardom will also lead to more attention for other animals in need of homes, like Squirt, a mid-size mixed-breed who has been looking for his person for months.
The shelter houses anywhere from 50 to 130 animals at a time, according to staff, and relies on volunteers and donations to care for them.
The shelter accepts financial donations as well as pet food, clean blankets and towels, and general supplies like trash bags and paper towels.
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