NATCHEZ — A black lab, chow mix named Sally became a somewhat permanent resident of the Natchez-Adams County Humane Society for more than a year.

An older dog, Sally was often overlooked by residents who came in seeking to adopt an animal, NACHS board chairwoman Kathy Fitch said.

Years ago, Sally’s ultimate fate would have likely been euthanasia.

But thanks to a transport program that takes dogs that can’t be placed in local homes and sends them to larger shelters in Tampa and Sarasota, Fla., Sally joined 584 animals who have been successfully transported in the humane society’s first year with the program.

Transporting the dogs and puppies, as well as increased local adoption efforts, have increased the amount of animals adopted and decreased the amount of animals euthanized at the shelter.

“This last year fiscal year, we placed more than 1,200 pets, which is absolutely phenomenal for us,” Fitch said. “It’s just been amazing because we knew we were doing well this year, but we had no idea how well we were doing until the statistics came up.”

In the 2010-2011 fiscal year, which runs from Oct. 1 to Sept. 30 for the humane society, nearly 2,500 pets came into the shelter and of those only 562 found homes.

In the 2011-2012 fiscal year, more than 2,100 pets came into the shelter and 740 found homes.

In the 2012-2013 fiscal year, 1,881 pets came into the shelter and 1,228 found homes.

The ultimate motivational factor in all the data, Fitch said, is the fewer animals the shelter is having to euthanize.

“It makes a tremendous difference for everybody, the volunteers and the employees at the shelter, when they don’t have to euthanize healthy animals,” Fitch said. “It’s created a totally different atmosphere.”

The majority of the outgoing animals last year, 31 percent, were transported through a program Fitch said the humane society is extremely lucky to be a part of.

After sending an email to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, Fitch said she received an email back in December 2012, asking if the shelter could participate in a last-minute transport.

“It was like winning the lottery, because they get hundreds or thousands of emails like the one I sent asking for help,” Fitch said. “They asked us to do a one-time transport in a couple of days, and we jumped on it and got it done.”

The organization was so impressed with the shelter, they reached out again in January for another transport.

“After that one went well again, they said they wanted to help us produce our own relationship with a transport company and destination shelters,” Fitch said. “That’s what they did, and they’ve had our back ever since.”

The transportation process includes separating soon-to-be traveling animals in a quarantine facility free from contact with other animals coming into the shelter with potential disease or infection.

Once the animals are quarantined for a week, the shelter loads up 20 to 30 animals at a time and travels to meet the transport truck in Gulfport.

From there, the animals ride in the truck for 12 to 13 hours before arriving at their destination shelter in either Tampa or Sarasota.

The process is one that has increased the humane society’s operating budget, and led to significant positive results.

“With increased labor, housing and medications costs, it is much more expensive to save lives than it is to euthanize animals,” Fitch said. “But we do believe this life-saving transport program is worth the money spent on it.”

Based on the needs of the destination shelters, the transport program has helped find homes for the hundreds of puppies and dogs that come into the shelter.

Local efforts have also helped increase the amount of kittens and cats finding homes in the Miss-Lou.

In the past fiscal year, 529 of the 1,881 animals brought into the shelter were adopted.

Continual maintenance of the shelter’s website, as well as increased kitten adoption days where adoption fees are included for two kittens, have increased the humane society’s adoption numbers, Fitch said.

“There’s very little transports for cats because all communities in the U.S. have enough cats, so we’ve had to increase local cat adoption efforts,” Fitch said. “It’s worked out great for us.”

In order to keep the shelter’s high outgoing rates this new fiscal year, Fitch said the shelter must continue all the things it did well in the last fiscal year.

“The main thing we need to do is continue to keep our animals healthy and that’s going to be a lot easier when we get into our new shelter,” Fitch said. “We’re hoping to be in there by this summer.”

The humane society will construct a new shelter on a 5.1-acre site at 445 Liberty Road, which will cost approximately $1 million.

Initial bids for construction came in higher than anticipated, and Fitch said they have sent out new bids and are waiting for those to return.

The new shelter, Fitch said, along with increased local adoption efforts will assure another great year for the humane society.

“Last year was a year where we worked harder than we have ever worked before and it’s been a real labor of love for everyone involved with our shelter,” Fitch said. “It’s just been a remarkable year, and we’re hoping to continue that.”