After reaching capacity, Delaware County animal rescue stops accepting new animals

A Delaware County, Pennsylvania, animal rescue said it has made the heartbreaking decision to stop accepting new animals after reaching capacity, saying it can no longer keep up with the growing number of dogs who need help.

Joyner's Furr-eedom Rescue has temporarily paused intakes after running out of space and resources. Despite closing its doors to new animals, the nonprofit said it continues to receive calls about stray, abandoned and abused dogs, many of them from the city of Chester.

"It's difficult because right after I made a post that we were closed for intake, I received two messages for two more strays down in Chester, another possibly pregnant stray and a small breed dog, and I unfortunately had to turn them away," Amanda April, owner and president of Joyner's Furr-eedom Rescue, said.

The rescue is currently caring for 37 dogs through a network of about 20 foster homes in Ridley, Norwood, Brookhaven, Malvern, Folsom, Aston, Glen Mills, Sharon Hill, Upper Chichester and other municipalities.

April said the steady stream of calls from Chester points to a growing problem that she believes has become both an animal welfare and public safety issue.

Chester resident Bridget Flynn said she experienced that firsthand after a stray dog bit her.

"About three months after I was bit by the stray, one of the little kids in the neighborhood, he was about 5, he was bit by the same dog," Flynn said.

April said incidents like these are why she's pushing city leaders to take action. She said she met with Chester Mayor Stefan Roots in May 2026 to discuss the city's stray animal problem, but has not seen enough progress since then.

"He said he would touch base with me after the meeting," April said. "Here we are months later. I've reached out through email, text message, phone call to both him and his assistant and still have yet to hear anything back from them."

In a statement to CBS News Philadelphia, the city of Chester said Roots met with representatives from Joyner's Furr-eedom Rescue to discuss potential ways the organization could partner with the city.

According to the city, one proposal involved identifying a building that could serve as the base for an animal control operation managed by the rescue. Officials said they have continued internal discussions about how such a partnership could work, but no final decisions have been made.

The city added it does not operate an animal control program because of funding challenges.

"Creating and maintaining a comprehensive animal control operation requires dedicated funding for staffing, equipment, vehicles, facilities, and ongoing operations, resources that have not been available within the City's budget," the statement said.

As she waits to see what comes of the city's discussions, April is pushing for changes at the county level.

"There has to be some kind of solution here," April said. "I have a petition going to ban breeding in Delaware County, which is almost at 1,000 signatures."

Delaware County Council said it is aware of concerns about backyard breeders and the connection between increased breeding and animal abandonment.

In a statement to CBS News Philadelphia, the county said it does not currently have the authority to enforce breeding regulations, which fall under the jurisdiction of municipalities and the commonwealth.

"We do, however, support the calls for enhanced oversight of these practices and welcome increased attention to being paid to animal welfare," the statement reads.

For now, Joyner's Furr-eedom Rescue will continue caring for the dogs already in its network while hoping more foster families, adopters and resources will allow it to reopen intake in the future.