People from across the country are helping Harris County Pets find homes for the hundreds of homeless cats and dogs at the animal shelter. 

They're using platforms like TikTok and Facebook to find, vet and ultimately pair would-be owners with pets in need. These informal pet networks have pulled hundreds of dogs from the shelter’s euthanasia list this year alone, and have helped stabilize the organization after allegations of mistreatment arose last year. 

“If we're looking at what's changed from last year to this year, the networks have been a huge part of that,” said Theresa Lukasik, owner of Lucky Tails Rescue and one of the principal figures who pushed for reform at Harris County Pets. “We've had adopters literally fly in from other states to go to the shelter, adopt the dog and take it back to the state they live in.”