About 100 homeless dogs moved into the Humane Society's new $5.6 million facility in Shelby Farms Saturday afternoon.

By Alex Doniach

The black-and-white pit bull flopped on the heated floors of his new home, eyeing people calmly as they passed his kennel.

Philly was abandoned more than a month ago in a Midtown parking lot. He was found skinny, confused and mean.

But a warm bath, food and some love were what this 1-year-old needed to pull up his spirits.

"Within three days he was wagging his tail and smiling," said Lorie Frezza, a veterinary technician at the Humane Society of Memphis and Shelby County. "Now he's just one of the sweetest dogs here."

Philly was one about 100 homeless dogs that moved into the Humane Society's new $5.6 million facility in Shelby Farms Saturday afternoon.

Close to 75 volunteers helped shuttle the rowdy dogs from their old, cramped home in Midtown to their new, 4-acre digs, just up the street from sprawling fields and buffalo herds.

The dogs were treated to a warm bath before they had a chance to break in their kennels.

Humane Society president Ginger Morgan said the move was made possible thanks to a generous donation from Shelby County, which leased the plot of land for $1 per year for the next 99 years.

The facility is funded entirely by donations, and the Humane Society still needs to raise $3 million to cover building costs.

"We will be able to house so many more dogs thanks to this land," Morgan said. "This is a big day for us."

The old Humane Society facility was a 3,200-square-foot building on Central that had gray walls, low ceilings and the pungent smell of animal waste. The kennels were small and chilly. The dogs slept on rubber mats. The building could only fit about 65 dogs comfortably, and a few were relegated to chain-link kennels outdoors, covered with blue tarps to keep dry.

The new facility is canine-paradise in comparison. The multilevel 23,000-square-foot building boasts heated floors, big windows, colored walls and separate ventilation systems so that "diseases aren't carried through the air," Morgan said.

Soft music will be piped in through a speaker system because "music calms the dogs down," she said.

The animals have open fields on which to run and a "ball park" designed for games of catch.

The new facility also houses an animal clinic and an on-staff veterinarian so that the animals no longer have to leave the grounds to get their shots or even undergo surgery.

Paul Guibao, president of the Humane Society's board, said in the event of another Katrina-like disaster, the shelter could take in hundreds of needy animals.

"What we need now are more volunteers," Guibao said. "We're excited to expand. There are thousands of dogs out there who need homes."

Photo By Matthew Craig: Humane Society volunteers Sarah Donaldson (left) and Leah Bearman react to being sprayed with water while trying to wash a dog at the society's new facility at Shelby Farms. Animals from the old location got baths after being moved to the new building.

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