DuPage County to show off new animal shelter addition in Wheaton

Call it a “paw-ty.”

DuPage County’s newly expanded animal shelter will host a public opening celebration on Saturday with tours and pets in need of a home.

“It was a big collaborative effort. Our staff does a tremendous job. That’s why we’ve elevated ourselves to pretty much the premier shelter in the state, if not nationally,” said DuPage County Board member Brian Krajewski, chair of the county’s animal services committee.

The shelter along Manchester Road in Wheaton has roughly doubled in size. Adoptable cats are front and center near an airy new lobby. Outgoing felines can roam around out of their cages in a gym room. A detached “real-life room” is designed to give dogs a break from kennels and reduce stress.

“All the animal surrenders and the strays that are coming in now are going to have a much better environment because of the size of the building,” Krajewski said.

A new multipurpose room — “a nice thing for the community,” he said — could host educational events, kid birthday parties, corporate outings or rescue groups with their adoptable animals.

The original building also was gutted and transformed into a new state-of-the-art medical suite. As an open-admission shelter, the facility takes in a range of pets regardless of their medical condition, age, breed, or behavior.

In all, the approximately $13.5 million project consisted of 4,340 square feet of renovations, 11,486 square feet of added enclosed areas, plus a 2,217 square-foot covered patio for outdoor training and events, along with other contained outdoor exercise and play areas, according to the county.

The nonprofit DuPage Animal Friends also recently held their fundraising gala, “Raise the Woof” in support of the shelter’s expansion.

“DuPage Animal Friends and all the volunteers that put that together did a phenomenal job,” Laura Flamion, administrator of animal services, said in May. The event “raised upwards of $215,000 to go towards the capital project, and then immediately that next week, followed it up with a really successful Giving DuPage Days, raising just shy of $20,000.”

On Saturday, DuPage County Board Chair Deborah Conroy and leaders of DuPage County Animal Services will gather for a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 10 a.m. Tours and family-friendly activities will run from 10:30 a.m. until 3 p.m.

Krajewski recognized the community that has helped with “their generous donations” in making the building addition possible and the elected officials who have helped with certain animal welfare bills in Springfield.

It’s the shelter’s first expansion in its nearly 50-year history.

“It’s been a long, long process to get to where we are today,” Krajewski said.

https://www.dailyherald.com/20250613/news/dupage-county-to-show-off-new-animal-shelter-addition-in-wheaton/