CHEBOYGAN -- Facing limited capacity and an aging building, the Cheboygan Humane Society is looking at plans to expand their facility.

"Due to the economy we're seeing a lot of families having to give up their animals so we need more room for those animals," said Mary Talaske, director of the Cheboygan Humane Society.

Their current building was constructed in 1975. Over the years a few additions were added but still that space is being outgrown and overused. Talaske says they're looking at the option to renovate the current building and then construct a new building around it.

"We would like to more than double the size of our building," Talaske said. "We want to put additional kennels in where we can keep our strays house separately from our adoptable animals and we'd like an isolation area so when animals first come in we know they're healthy before we put them in with the adoptable animals."

Currently the facility sits on 1.25 acres. But, the $500,000 project would seek to expand that to approximately 10 acres on neighboring land - some owned by the Cheboygan Area Schools, some owned by the state. Talaske says that additional land would help in future projects including a possible public dog park. Because the shelter is a partnership between the Humane Society and the county both would have financial responsibility in the venture. Recently the Humane Society received a bequeathed donation of approximately $100,000.

"The community has been extremely supportive considering the economy but it's a constant struggle just to keep our programs going."

Talaske says the facility has been at capacity for the past few years. That's about 75 animals and she says that can make things around the shelter very cramped and uncomfortable for the dogs and cats.

"The focus of an animal shelter is to find new homes for adoptable animals so we need to make it a healthy place for our animals, as stress free as possible for our animals so that they show their true personalities and are more adoptable," Talaske said.

Talaske says if all goes well they hope to begin construction by early next year.