MACON, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) — Dogs at a local shelter are helping people combat loneliness during the COVID-19 pandemic.

All About Animals Rescue is a non-profit organization dedicated to rescuing homeless and unwanted animals. With the current COVID-19 pandemic, the shelter has reported seeing an increase in people fostering pets to combat loneliness.

As of April 1, the number of COVID-19 patients has risen to 4638 confirmed cases. Several counties around Middle Georgia have declared a state of emergency as a result, leaving people to self-quarantine in their homes.

Haylee Robinson — a volunteer at All About Animals Rescue — says although the pandemic has been hard for most people, it’s had a wonderful impact on the dogs in the shelter.

Robinson said, “Since people have been home, we have been having people ask and reach out and be like, ‘Hey I’d love to foster, I’m home,’ and so it’s been really great. We’ve had some dogs get to go to foster, especially some dogs who have been kind of stuck here for a while.”

The shelter currently has 50 dogs up for adoption. Shelter staff says they do not see foster situations frequently, but they currently have nine dogs in foster homes.

The volunteers are happy that the dogs are getting extra love and attention. However, Robinson says this does not change the shelter’s mission — to get these animals adopted.

To inquire about fostering a dog from All About Animals, direct message them on Facebook. They will send you some evaluation questions to match you with the perfect dog.

The All About Animals Shelter postponed their Annual Rescue Run/Walk. The shelter is asking for both monetary and dog food donations to help maintain animal care during the COVID-19 pandemic.