Seattle animal lovers showed their fondness for four-legged furry friends by generously donating $4.26 million at Seattle Humane’s 27th annual “Tuxes and Tails” auction and fundraiser held at the Bellevue Hyatt Regency on Saturday, May 7.

The special “Fund-A-Need” project was the highlight of the annual gala and raised $3.84 million for Seattle Humane’s Capital Campaign – named “Animal People Can” – to equip a new 57,000-square-foot shelter, adoption center and veterinary teaching hospital scheduled for construction on its campus in Bellevue. Over $27 million has been raised since Animal People Can was launched in 2014.

After completing phase one funding, Seattle Humane broke ground on a new $30 million facility earlier this year. The animal shelter, adoption center and veterinary teaching hospital will be capable of placing 10,000 pets per year.

“Now it’s time to fill the building,” said CEO David Loewe. “These extraordinary funds raised tonight from our Fund-A-Need project will provide equipment needed to keep dogs, cats, and small animals happy and healthy during their stay with us as well as make the shelter a warm and welcoming environment for the public.” The equipment includes x-ray machines, anesthesia and dental machines, caging for dog kennels and cat cubbies, and materials for building separate surgery, ICU, recovery, and isolation areas.

Seattle Humane has been saving animals and completing families since 1897, and the impact has been tremendous. In 2015, Seattle Humane placed 7,000 pets into loving homes, rescued more than 4,500 pets from other shelters, and spayed and neutered 1,200 pets belonging to low-income families, all while achieving a 98.3 percent life-saving rate, one of the highest in the nation. The new shelter, slated to open next summer, will allow Seattle Humane to place 10,000 animals each year, and spay and neuter over 7,000 pets each year.