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HAMPSTEAD – Topsail Humane Society is closing its doors. Pender County officials said the shelter can't be in a residential neighborhood because that would violate zoning laws.

Shelter employees, like Cathy Williams, hope to prove the Topsail shelter was open before the zoning changed to residential, and they plan to fight for the animals.

"We never really stopped using the facility. They say they have evidence or whatever that we have not been using the facility and have abandoned it, so they didn't let it be grandfathered in under the RA code," Williams said.

For now employees are trying to make sure the pets they have are adopted before they have to close, and you can still hear plenty of barking in the kennels.

But when the news got out about the closing, animal lovers came to the rescue for the 18 animals still at the shelter.

"I expected to see kennels still filled with animals, and there are only a few to choose from we are very fortunate we found one that we love," Mary Ann Mongo of Hampstead, who was looking for a dog at the shelter, said.

Pender County said the Topsail Humane Society has 30 days to shut down, and find homes for the rest of the animals. Employees hope they can return to business in the future.

If the no-kill Topsail animal shelter is unable to adopt out all the animals, they will be turned over to the county shelter. The county shelter does put unwanted animals to sleep.

County officials were not available for comment on Friday due to closed offices for the Easter holiday.

If you want to adopt an animal, you can still call the society at (910) 270- 2660.