Senior helps pets find homes

Nia Hill got a new friend on Saturday: "Oreo," a black and white cat she and her dad, Ian, adopted at Carson City Animal Services.

"I wanted her because she's sweet and pretty and she's cute and she looks very lovely," Nia, 8, said.

Nia was one of many people to visit the animal shelter on Saturday for an adoption day organized by Lauren Knorzer, 17, a Carson High School student conducting her senior project.

By noon seven cats and two dogs had been adopted, Knorzer said.

"It's been really good," Knorzer said. "It's been going better than expected."

Knorzer decided to make the animal shelter her senior project, which is required to graduate from Carson High School. She's been volunteering at the animal shelter, 3770 Butti Way, for two months.

For the event on Saturday, which lasted from 9 a.m. to

2 p.m., animals were available for adoption at discount prices.

"It's just to get the name out there and to get people to start coming back in here because we're full," Knorzer said.

Dawn Trowbridge, 50, was looking for a new cat on Saturday.

"I have two cats and one needs a playmate," Trowbridge said. "So I have to get a new playmate."

Ian Hill said it wasn't the first time he bought a cat at the animal shelter.

"We saw what the young lady was doing in the paper and we thought we'd support that because we were going to get a cat," Hill said. "We were very impressed someone would do this as their senior project."