With big improvements happening at the Flathead County Animal Shelter, it can be easy to forget there is a sadder side of the facility.

Several pets looking for good homes have been living in the kennels at the shelter for months. All have special needs but still need loving homes.

The longest-tenured of the bunch is Knight, a handsome 6-year old American Staffordshire and boxer mix.

Knight has been in his kennel since April, when his owner dropped him off at the shelter. His owner’s boyfriend got a puppy and Knight was nervous and got aggressive when the puppy started nipping at ears.

Cindie Jobe, a board member of Flathead Shelter Friends, said Knight wasn’t a bad dog: He loves people, but his breed (Staffordshire terrier is one that looks like a pit bull to many people), his dark coloration and his middle age have prevented him from finding a good home.

“People are weird about the coloration of their dogs,” Jobe said. “Dark dogs get adopted at a much slower rate than others.”

Knight, a quiet, contemplative dog, was abandoned rather than trained out of aggressive behavior. As such, he might make a great sole pet for a home with children, since he loves kids.

Jinx, a 4-year old black lab mix, doesn’t have any of Knight’s peccadilloes.

Jinx, a happy, energetic male, has been in his kennel at the shelter for seven months because he has food allergies.

Normal dog food doesn’t settle well and his diet can be more expensive than the big bags available for purchase in most grocery stores.

Just a few kennels away is the big brown marshmallow Chocolate, a mastiff and Labrador mix who has the big floppy jowls of the mastiff breed.

A quiet male, Chocolate has been in the kennels since August partly because of his scary face, but mostly because unlike other dogs at the Flathead Animal Shelter, he sits quietly watching all potential owners.

Most other dogs jump around, bark and lick hands through the bars, but the peaceful mastiff mix doesn’t show well in his kennel.

Right across the aisle from Chocolate is the Staffordshire mix Marty, a happy young dog who has been in his kennel since August largely due to his breed.

As Jobe is quick to remind, pit bull isn’t a breed. Many people associate the Staffordshire breed with pit bulls, but that is an amalgamation of breeds. City ordinances that ban pit bulls have trouble tracking down what exactly that breed is, but mixes such as Marty suffer for it.

Buddha, a white mix, takes on the same ill effects that her breed provides her. She is a bit of a chaser, though, so a multiple pet household isn’t right for the energetic dog that has called the shelter home since June.

“Buddha cannot be around cats and maybe not small dogs,” Jobe said. “And needs a bit of obedience training and an active family.”

For these reasons, Buddha is kind of a special project, but a loving and appreciative dog.

For those looking to adopt but in a less active household, Stevie Wonder is a senior dog looking for a warm lap and a friendly hand.

As his name might make you suspect, the 10-year old Australian Shepherd is totally blind. But that doesn’t make him bitter or mean, as he licks hands and responds well to voices he has heard before.

Some of the pets have sad stories, such as Athena “Pumpkin,” a massive mastiff and Great Dane mix.

When she comes to the door of her kennel to see who is walking around, even the least dog knowledgeable will notice her teats hang heavy, as if she is raising a litter of puppies.

She was supposed to be.

“Her owner died during the night,” Jobe said. “She had her puppies that night, but then the fire went out and they froze to death.”

Athena is cautious around strangers but responds well to treats and kind words.

Shelter volunteers are brutally honest about the personalities of each pet because they know a mismatched home could just leave adopted dogs right back in their kennel.

The kennel runs at the Flathead County Animal Shelter have been upgraded on one side to allow dogs out on the “patio” for fresh air. The guillotine doors that allow this will be installed on the other kennel run shortly.

In an ambitious fundraising project, the Flathead Shelter needed more than $55,000 for improvements to keep the shelter (which does not euthanize animals unless they are irredeemably violent or near death) at its high operating potential.

Some $30,000 went toward the kennel doors for dogs and another $25,000 is slated for air circulation improvements once the weather breaks.

Flathead Shelter Friends chairwoman Karen Burkett said the outpouring of support was amazing.

“Our heartfelt thanks to people who made anonymous donations of significant amounts,” she said, referring to two $10,000 anonymous gifts. “Our community is very good at giving bids that are affordable for our low-cost shelter.”

While big things continue to improve at the shelter, pets with big hearts wait for the community to give them a warm home.

Reporter Ryan Murray may be reached at 758-4436 or by email at rmurray@dailyinterlake.com.