LEWISTON — Jeremy Skillings of Raymond stood in line Saturday holding “Bubba,” a Labrador-mix puppy.

“His name might change when I get home. I have three girls,” Skillings said. Bubba is an early Christmas present for him, his wife and their daughters. “Santa told me to come here and grab him,” Skillings said.

Saturday was the Greater Androscoggin Humane Society’s “All I Want for Christmas is You” adoption event.

“We’re doing pretty good,” said supervisor Kara Strout. Four hours after the event began, 77 people had adopted puppies or dogs; another 20 adopted cats.

The event was held from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. When Strout arrived at 7 a.m., a dozen people were standing in line. They were assigned numbers ensuring their places and allowing them to leave to get coffee or warm up. “It was very chilly,” she said.

When the doors were opened at 11 a.m. by supervisor Stevanie Roy, the line of people was quite long.

Puppies at Saturday’s adoption came from the South, Strout said.

“A couple of our staff members went to South Carolina, Louisiana, Alabama and Georgia this week and transported them up,” she said. “Down South they euthanize puppies because they’re running out of space. We do not do that here.”

Since it was the last Saturday before Christmas, a litter of German shepherd-mix puppies were named after Santa’s reindeer: Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet and Cupid. Other dogs with seasonal names included Noel, Tinsel, Frost and Solstice. “Those guys were the first to go,” Strout said.

While some experts recommend not getting puppies for Christmas, it can be a good time to adopt because many people have time off from work to begin socializing their pets, Strout said.

The humane society wants to ensure adopting right before Christmas is not a spur-of-the-moment gift decision, Strout said. “A lot of people here today are looking for another family member.”

The cost to adopt a puppy is $400, which includes medical fees to spay or neuter, microchips and vaccinations.

Big turnouts are common when the Lewiston humane society holds an adoption event, in part because there is not an excess number of puppies in Maine. And the number of dog lovers seems to be growing.

“Some ask, ‘Are we ever going to run out of people who want dogs?’” Strout said. “The answer’s no.”

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