Services Offered at San Francisco Animal Care and Control
Why is ACC worth supporting? You may be surprised at how many services your city animal shelter provides to the people and animals of San Francisco:
* Animal control officers (ACOs) respond to calls from the public about anything animal-related, from stray dogs in their neighborhood to birds trapped in their chimneys. Emergencies get an immediate response, even in the middle of the night every day of the year.
* ACC accepts lost, stray or abandoned animals 24/7. Staff enters them into the computer system, gives them medications to protect them from diseases, provides a clean kennel with food and water and other necessities, and holds them five days unless claimed sooner by their owners. (Animals surrendered by their owners have to wait only three days.) If the animal goes unclaimed, veterinary and behavioral experts evaluate him or her and put adoptable animals up for adoption.
* ACC counter staff accepts pets surrendered by owners during business hours and processes them as they do lost, stray or abandoned animals.
* ACC offers dogs, cats, puppies, kittens, rabbits, hamsters, rats, guinea pigs, iguanas, chameleons, chickens, parakeets and other small animals for adoption and lets potential adopters get acquainted with them.
* ACC's animal care attendants feed the animals, clean their kennels and litter boxes, provide toys and blankets, and, when no volunteers are available, exercise the animals.
* ACC volunteers and trainers exercise and socialize with the animals awaiting adoption.
* ACC screens potential adopters to make sure the adopted animal will be properly cared for. If the adoption goes through, ACC provides both verbal and printed advice on the best ways to care for the animal, along with a voucher for a free vet visit and other premiums. If the pet is a dog, cat, rabbit, guinea pig or male rat he is neutered, or she is spayed. For dogs and cats, ACC staff records the adopter's contact info, which ties in with the unique registration number of a microchip implanted under the skin between the animal's shoulder blades.
* ACC issues or renews dog licenses and certifies service dogs
* ACOs relocate wildlife to their usual habitat when they are in danger or someone complains about them. They also transport injured wildlife, including deer, skunks, opossums, geese, ducks and doves, to specialized rescue agencies, such as WildCare in Marin County, the Peninsula Humane Society and SPCA in San Mateo and ACC's own rescue partner, SF/ROMP.
* ACC's support organization, Give a Dog a Bone, exercises and socializes "custody" dogs, who may be awaiting the outcomes of their owners' cases in court or other legal issues.
* ACOs go into San Francisco's grade schools, middle schools and high schools and teach kids about the humane treatment of animals.
* ACC managers bring dogs every month to one of San Francisco's major inner city family and youth centers to help educate the children in the humane treatment of animals and thus build character, self-esteem, an appreciation of personal responsibility and future enlightened animal lovers.
* Volunteers run mobile adoption units at pet supply stores and outdoor events for ACC's small animals and cats.
* ACC staff and volunteers publicize ACC's services and build civic goodwill by participating in almost every city-sponsored and animal-related nonprofit event, from its own Pet Pride Day to the Gay-Lesbian-Bisexual-Transgender Pride Parade.