What San Francisco Animal Care and Control (ACC) Does

ACC is the only organization in San Francisco, public or private, that accepts and tries to place ALL domestic animals, including those considered unadoptable by other organizations, such as pit bull terriers and rats. As an open-door shelter no animal is turned away.

ACC also cares for the city's abandoned or stray companion animals, wildlife, and 'custody' animals (rescued from abusive, catastrophic, illegal or other situations and awaiting court decisions or other legal actions).

ACC is responsible for the safety of San Francisco's inhabitants and visitors in their dealings with animals. For a complete list of ACC's responsibilities, see its Web site.

Although some pet owners know to look for their lost pet at ACC, many others don't realize that ACC exists or that it is distinct from The SF/SPCA across the street. Like the SPCA, ACC has dogs and cats available for adoption. What's unique about ACC, however, is that, besides all breeds and mixes of dogs, cats, puppies and kittens, you can adopt birds (including chickens, doves, parakeets and cockatiels), reptiles (like iguanas and chameleons), and small mammals (like rabbits, hamsters, guinea pigs, rats and mice) when such animals are available. In fact, the SPCA gets most of its dogs and cats from ACC and does not offer the other types of animals for adoption.

Qualified adopters of animals from ACC do not have to live in San Francisco, but they do have to demonstrate their ability to properly care for the animal they wish to adopt. ACC behaviorists and veterinary staff evaluate all animals before they are put up for adoption to make sure they are safe and healthy.

ACC's animal control officers or ACOs ("Animal Cops") respond to calls from the public 24 hours a day. The agency is responsible for all wildlife in the city, including transporting injured wildlife to other agencies in the Bay Area that specialize in their rehabilitation and eventual release. The ACOs remove dead animals from streets and freeways, rescue animals from condemned buildings and issue citations for walking dogs off leash where not permitted and for not cleaning up after one's dog. Issues like dogs barking after hours are referred to the San Francisco Police Department. The officers also go into school classrooms and explain how to humanely care for pets. ACC runs special programs that bring animals to inner city and homeless family youth centers, which helps the kids' humane awareness, emotional growth and integration into society.

ACC licenses dogs, issues service animal certificates and provides a host of other animal-related public services.