County Animal Services is waiving all adoption fees for its animals on Saturday, July 23 as part of the Clear the Shelters pet adoption campaign. For the second year in a row, nearly a dozen local shelters will join a one-day, all-out push in cities around the country to give every shelter animal a home.
At County Animal Services, qualified applicants can get adoption fees waived for kittens, cats, puppies, dogs, rabbits and chickens. If they don’t get adopted before then, a turtle, a parakeet and even a green iguana will be available.
Dogs and cats will be altered, vaccinated and microchipped; rabbits will be altered and microchipped at no cost to the adopter.
During last year’s event, about a third of the available pets at the county’s shelters found new homes: 288 of 743. The number of adoptions more than tripled for a normal Saturday.
NBC TV is leading the Clear the Shelters campaign. It reports nearly 800 pets found new homes in our region last year. Nationally, 20,000 homeless animals were adopted.
“If you think a pet makes a house a home, then this is a great opportunity to adopt an animal,” said County Animal Services Director Dawn Danielson. “These animals need forever homes and you’ll get unconditional love, fun and companionship in return.”
Currently, about 450 pets are available at County Animal Services’ three animal care facilities located in Bonita, central San Diego and Carlsbad.
You can keep an eye on which animals might be available by checking out the adoptions webpage. It’s updated regularly. Keep in mind, if you fall in love with one, don’t wait. Adopt right away at the full price so you don’t miss out!
If you’re interested in an animal of the feline variety, you’re in luck. Right now, all kittens and cats are half off through the month of July.
If you prefer to wait until the Clear the Shelters event, the County animal facilities will have the free offer in effect their full operating hours that day, from 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
You can speed up the process by going online for the adoption application, downloading it and filling it out at home. Renters should also bring a copy of the lease to show it’s OK to have a pet at their home.
For more information about County Animal Services, visit sddac.com or call 619-767-2675.
Tracy DeFore is a communications specialist with the County of San Diego Communications Office.