It’s raining big dogs at PACC

Pima County, Arizona sent this bulletin at 08/13/2021 10:26 AM MST

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It's raining big dogs at PACC

PIMA COUNTY, Aug. 13, 2021 – In response to a marked increase in pets coming into the shelter, Pima Animal Care Center is offering tips to pet owners in hopes of preventing lost dogs and cats frightened during monsoon storms. The shelter is already dealing with a very high intake and lack of space for incoming pets.

“August is traditionally our highest intake month and this soggy summer is making things more difficult,” said Monica Dangler, Director of Animal Services. “We are seeing many lost pets because of these storms. The active monsoon is spooking pets into running away.”

Follow these storm strategies as the monsoon continues:

  • Proactively upload your pet’s photo and profile to lost.petcolove.org. Should your pet become lost, you will be notified if your pet would enter a shelter.
  • Keep pets indoors.
  • Buy a lock or carabiner clip for gates. Wind can easily blow gates open, allowing pets to get out.
  • Check your yard for areas where pets might be able to escape. Patch up any holes in fences. Pets can make small holes much bigger and use them to escape.
  • Make sure your pet’s microchip is up to date. Pet owners can do it for free at these locations: https://www.freepetchipregistry.com/ https://www.foundanimals.org/microchip-registry/
  • Place a collar on your pet and include a tag that has up-to-date information. Both can be purchased in the store located in PACC’s lobby.
  • Write your phone number on the collar using a permanent marker.

Stray pets make up most of PACC’s current intake. The shelter is taking in 80-100 pets every day. The best way to help the shelter is by hanging onto the stray pets that show up in your neighborhood through the “First 48” program. People can reunite found pets with their families by hanging onto those friendly stray pets that they find roaming in their neighborhood for at least 48 hours. Pets that stay in the area where they are found also have an 80 percent chance of making it home versus the 20 percent when they are brought to the shelter. If you need food or other pet supplies to do this, please just stop by the shelter Monday through Friday noon to 7 p.m. or 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. How to reunite a pet within 48 hours:

  • Text “FOUND” to (833) 552-0591. Para Espa؜ñol, envíe un mensaje de texto con la palabra "ENCONTRADO" al (833) 552-0591.
  • Upload a photo of the found pet to PetcoLoveLost.com. They will use facial recognition to match up lost and found reports.
  • Post the pet on social media sites like Facebook, Nextdoor and Pawboost.
  • More lost and found tips can be found on the lost and found site.

“If people could look for an owner and hang onto these strays for a couple of days, that would give them a huge chance of finding their owners,” Dangler said. “These pets most likely have families that are missing them immensely. Knock on a few doors and you might have that pet home within an hour!”

PACC is also offering Reclaim Forgiveness for stray pets. However, each case will be treated on an individual basis. Reclaim Forgiveness for stray pets will be in place for the rest of August. To see if your pet is at the shelter, check the intake hourly, as it changes throughout the day.

Most of the incoming pets are large dogs and cats with medical issues that need fosters or adopters. Because of this, the shelter is offering a special adoption promotion for those pets. All dogs that weigh 40 pounds or more have $0 adoption fees. All cats four months and up have $0 adoption fees. Puppies and kittens have $50 adoption fees. A $20 licensing fee may apply.

There is also a need for more dog walkers because of the high census. People interested in volunteering can sign up here. “Our volunteers are working so hard,” Dangler said. “It’s hot and really hard work to get these dogs out twice a day. We need people who can walk these larger dogs to help them all get out for fresh air.”

Pima Animal Care Center is open Monday to Friday, noon to 7 p.m., and 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. To see a list of available pets and services, head to pima.gov/animalcare.