February 13, 2026 Dear City Leaders, On behalf of the California Animal Welfare Association (CalAnimals), the state association representing and supporting more than 300 shelters, animal control agencies, private humane societies, and other animal welfare organizations, we are writing to encourage cities and municipalities to carefully evaluate the standards, oversight, and accountability measures in place for animal services providers that you contract with to meet your lega

If you’ve ever walked into a veterinary office with a sick pet and walked out overwhelmed, anxious, or blindsided by a bill you weren’t prepared for—you’re not alone.

Todd Stosuy, Santa Cruz County’s animal control field manager, ducked under a clothesline, then a badminton net strung between two trees,...

Across California, government-run animal shelters are overwhelmed. From large urban counties to smaller rural communities, shelters grapple with an unrelenting influx of animals, especially young puppies. The constant arrival of litters is straining already overburdened systems battling rising costs, insufficient budgets, limited staffing, and increasing public expectations. California’s public shelters are on the front lines of a growing crisis and are not alone.

The California Animal Welfare Association (CalAnimals), the San Francisco Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SF SPCA), and the ASPCA® (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals®) today announced that nearly 5,000 animals were adopted into loving homes as part of the second California Adopt-a-Pet Day on June 7, 2025, making for another hugely successful statewide event. The ASPCA provided funds to waive adoption fees at most participating she

The court’s decision: Affirms the legality of SDHS’s revised Community Cat Program. The court expressly found that the February 2025 revisions to its Community Cat Program protocols comply with California law and may remain in force.