Evaluating for Adoptability

The League receives around 2,500 companion animals each year. Some of these are strays whose owners never reclaim them and others are brought in by their owners. We evaluate each animal individually to determine if it is adoptable and to see what kind of home it is best suited for. Not all animals that come to the League are appropriate for adoption, and we can never guarantee that a specific animal will be placed for adoption. We evaluate animals on the following criteria:

Health

We want adopters to go home with healthy pets, so we do an initial health evaluation to see if there are any problems or if the animal needs to see a veterinarian. We test cats for feline leukemia and AIDS and dogs for heartworm and we administer appropriate vaccinations for dogs and cats. We also try to obtain previous veterinary records for surrendered animals. We then continue to monitor the animal's health to make sure it is healthy and ready to go to a new home. We inform potential adopters of any healthy issues of which we are aware. If an animal has a serious or chronic condition requiring extensive treatment, we may not place the animal for adoption.

Behavior

Most pets adjust well to being in the shelter, and we have dozens of volunteers who assist us daily by walking dogs and playing with cats and critters in order to keep them happy and adoptable. Our adoptions staff evaluates each animal's behavior. If an animal is aggressive, or has other serious behavior problems, we will not place it for adoption.

Time

The League does not have a deadline for adoption of any animal. We try to keep all adoptable cats and dogs until we find them permanent homes.

For an in-depth description of our dog behavior evaluation process see our Winter 2010 Pawpourri newsletter.