Frequently Asked Questions

To reclaim a lost pet, please come to the shelter during our regular operating hours (9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday - Saturday).  You will need to identify the animal as yours so the staff will take you on a walkthrough to see if your pet is in the building. If your pet is, indeed, in the building, you will need to pay the appropriate fees to reclaim the animal.  Arrangements can be made if you cannot afford the fees at that time, so please do not let that circumstance keep you from reclaiming your pet.

Redemptions must be made in person by the rightful owner of the animal.  We require some form of identification that the animal is, in fact, owned by the person who is reclaiming it.  Identification can include pictures, tags, microchip, vet records, etc.

Only the pets that are on active stray hold are displayed on the stray search page.  If your pet was not reclaimed by the end of the stray hold, then it will be processed to see if it can be made adoptable through the shelter or through one of our rescue partners.  Once the stray hold has expired, the animal's ownership is transferred to RCACP and we are responsible for its disposition at that point.

When an animal's stray hold expires, it is evaluated and depending on that evaluation it receives vetting (spay/neuter, rabies, microchip, etc.) to be placed for adoption.  Space is always a consideration, so if a rescue is interested in the pet, then arrangements are made to transfer the animal to one of our rescue partners.  

It is extremely important to reclaim lost pets as soon as possible.