http://web.archive.org/web/19961114222507/www.sfspca.org/pact.html



On April 1, 1994 the San Francisco SPCA and the City's Department of Animal Care and Control signed the Adoption Pact. The Pact states that if the City Animal Control Center is unable to find a home for any of its healthy dogs or cats, The San Francisco SPCA will take the animal and guarantee to place him. The Pact also gives the San Francisco SPCA the ability to save the lives of thousands of treatable dogs and cats. Under the Adoption Pact, The SF SPCA takes sick, injured, traumatized, infant, and under-socialized animals from the City Animal Control Center, rehabilitates them, and finds them loving new homes.



Since the Adoption Pact took effect no adoptable animal has been killed in a San Francisco shelter. What this means is that all cats and dogs who were healthy and of reasonably good temperament - even if they were old, blind, deaf, missing limbs or disfigured - were placed in loving homes rather than euthanized.

And in the Pact's first year year, The San Francisco SPCA provided 3,382 treatable animals with medical care, behavioral training, foster care or a combination of these and then placed them in loving homes as well.



As a direct result, euthanasias at the City Animal Control Center for sick, injured, traumatized or infant dogs and cats dropped to 1,185. In 1996, the Society intends to rehabilitate all such animals, demonstrating as we go that cats and dogs with treatable medical and/or behavioral problems can be saved and successfully placed if you just make the effort.





Typical Shelter
Practices Nationally
SF SPCA Policy
Healthy and well-behaved dogs and cats
Held for 13-14 days, euthanized if not adopted
Cared for until ADOPTED
Disabled or disfigured dogs and cats
Routinely euthanized
Examined and treated for therapeutic needs, then ADOPTED
Puppies and kittens less than 8 weeks old
Routinely euthanized
Examined and treated for medical needs, placed in foster homes until healthy and 8 weeks old, then ADOPTED
Dogs and cats with treatable behavior problems
Routinely euthanized
Assessment made by behaviorists, training or socialization provided, then ADOPTED
Treatable sick or injured dogs and cats
Routinely euthanized
Surgery performed or medical treatment administered, animal sheltered or fostered during recovery, then ADOPTED
Dogs and cats over 5 years old
Routinely euthanized
Examined for special needs, then ADOPTED