Austin Animal Center is not accepting animals for now

Effective July 2 and lasting until appropriate kennel space is available, Austin Animal Center is temporarily closing its intake in response to critical capacity issues, with more animals coming in than going out. Intake is functioning on an emergency and case-by-case basis, only for animals with life-threatening injury or illness or those presenting a clear public safety risk. “Between June 24 and June 26, we took in 149 dogs and cats and only 124 left during that same timeframe,” Chief Animal Services Officer Don Bland said. “This has been an ongoing pattern that has led to us having more animals than we have kennels. We started this morning with 24 dogs and 5 cats without an appropriate kennel.” In a statement to the press, the shelter emphasized its mitigation efforts to increase capacity and avoid closing down intake – including waiving adoption fees, publishing an urgent placement list, spending $5,000-6,000 per week to place 24 dogs in boarding and hiring for two temp positions to assist with foster program coordination. For more information on fostering and adopting, visit austinanimalcenter.org. AAC is open for adoption and reclaim 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Sunday, and all adoption fees are currently waived. If you need assistance with an injured animal:

• Call 311 to report that you need help with a sick or injured animal and ask to speak with an animal protection officer.
• Wait for the officer to pick up the animal. Do not take the animal to the shelter.
• If you have found a loose pet that is not injured, visit AAC’s Lost and Found Pet website for guidance.