Many dogs are surrendered to the Wake County Animal Center because their family is moving and they cannot go along because of breed restrictions. Click here to see a list of rental housing that does NOT have breed restrictions, which helps keep families together! 

Click here to see a list of rental housing, including ones that do have breed restrictions.

The purpose of the Neighborly Dog  Owner Guidelines is to encourage dog owners to respect individual and common property, as well as to ensure the safety of all residents. Dog ownership comes with many responsibilities. Included in these responsibilities is the consideration of others in your community. 

There are many aspects of responsible dog ownership. This article on Responsible Dog Ownership will review the basic needs of all dogs as well as different ways dogs are housed.

"Be Safe Around Dogs" is a coloring book geared for kids to learn safety tips when interacting with dogs.

There are several groups in our area that offer assistance to families who are unable to provide food for their pets.  The programs are listed below with links to their webpage about their services:

1. Friends of Wake County Animal Center – No Empty Bowl Project
2. SAFE Haven for Cats – Pet Food Pantry
3. SPCA of Wake County – AniMeals
4. Millie's Paw Pantry – dog food only at this time

Deciding when to euthanize your pet is one of the most difficult decisions a pet owner makes. The Ohio State University has a wonderful document called "How Do I Know When it's Time" to help pet owners with end-of-life decisions. This document also includes a quality-of-life scale for owners to use to determine if their pet is still having a good quality of life or if they are beginning to have a poorer quality of life. This also goes into the decision-making process.

After euthanizing your pet, if you would like to have your pet individually euthanized and their ashes returned, these are two of the local crematory services. You can contact them directly for more information.

• Agape Pet Services
• Eastern Carolina Pet Cremations
   

Finally, the cost of euthanasia should not be a barrier to ending your pet's suffering. The Wake County Animal Center does offer no-cost, owner-requested euthanasia. For more information, please contact us directly at 919- 212-7387.

If you decide that you need to rehome your pet, your home is usually the best place for your pet while you search for an adopter.

Here are some tips for placing your pet: 

• Make your pet more attractive to potential adopters. Have your pet vaccinated and checked by a veterinarian. Making sure your pet is spayed or neutered may also make them more likely to be chosen by a new owner.
• Advertise through friends, neighbors and local veterinarians. Your personal network is the best pool of adopters for your pet. Place flyers promoting your pet at work, school, church and other public places you frequent. Include a good-quality photo and appealing description of your pet.
• Leverage your social network. Post your pet’s photo and story and ask your friends to share it on their social streams.
• Be transparent with potential adopters. Be prepared to share details about your pet's personality and how they get along with other pets and people. Share your pet’s favorite things and not-so-favorite things. And share any medical or behavior issues your pet is experiencing so that potential new owners will have the information they need to determine if your pet would be a good fit for their family.

(Tips courtesy of HSUS)

As a last resort, you can call the Wake County Animal Center and make an appointment to surrender your pet. Please note that a pet can be humanely euthanized at any time due to behavior, health or space. Surrenders are by appointment only and the following paperwork must be completed:

The Wake County Animal Center DOES NOT accept exotic pets, livestock, wildlife or poultry as owner surrenders. We only accept dogs, cats and little critters.