Spay & Neuter Clinics
Pet Food Assistance
Rehoming Your Pet
The decision to rehome a pet is one that most people don't make easily. Is the problem you have temporary? Do you find yourself facing an emergency? Are there resources out there to help? What are the best methods to rehome?
Check out our list of resources and suggestions here.
Euthanizing Your Pet
The Wake County Animal Center offers no-cost pet euthanasia services to residents of Wake County by appointment. Before scheduling, the pet owner will need to share details about the pet's current situation with staff so that they can properly assist.
When to schedule euthanasia is the most difficult and important decision a pet owner will ever have to make. Most pet owners will be faced with this decision at least once, whether due to the normal decline that comes with old age, a sudden, serious diagnosis, or major behavioral issues that lead to a pet being unsafe. To aid in this decision, Ohio State University has a great document called, "How Do I Know When it's Time?" which includes a quality-of-life scale.
For more information, email animalcenter@wake.gov or call 919-212-7387.
If a pet owner would prefer to pay for individual cremation, they must contact a separate company for that service. Companies that offer pet cremation include:
Emergency Clinics
Emergency Preparedness
Safety Tips for Pets (watch out for weather, water, what they eat, and more!)
Pet Enrichment Guide
A bored pet can be a destructive pet. For ideas on how to entertain your pet, check out our Pet Enrichment guide.
Dog-Friendly Housing – All Breeds Allowed
Many dogs are surrendered to the Wake County Animal Center because their family is moving and they cannot go along because of breed restrictions. Check list of communities that do NOT have breed restrictions below! (Spanish version)
Responsible Dog Ownership
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.
Pet Identification
The Wake County Animal Center would like to reunite all missing pets with their owners. To help us do this, we need animals to wear proper identification and/or be microchipped. Learn more about microchips and ID tags.