Does the Lynchburg Humane Society take stray dogs and cats?

The Lynchburg Humane Society takes in all lost dogs in the City of Lynchburg and cares for them until their owners find them or finding a loving home for them if their owner never comes.  Some lost dogs are brought to us through a kind citizen, Animal Control, or the Lynchburg Police Department (who we partner with but are not the same entity – they are a part of the City, we are not – more about that next week). We always take the lost dogs that are found in the City. 

If a pet is brought to us from another county, we typically will ask them to take them to the county’s shelter where they were found.  The reason we do this is because we want to give the pet the best chance of finding its way back to the owner.  If a pet is taken to another jurisdiction than where it was found, it makes it more difficult for the owner to find their pet.  Additionally, if we took in every lost pet that was brought to us from another County, we would not be able to house them all safely.  

One of our lifesaving programs at LHS is our managed intake. We do not take in stray, healthy cats found in the community. We have many cats outside in our city that do not have families and are community cats! This cats live happily outside in their colonies and after they are altered and released no longer contribute to the overpopulation of cats in our community. Unfortunately, less than 3% of cats that are brought to shelters are ever reunited with their families. For more information on getting involved in Trap Neuter Return programs you can visit our community cat resource page or check out the local group, Stray Cat TNR!

Does the Lynchburg Humane Society take dogs and cats surrendered by their owners?

 We also take in pets that are needing a new home because their owners aren’t able to care for them anymore.  There are some lifesaving policies around taking pets who are being surrendered by their owners.  For example, we ask that owners help us help them.  A shelter should be the last resort to take a pet.  We want to bring every pet into our Center safely and not become overcrowded.  We ask them to work with us to rehome their pets.  We offer them guidance, marketing, advice, and more. 

If a pet is able to safely go from one home to another without coming to the shelter, that is the best for the pet (and the other pets that are at our Center).  The shelter, even our wonderful Center for Pets, is stressful and stress can cause unwanted behaviors and illnesses.  We provide whatever resources we are able to help owners either keep their pets or keep them until they are able to find a new loving home for them or until we have space to bring in the pet safely to our Center.  Resources can range from medical care, crates, food, training, etc.  If a pet is being neglected or is a danger to the household, we will take the pet in right away.  There are other emergency situations where we might take in a pet right away. 

Our lifesaving policies also prevent quick decisions of people who may be having a tough time with their pet, have lost patience, or don’t know what else they can do. This gives them a moment to think about it and not do something they will possibly regret.  And gives us a chance to work with them on any issues we can help with.

It’s important to communicate our policies and procedures with the public so they understand how we operate.  We see ourselves as a Center for the community and we want to do what is best for the pets and the people in our community!