Surrendering Your Dog

There are times when, unfortunately, you can no longer care for you pet. Before surrendering your pet to our shelter, please take the time to explore all options. Whether this means taking your dog to a trainer, participating in financial aid programs for pets, or entering your pet into a temporary foster program, our goal is to keep each animal with their loving owners.

View alternatives to surrendering your dog.

If you need to surrender an animal to our shelter, we ask that you take the following steps:

1.

Schedule an appointment. This will help us ensure a smooth transition process. We know that this can be a traumatic experience, and our staff will try to be empathetic.

2.

Fill out the appropriate surrendering form. The more information we have about your pet, the better we can care for him and hopefully find him a new home.

3.

Make the surrendering donation. Since we will be taking over the care of your surrendered pet, we will require a small donation.

Eau Claire County residents:
Adult animal (unaltered)*
Adult animal (altered)*
Young animal (under 6 mo)

*With written proof of up-to-date rabies, bordetella, and distemper vaccinations, and alter if applicable. Add $5 per vaccine if not up-to-date.

$50
$30
$20

All other county residents:
Adult animal (unaltered)*
Adult animal (altered)*
Young animal (under 6 mo)

*With written proof of up-to-date rabies, bordetella, and distemper vaccinations, and alter if applicable. Add $5 per vaccine if not up-to-date.

$70
$50
$30

Download the dog surrender form.

Dog Care & Training:

keeping your dog happy and healthy.

There's nothing more frustrating than a pet that doesn't behave well. From jumping on houseguests to not using the litter box, it is important to train your pet properly.

Basic Dog Care Dos & Don'ts


Feeding	Feed your dog a commercial brand of dry food that meets nutritional requirements.	Give your dog food (i.e. cottage cheese, cooked egg, fruits, vegetables) in amounts exceeding 10% of his daily intake.

Grooming	Brush or comb your pet on a regular basis.	Allow water to get into the ear canal during bathing.

Exercise	Take your dog on daily walks and encourage supervised playtime.	Let your dog roam the neighborhood unsupervised.

Health	Take your dog for an annual checkup.	Give your dog human medications – one ibuprofen can cause stomach ulcers in dogs!

Behavior	Teach your dog the basics like sit, stay, come, down, heel, off, leave it.	Let you puppy jump on people. Allowing this behavior at a young age will likely continue throughout adulthood.

Become a responsible dog owner.

Behavior Tips & Training

Excessive Barking
Some dogs bark a lot — when they want something, when they're having fun, when they feel frustrated, and when defending their territory. If you think your dog barks excessively, your first job is to find out why.

Destructive Chewing
Training your dog not to chew Dogs chew for fun, stimulation and exercise, and to relieve anxiety. But when your precious pooch chews up the leg of your kitchen table or the shoes in your closet, it's your job to teach them better. Remember, your dog isn't born knowing what is off limits, and he certainly doesn't hold the same value to possessions as you do.

Jumping Up
Dogs jump up on people as their own way of greeting them. Because people are taller, they jump to try to reach our faces and introduce themselves in the proper doggie manner – face-to-face. But as natural as this may be for dogs, it is not good form in the human world.

Puppy Mouthing and Nipping
Playing and investigating with their mouths and teeth is natural for puppies. And while it may seem adorable when they are young, the cuteness quickly fades as they become larger and stronger.

*Behavior tips adapted from the ASPCA.