San Francisco SPCA
Encyclopedia
The San Francisco SPCA is an animal shelter
Animal shelter
An animal shelter is a facility that houses homeless, lost, or abandoned animals; primarily a large variety of dogs and cats.Parrots, for example, are the third most common pet owned by people...
, a spay/neuter clinic, and a full service public animal hospital
Animal Hospital
Animal Hospital was a television show starring Rolf Harris that ran on the BBC from 1994 until 2004. The story showed animal welfare stories from RSPCA hospitals.-Location:...
located in San Francisco.
History
The SFSPCA was founded on April 18, 1868 by a banker named James Sloan Hutchinson. He intervened in the inhumane behavior of two men who were dragging a squealing boar off to market along the street's rough cobblestones. The incident moved Hutchinson to call together a group of fellow humanitarians to found The San Francisco SPCA. The SFSPCA is now the oldest U.S. animal welfare organization in the WestWestern United States
.The Western United States, commonly referred to as the American West or simply "the West," traditionally refers to the region comprising the westernmost states of the United States. Because the U.S. expanded westward after its founding, the meaning of the West has evolved over time...
.
After the 1906 San Francisco earthquake
1906 San Francisco earthquake
The San Francisco earthquake of 1906 was a major earthquake that struck San Francisco, California, and the coast of Northern California at 5:12 a.m. on Wednesday, April 18, 1906. The most widely accepted estimate for the magnitude of the earthquake is a moment magnitude of 7.9; however, other...
, the SFSPCA built horse troughs throughout the City to provide water for horses employed in rescue and rebuilding efforts. Plaques memorializing the troughs remain in place as of 2006.
Relation with San Francisco Animal Care & Control
In 1989, the SFSPCA ended its 100-year-old contract to provide animal control services to the city of San Francisco. The San Francisco Animal Care & Control Department (SFACC) was created as a governmental agency. The SFSPCA was then able to focus its resources on pioneering programs for homeless dogs and cats. In 1994, SPCA and SFACC were able to provide the "adoptable guarantee". The SFSPCA pledged to take as many cats and dogs from SFACC as possible to find them a new home, no matter how long it took.No-Kill
The pact between The SFSPCA and San Francisco Animal Care and Control enabled animal advocates to implement a model that made San Francisco the first "no-killNo-kill Shelter
A kill shelter is an animal shelter where animals are euthanized if they are too sick to be treated or too aggressive to be suitable for adoption or due to lack of shelter space...
city" in the United States. The SFSPCA will keep any cat or dog under its roof until a home is found for it. The only time an animal will be euthanized
Animal euthanasia
Animal euthanasia is the act of putting to death painlessly or allowing to die, as by withholding extreme medical measures, an animal suffering from an incurable, especially a painful, disease or condition. Euthanasia methods are designed to cause minimal pain and distress...
is if it is determined to be suffering medically or behaviorally.
The model includes a set of tactics that, in combination, reduce the number of animals entering the shelter system and place most shelter animals in permanent homes. Some of these tactics are mobile adoption outreach units, aggressive early spay-neuter programs, medical treatment for treatable shelter animals, behaviorial training in the shelter, training classes for the public, and structured adoption screening and matching.
In 1998, the San Francisco SPCA opened Maddie's Pet Adoption Center, a facility that houses dogs and cats in condomium-style rooms featuring accoutrements such as television sets, cat trees, toys, and live aquariums. The facility is named for the pet Miniature Schnauzer
Miniature Schnauzer
The Miniature Schnauzer is a breed of small dog of the Schnauzer type that originated in Germany in the mid-to-late 19th century. Miniature Schnauzers developed from crosses between the Standard Schnauzer and one or more smaller breeds such as the Poodle and Affenpinscher.The breed remains one of...
of PeopleSoft founder Dave Duffield
David Duffield
David Duffield is an American businessman in the software industry. He is the co-founder and former chairman of PeopleSoft, the co-founder and co-CEO at Workday, Inc., and has been on the Forbes World's Richest People list...
, who concentrates his philanthropy in the animal welfare world via the private foundation Maddie's Fund.
The San Francisco SPCA's Maddie's Pet Adoption Center is located at 250 Florida Street in San Francisco, and is open Tuesday - Friday from 1:00pm to 6:00pm, and Saturday and Sunday from 10:00am to 5:00pm. Dogs and cats are available for adoption.
Current Programs and Services
In January, 2009, the San Francisco SPCA opened The Leanne B. Roberts Animal Care Center, which now houses The SFSPCA’s veterinary services. It includes their nonprofit, full-service Veterinary Hospital, Spay/Neuter Clinic, Feral Fix Program and Shelter Medicine Program and Foster Care Program.The Leanne Roberts Center is being funded entirely by private donors.
The hospital is located at 201 Alabama Street in San Francisco, and offers free client parking. The hospital is open 7 days a week from 8am to 6pm, offering full service appointments and emergency services.