Richmond Animal Care and Control
Our Mission
Richmond Animal Care & Control (RACC) was established as the first city pound on June 5, 1902. Since then, it has served as the only open-admission public animal shelter in the City of Richmond. We provide humane care for more than 3,000 stray, sick, injured, and relinquished pets per year. Our focus is on keeping owned animals out of the shelter environment and instead offering pet owners a variety of rehoming options and resources to find placement for their pet(s). With such a great need for immediate intervention with stray, sick, and injured animals in our area, our ability to take in surrendered animals is limited, and we operate on a case-by-case basis when the space and resources are available in this regard.
While we seek to help every pet that comes into our care, there are instances where humane euthanasia is the only option. When an animal is considered a danger to the community or is suffering due to a severe medical condition, we believe the most responsible and compassionate option is humane euthanasia. First and foremost, our commitment is to public safety and ending unnecessary suffering. RACC is not considered a "no-kill" animal shelter and does not subscribe to this label. However, we never humanely euthanize animals due to space or length of stay.
Adoption Policy
Our focus here at RACC is on same-day adoptions. Those interested in adopting an animal from us, as well as all members of the household, must visit our shelter in person to meet and interact with the animal(s) they are potentially interested in adopting. For dog adoptions, any resident dogs must come for the meet-and-greet. During the visit, RACC staff will ask a series of questions to determine if the animal(s) would be a good fit for the potential adopter. Once an appropriate selection is made, the prospective adopter must complete an adoption application. The application is immediately reviewed by staff and is approved or denied on the spot. Our dog and cat adoption fees cover the cost of the spay/neuter surgery, flea/tick prevention, age-appropriate vaccinations, deworming, microchipping, heartworm testing (for dogs), and FeLV/FIV testing (for cats).
If the cat/dog has already been spayed/neutered, the adoption can be finalized immediately. If the cat/dog is not spayed/neutered, the pet is able to go home as a "foster-to-adopt" and the spay/neuter surgery is then scheduled with one of our partnered veterinary clinics. The adopter will handle the transport, then the adoption will be finalized once the pet has been spayed/neutered. RACC staff will email and mail the adoption package to the adopter once the surgery is complete.
Adoption fees:
- $100 adoption fee for dogs, puppies 5 months or older, cats, and kittens
- $150 adoption fee for puppies 4 months or younger
- Cats and kittens may be adopted two for the price of one
- The adoption fee is waived for senior (8 years or older) pets, special needs pets, and barn cats
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day hours Monday By appointment Tuesday By appointment Wednesday 12:00PM - 6:00PM Thursday 12:00PM - 6:00PM Friday 12:00PM - 6:00PM Saturday 12:00PM - 5:00PM Sunday 12:00PM - 4:00PM