On October 27, 2011, OAS served a search warrant on a West Oakland residence as part of an animal cruelty investigation and rescued 93 cats and two dogs from the 1500-square-foot home. Many of the cats were in poor health and suffered from the effects of overcrowding and lack of medical care. The owner has been charged with felony animal neglect.

The rescued cats and two dogs have been housed at Oakland Animal Services at 1101 29^th Ave. since October. This week, the Superior Court of the State of California ruled that the cats no longer need to be held as evidence for the criminal case.

“We are excited to now be able to find as many homes and transfer placements for these cats as possible,” said Oakland Animal Services Director, Megan Webb.

Oakland Animal Services hopes to adopt out the friendly and social cats and to find rescue groups to take the scared and less social cats into their programs – many of these will likely blossom from one-on-one attention in a home.

“Many of the cats who were less social and shut down when they arrived at Oakland Animal Services have begun to come out of their shells with the socialization and attention they have been getting from our staff and volunteers,” added Webb. Some cats will need expensive dental procedures in order to make them ready for adoption. Local nonprofit organizations such as Friends of Oakland Animal Services and Cat Town have offered to help pay for these treatments.  If you are interested in learning more about placement options for these cats, please contact OAS at 510.535.4883.

Bob is a Pit Bull Terrier mix that our dedicated Volunteer Mentor Alex adopted  a few years ago, after he came to OAS as a stray. Bob was fostered by a rescue group, but Alex just couldn’t resist making him her new best friend!    An absolute love bug to the core, Bob is the perfect example of how gregarious, good natured and loving a pit bull mix can be.  Bob is friends with dogs, rabbits and people alike.  He won the hearts of everyone here at OAS when he was a resident here and now he’s living the good life!  This week, Bob was featured on Dogwonderful.com.  Click the link to check out scenes of Bob at Chrissy Field in San Francisco!

James’  sibling, Oakley did not have any wounds and was brought to OAS to be put up for adoption.  James is now in foster care as he recovers from his ordeal. The owner of these dogs was sent for a mental health evaluation and the case is being investigated.

Last week, James and Oakley had a sweet visit that our volunteer photographer, Ana Rapoport captured for us.    Oakley,  pictured below on the left,  is now available for adoption.  James is recovering and will be up for adoption in a few weeks.

We often hear great stories from our past adopters about how life is with their new companion.  This story about Solange is no different.  Her adopters chose her last year as their Christmas gift to one another and recently sent us these pictures of her to show how well she is thriving in her new life.   They have even made Solange her very own enclosed “cat garden” complete with a high treehouse perch for her to sun herself and enjoy a high perch in her garden.

When Solange left the shelter with them last year, she was a bit shy and frightened but she quickly warmed up in her new home, even quicker than her new family expected. We love to know that we help so many animals find their perfect family and that the family benefits from having their new companion, just as much as the animal benefits from being in a permanent home.

Rabies vaccinations are incredibly important to stay up to date with for your animals.   Always consult with your vet to ensure that your pet has its most current round of vaccinations so they can stay outside in a happy, healthy environment!

For more information about rabies and wildlife, read more here.

Many people are surprised at an animal care facility as large as OAS that we are able to hold adoptable animals for as long as we do.  We are committed to doing as much as we can to find every adoptable animal a home, sometimes having these sweet pets with us for months at a time until their perfect home comes along.   It is because of the dedication of volunteers and staff that these animals are given lots of love, care and attention during their time with us at OAS.

No fee adoption pricing is good for December 10th & 11th only.  Dog licensing fee still applies.  Only long term animals are available for this special promotion.

11/26/11:  This week we have been greeted by lots of surprise items in the mail; several generous donors have purchased items for us from our WISH LIST and we have begun receiving them this week.   Thank you all for your generous support of OAS!  Because of you we are able to care for animals better.  The items you purchase are used directly for animal enrichment and for staff and volunteer training and education.  These gifts mean a lot to us.  Thank you!

NBC Bay Area with Christina Loren has begun highlighting OAS animals!  Look for these spots when you’re watching NBC!  We thank them for their help to adopt shelter animals – Christina even adopted a new dog from OAS! 

This past September, Friends of Oakland Animal Services held its annual Sweet! event, a celebration and benefit for the animals at OAS.  Christina Loren served as our emcee for the evening and was so impressed with the work and dedication of OAS and its volunteers that she has begun featuring an OAS animal each week on NBC Bay Area.    With each special efforts like this, we all work together to find our animals permanent homes.  Thank you to Christina and to NBC for giving us this opportunity to showcase our wonderful animals.

They reported that her front leg was very mangled and appeared to need surgery to be removed.  We are so lucky to have the help of Friends of Oakland Animal Services(FOAS), a non-profit dedicated to helping animals that come to OAS in need.   FOAS quickly said yes to funding the surgery for this sweet girl and she is now ready for adoption!  Scarlett was recently featured on NBC Bay Area.

We are so thankful to our friends at Pets Referral Center for giving us a call and a chance to save this girl’s life.  They took great care of her, making her comfortable and giving her the care she needed before we were able to come and get her.   Pets is a great partner with us, serving the animals we get at a moment’s notice.  Thank you to all the wonderful staff at Pets for being a positive force in helping us care for animals in Oakland!