Quick Links
What is the Adoption Process?
Looking to adopt? Just visit our adoption pages on our website! All animals that are available for adoption are posted on our website with pictures and a short bio of what we know about the animal.
See a pet you might like? Simply stop by when we’re open. We do not offer any holds and we do not accept deposits to hold animals. If you are interested in adopting an animal choose from one of the following options:
How do you determine your adoption fees?
We assign adoption fees based on national research of breeds, age of the animal, and recommendations from national organizations. Adoption fees are $25.00 and up. (Sometimes lower for cats.) Adoption fees are also based on current supply and demand. Animals that are purebred, rare breeds, and/or very young, will be priced slightly higher. Those higher fees help cover medical costs of some of our less in-demand animals who need lower adoption fees. The higher fee essentially subsidizes the lower fees and allows us to provide the medical care, spay, neuter, vaccines, etc. that all shelter animals require.
Adoption fees also cover the costs of special shelter programs that we make available to our community. Programs like “Spay the Mama”, “Community Cat Program”, the shelter “Foster Program”, “Low-Cost Vaccine Clinic”, and the “Senior Adoption Program” are all made possible by this gradient adoption pricing. We also want the best home for each of our animals. Higher adoption fees for the animals in higher demand also deter “animal flipping”, which is prevalent in our area.
What is covered in an adoption fee?
Spay & Neuter: The average dog spay or neuter can range from $80-$350 for an animal shelter.
Vaccines: The cost of intake vaccinations for dogs to prevent: Distemper/Parvo, Bordetella, and Rabies can cost approximately $60 or more.
Parasite Treatments and preventative monthly flea, tick, and ear mite treatments for animals are $10-$60, assuming no labs were needed.
De-wormer medications are given as a preventative, as opposed to waiting to see evidence of worms. These treatments can cost approximately $10-$30, assuming that no lab work was needed.
Microchips: The cost for a shelter to microchip their animals is approximately $35.
Food, Shelter & Comfort: The cost to feed a dog for a month in an animal shelter can range greatly based on the resources of the shelter, but a general ballpark estimate is around $40-$60.
Extreme Conditions: If your adopted animal is on anti-anxiety medication, eye drops, or other antibiotics or medicines, the shelter may be paying an average of $100 or more in order to provide their care.
Additional surgeries to include dental work: average $100 and up.
Do you offer discounted adoptions?
Unfortunately, we no longer offer discounts at this time.
Do you run adoption specials?
We do! We regularly host adoption specials with discounted rates on pets. Adoption fees support the services and care of the other animals in our programs. (i.e. the adoption fees for puppies helps balance out the lower cat adoption fees).
Can I bring my dog to play with shelter dogs?
You are welcome to bring your dog(s) during your scheduled appointment to do a meet and greet with shelter staff and a dog(s) that you are considering for adoption. We want to try to make sure that pets are compatible before you bring a new family member home.
However, we do not do “playdates” at the shelter with non-shelter dogs. Some of the reasons for this are:
1) The potential for the spread of disease
2) Limited staff availability
3) Lack of physical structure to host these playdates.
Why is there a fee to reclaim a lost pet?
The simple answer is that there are costs to running a shelter to take care of your pet during its stay at WVHS.
To break it down a little, let’s talk about a common scenario when an animal is brought into the shelter. Most commonly, animals are brought to the shelter either by a private citizen or Animal Control/law enforcement. Once they arrive, our staff scans the animal for a microchip to see if we can find an owner. Every animal brought into the shelter is scanned for a microchip.
During the intake process, animals undergo a general physical evaluation. They are checked for potential medical conditions and examined by the veterinarian, if needed. Then they are given vaccinations to help protect them (as recommended by National Best Practices), entered into the database, and treated for parasites. They are then placed in a kennel and immediately given a meal and water.
If an animal stays with us for multiple days they will be given food, water, and medical attention as needed. Additionally, staff cleans each kennel daily and again hourly, as needed. All of these services cost the shelter money; to provide staff to perform the tasks, to feed/water/shelter and generally care for your pet. Owner reclaim fees help to offset these costs, incentivize more responsible ownership in the future, and assist in funding community programs that address overpopulation.
We (and nearly all other shelters around the country) have found that one of the leading causes of animal welfare issues is unsterilized (unspayed/unneutered) pets. Being unsterilized can cause problems with unwanted/unplanned breeding, wandering, aggressive behavior, and more. A large portion of the dogs that come into the shelter as strays are not spayed/neutered. We try to incentivize owners to spay/neuter their pets through an adjusted cost option depending on whether they are spayed or neutered. If you have lost a pet, please visit our lost and found page.
Why aren’t there more dog parks in Canyon County?
West Valley Humane Society does not have any control over parks and community space in Canyon County. If you would like to propose changes to your community we highly recommend getting more involved in your community, going to town hall events, talking to parks and recreation, and making your voice heard.
How does animal control work with West Valley Humane Society?
Animal Control is a separate entity from West Valley Humane Society. Animal Control works for the city they are serving, or for the County Sheriff. The best way to contact Animal Control is through Canyon County Dispatch here: 208-455-5925 for the City of Caldwell or rural county. Or here for Nampa City: (208)465-2257.
We do not have the ability to pick up strays, take animals from homes, or otherwise perform rescue outside of our facility. If you have concerns about an animal, make sure to contact your local Animal Control to get the most immediate service.
