Shelter Information
Our Hours of Operation
The shelter is open to the public from 12:00 p.m. until 5:30 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday & Friday and 12:00 p.m. until 3:30 p.m. on Saturdays. The shelter is closed on Sundays. The adoption areas are closed on Wednesdays. The shelter telephone number is (434) 799-0843.
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Kennel attendants are on duty from 7:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.
Monday through Friday, from 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, and from
9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. on Sunday.
The business office and adoption areas are open from 12:00 – 5:30 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday & Friday, and from 12:00 – 3:30 p.m. on Saturday. Those areas are closed on Sunday. Adoption areas are closed on Wednesdays.If you have an emergency before or after those hours, please call 799-5111 in the City. The dispatchers have our emergency contact numbers.
Drop-off cages are available after-hours, but we request that you call the phone numbers on the cages. An employee will be dispatched to take the animal inside. The cages are supplied with blankets, food, and water for the animal’s temporary comfort.
For after-hour emergencies, please call (434) 799-5111 for the City and
(434) 432-7937 for the County. Officers will be dispatched to help the injured animal.
Spay Neuter Rebate Program:
We offer spay/neuter assistance to residents of Danville and Pittsylvania County through a rebate program. Amounts can vary, Please call (434) 799-0843 for information and requirements.
Animals Adopted from our Shelter:
We spay or neuter every animal which leaves the shelter. Danville and Pittsylvanian County residents may adopt animals younger than 4 months with proven spay neuter history. Spay neuter is required by state law. There are no real risks beyond those for any surgical procedure and there are great benefits in terms of impacting the pet overpopulation problem. Contracts that ask people to promise to spay or neuter an animal at some future date are often forgotten or ignored and require staff time to follow up. An estimated eighteen million dogs and cats are euthanized in this country each year because people ignore the fact that their pet is contributing to the problem. There are not enough homes for them all. Remember there are health and behavioral benefits to having an animal spayed or neutered. Neutered cats are less likely to spray, neutered dogs are less likely to roam or get into fights. (Note: at least 85% of all dogs killed on our highways are unneutered males). Spayed dogs and cats are free of the risk of developing some cancers and will have a greatly reduced risk of developing others.
No animal organization can properly serve the animals without focusing on the vital need of spaying and neutering. One female dog and one female cat can be responsible for one-half million births in a seven-year period. Since October of 1993, we have assisted with the cost of over 50,000 sterilization surgeries. We expect to become even more aggressive in our efforts to ensure that every dog and cat is spayed or neutered. A natural consequence will be that no unwanted dog or cat will face the perils of life as a stray and the number of animals received at the shelter will decrease. Under Virginia law and City of Danville ordinance, every dog and cat adopted from an animal shelter must be spayed or neutered and every national animal welfare organization supports that requirement. We agree wholeheartedly with that law and are in compliance with it.
We operate and maintain the City of Danville Animal Shelter. Each year, we receive about 2,500 dogs and cats and about 200 other animals, including livestock, exotic pets, and other small pets. We never have (and never will) turned away any animal.
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Spay and Neuter
We offer year-round spay/neuter assistance to residents of Danville and Pittsylvania County. We make it easy, too! Check the “Low Cost Spay & Neuter” section for more information.
We maintain a lost-and-found registry for pets. A few times a year we sponsor FREE Microchip events.
Education
We provide humane education programs to schools, youth groups, churches, clubs, and civic organizations, sharing information pet care, responsible pet ownership, and humane treatment of all animals.
Cruelty and Abuse
We assist in abuse and cruelty investigations in Danville and Pittsylvania County.
We work with both the City and County animal control officers to provide a full range of services for stray, injured, and lost animals.
In cooperation with area veterinarians, we provide medical treatment for sick and injured stray animals
Domestic Violence
We work with a domestic violence program to ensure that pets are not kept in dangerous situations if the abused family members enter a shelter. We also work with homeless shelters to provide temporary shelter for pets.
Our employees and volunteers stand ready to assist in cases of disasters or emergencies. We have prepared the shelter to handle such emergencies.
Our adoption program carefully screens homes, ensuring that animals adopted from us will never again be hungry, thirsty, or unwanted.
Adoption Follow-up Program
We maintain an adoption follow-up program.
We are an information source for all questions about animal problems, behaviors, and needs.
Legislation
We support legislation that seeks to protect and promote the humane treatment of all animals