WHO WE ARE:

California Animal Rescue is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit rescue group located in Sonoma County and dedicated to the rescue of homeless animals from county shelters and out on the streets. Because there are so many homeless pets, we try to help control animal population through diligent spaying and neutering of the animals brought into our care. Our rescue group mainly consists of volunteers who are willing to take abandoned animals into their homes, nurture, train and nurse them so they are able to be placed into permanent homes with loving, adopted parents.

WHY WE EXIST:

Animal shelters are overcrowded with pets that, with a little more time and love, can be better suited for adoption. Some are too young to be placed for adoption right away, many are frightened or traumatized from previous events in their lives, or they may be sick and needing treatment or surgery to be at their best. Many of these adoptable pets are euthanized only because their short window of time has run out to be adopted out of the shelter. This is where California Animals Rescue strives to fill some of these gaps. Our goal is to give some of these animals more time than the county shelter can offer.

WHAT WE DO:

California Animal Rescue works with volunteers who foster animals in their homes, often caring for sick and injured animals and nursing many of them back to health. While we typically focus on small dogs under 20 pounds, we also can assist with larger dogs and referrals for cats and kitten rescue. We foster and adopt out around 200-300 dogs per year.

Santa Rosa City shelters do not need assistance at this time so we focus on high-kill shelters in Northern California, but Sonoma County Humane Society also releases some of their animals to our care. We also rescue many animals from Central Valley shelters, as well as taking owner surrenders and strays from all over Sonoma County. This involves taking in orphans and homeless or abandoned animals we find or that others bring to us. By taking these loving pets under our wing, we alleviate shelter overcrowding and give these animals a better chance at finding a good home. 

Fostering means that our volunteers take the time to get to know each and every animal that comes to us. When animals are physically ready, we have them spayed or neutered, microchipped, vaccinated and de-wormed before putting them up for adoption. Many of our foster parents can also provide information about the animal’s personality traits such as if they are good with kids or other animals.

WHO IS BEHIND THE SCENES:

Although we are a non-profit corporation, in practicality, we are just a handful of dedicated animal-loving volunteers. We all have jobs, families and busy lives, but we’re all committed to saving animals.  Often we stay up at night bottle-feeding puppies, caring for sick and injured dogs including after surgery or for emergency trips to the vet.  

Since we operate out of our own homes, our space is very limited. We tend to limit our focus on rescuing animals that are in critical need of help. During spring and summer, we often reach out to our seasonal foster parents that help us during some of our busiest times.  We always need more fosters so please contact us if you’re interested in fostering!  Remember... even Superman had foster parents.