I recently started fostering a bunny for OAS and they are really wonderful. The folks working and volunteering there care so much about animals and put a lot of effort in to getting them in to foster homes and adopted. For example they have instagram pages for the senior dogs and the rabbits to help promote them more. Please consider fostering or adopting from OAS! And please know that the crisis of animals in needs is not the fault of rescues and shelters, it's the fault of breeders and buyers who keep exploiting animals for profit. As the saying goes "don't breed or buy, while shelter animals die" Separately from fostering, I do mutual aid with some unhoused folks and their dogs. One friends dog who I had gotten spayed ended up getting hit by a car and thankfully OAS received her body and was able to contact us so that her guardian could have closure and we could honor her life properly. It's not an easy job that OAS is doing, but they are saving lives in an ongoing crisis of abused and unwanted animals. read more

Oakland Animal Services - Adopt Auklet from Oakland Animal Services 3 - Animal Shelters Near Me - Oakland, California

Just adopted from OAS in July 2026, and it was such a good experience. The adoption team and staff were very friendly and supportive. They provided as much information and resources as possible. Would definitely adopt here again when we're ready read more

UPDATE as of 2/4/25 Keea's Test Results came back from the lab in New York. " Very Strong Positive " for Bartonella aka Cat Scratch Disease. Bartonella in Cats Transmission: Spread among cats primarily by the cat flea (Ctenocephalides Felis). Symptoms: Most infected cats show no signs of illness, acting as carriers. In rare cases, they may experience temporary fever, lethargy, or swollen lymph nodes, particularly if stressed or immunocompromised. It is CONTAGIOUS and they must be kept away from other animals and for humans you must not let them scratch you. Cat Scratch Fever (Disease) in Humans Symptoms: Develops 1-3 weeks after a scratch or bite, typically causing a small, red bump at the site, followed by swollen, tender lymph nodes, fever, headache, and fatigue. Severity: Usually mild and self-limiting in healthy people, though it can cause serious complications (heart or neurological issues) in those with weak immune systems. Bartonella can also cause severe, chronic inflammation in cats leading to eye issues and, in some cases, blindness, as well as neurological symptoms which would explain Keea's eye issues and the fact she has trouble using back legs. Hopefully whoever adopted Gramps (who was in the same room as her) will see this. TREATMENT - 5 weeks of Doxycycline. The cat must initially be treated for 4 weeks and if they test negative after 4 weeks be treated that extra 5th week as a safety precaution. Again if you have other pets, children etc PLEASE keep away. Protect yourself and wear gloves if the cat is a risk of scratching you when medicating. Also if you see the white third eyelid this means the cat is dehydrated and must be given IV Fluid's immediately. read more

Oakland Animal Services - Animal Shelters Near Me - Oakland, California

Thank you you forever to OAS for our perfect little Bear! We made several visits to the shelter when we were contemplating getting our second cat. We searched the website and found two kitties we like, and another 1 year old cat, however they were adopted before the website could be updated. Which I don't mind because I'm glad they got there forever homes. Although I do hope they update their website ASAP so people don't make long drives and not find the pets they were hoping to meet. When we got there we had to fill an intake sheet, and was directed to wash your hands before going into every cat visiting room, and got to know the cats more. The volunteers are definitely overwhelmed but they were so patient when we wanted to play and get to know each kitten. They're pretty knowledgeable about compatibility especially since we have a master cat, and you can tell they really care about the pets there. I'll knock off a star only because we were told conflicting things by different volunteers around when we could take our kitten home, which definitely got our hopes up because he still needed to be neutered. Nonetheless I had an easy adoption process, which was free due to a partnership with Bissell. I'm so grateful for everything they do, and will continue supporting by donating food! read more

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This place does so much with so little. Understaffed, underfunded, and yet they do low-cost adoptions and free community services. Yay Oakland. read more

Thank you to Deborah, Jen, Lauren, and all the volunteers and fosters who helped me every step of my adoption process. Amazing souls are apart of this OAS community and I feel inspired to return and foster and volunteer as well. I adopted a new piece of my heart today and I cannot recommend this place, the animals and the experience enough. The biggest challenge was making a decision. The fees are so ridiculously low for all the work the volunteers and fosters put in, and the animals are incredible. read more

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The staff was great. You can tell that they really care for the animals! I adopted a four year old Maltese. He is extremely shy. He was brought in from the streets. I think him and I will create a very strong bond. The people that helped me were excellent. They explained so much! Thanks! read more

Caring staff. Does a great job with limited resources . They care about the animals

Yet again... Trying to adopt a cat. I had to wait over 25 minutes for anyone to show me any cats. They have 1000 volunteers standing around chatting. Maybe I came on a bad day, I don't think so. This is a poorly run shelter. Also told them that I wanted to adopt a kitten based on having a dog in the house already. Thought it would be easier to introduce the kitten versus a grown cat. They agreed. They showed me their "kitten". It was a full grown cat. I pointed that out to them and she kept insisting it was a kitten. If you don't know the difference between a full-grown cat and a kitten, maybe you shouldn't even volunteer. But this was an employee. read more

I rescued a kitten from the inside of my car engine. I called to check if it would be alright to bring the kitten in as there was no mom around or other kittens. I was told yes. As soon as I get there and open the door, I'm greeted with the face of disgust. The woman from the phone was there, didn't say hello, just told me to sign in then disregarded me standing there for quite some time before attending me and the kitten. Finally she comes over and asks what I need, I explain I called and had the kitten. I asked if they were full with cat adoptions at the moment and she kept an asking why I'm asking to begin with, instead of just answering my simple question. With an attitude might I add. I told her ,I was told that animals have been euthanized before as a last resort if there is no space. It also says it online. She laughed at me and started to sarcastically say no and that whoever told me is a liar. I said okay.. mage then comes back after taking the kitten back and tried to be conniving and got in my face and told me that next time I come to bring the actual home owner where the cat was found bc my id had my old home address on it. I definitely have proof with my name and address on it but the way she went about the whole interaction from opening the door to the end was foul and unprofessional. People like that do not need to be working in a place of service, especially with animals. God knows how she probably treats them if she's disrespectful and gross with humans who have not done anything to her. Her bae is Crystal she says and I'll for-sure be calling her manager tomorrow morning with this complaint again. read more

I was looking for a bunny and this place had a lot of bunnies. I found this place on yelp I called and someone answered right away and said I could stop by. You fill out a form of what you're looking for and a volunteer talks to you. There's benches outside where you sit and talk and a huge yard that's gated for dogs to run around. I worked with Whitney and Charolette to get my bunny. They let me look at the bunnies. All the bunnies there are so friendly and clean. They all come with shots and fixed. I had to set a second appointment to try to set an appointment to bond my bunnies. It was only a week out and they worked with my schedule. When we went back we tried to bond my bunny and we found a girl bunny that was amazing. Our only cost was $20. This is my 8th animal i rescue and the experience exceeded my expectations. I was completely impressed how fun and easy it was. Also the cost of $20 you can not beat that. I highly recommend this place they had a lot of animal and there is a lot of volunteers that work with the animals. You can tell they care and it shows because the animals are happy. If you are thinking of getting a pet please consider going here first. read more

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Long story short, I almost surrendered my cat two days ago. I have 2 special needs cats that due to age, medications, and lord knows what else decided they would become enemies. My wife and I felt like we had no other choice but surrender one of them. But how do you choose between your kids? It's an impossible task. So we ended up dropping one of our cats at Oakland Animal Services with intentions of rehoming him. Surrendering a pet costs $60. Ann Dunn the director was so kind and understanding. She really cares about the animals and had full intentions on finding a good home for my boy. She asked what food he liked, for all his medical records including blood tests, as well as his personality. She kept him in a quiet place right in her office for two days until she could find a place for him. But after two days of agony, guilty, and feeling like my home was empty, I came back for him. He was sitting in Ann's office ready to come back home. I'm very thankful to Ann, Animals Services, and even Cat Town who all help find good homes for pets. If you are looking for a pet and can take care of a fur baby physically, emotionally, and financially, there's no better deed than adopting. And if you are like me, don't give up your fur children unless you have no other choice, thankfully my boy is back home. read more

Staff is so helpful and kind. I recently adopted an older cat named Thomas and he is just the sweetest cuddle bug and also very smart and wise. No points taken off for having to wait to get him neutered (turns out he already was). read more

Lots of volunteers wandering around with lots of rules and very poor animal care. They require you to sign a waiver to even walk in and look at the cats. The conditions inside the shelter are pretty abysmal for a first world country. Way too many volunteers trying to find purpose. Unnecessary level of control given the number of animals seeking a good home. Clearly, a poorlymanaged operation. Absolutely filthy area called the catio filled with bird feathers. read more

The employees are rude don't have time to answer questions. They aren't very helpful. I'm not sure if I would go there again. I wanted to see the dogs. I was told I needed to be escorted to the area. read more

This cat is the best thing that's ever happened to us. As an adoptee he has challenged us, but teaches us worthy lessons every time. A creature worthy of love and cannot imagine not having him. Also, thank you to whoever named him. We love Flip Phone. read more

This lady, unprofessional. Could have said it in a nicer way. But had the audacity to push me to a sign- in sheet when i said i had one question. This one question that could have been answered in 2 seconds. But now i have to wait in line behind all these people for you to answer one simple question that i know you would have known on the top of your noggin. Just spoke to her: Asked her my question in 2 seconds like I said. Her sarcastic a* attitude. Other lady was way more professional than her and she didn't even have to help me for me to know. Ginger short hair needs a reevaluation for employment. read more

I feel conflicted about writing this review because I don't want to deter people from adopting an amazing pet just because the adoption process is flawed and the volunteers make it worse. I came here last week to adopt a dog. I was 100% set on adopting a dog. Prepared my home, took the day off work, ready to adopt. It's my third dog and second adoption. I'm not a new dog owner and have owned difficult breeds. I choose Oakland Animal Services because they euthanize a lot of animals that don't get adopted in time. I was 100% committed to taking one dog off the kill list for the week. I arrive with my printed application in hand and they tell me I have to wait an hour. There are 7-8 volunteers standing around but apparently only a couple people do the "dog matching" process required before you can meet a dog. I say ok and then only wait 5 minutes. The process feels weird and the staff seems controlling but I'm there to save a dog's life so I'm keeping an open mind. I meet with a "match maker" and we have a long talk. I ask to see 2-3 specific dogs as I've already researched the dogs being euthanized in 4 days and have decided that 1 of these 3 are coming home with me. I'm told one of the dogs may or may not be available but they don't have time to check if he's around. The match maker essentially ignores the two other dogs I request to see and brings out a husky which I was open to seeing but I didn't want to argue with a volunteer. The husky comes out and a volunteer takes the husky into a little area. The volunteer starts feeding it treats and bonding with it. The husky is then let out into their yard and the volunteer is interacting with the husky asking me if I want to adopt it. I have spent 5 minutes with the husky. I haven't had a single interaction with the dog because the volunteer can't get out of the way. The process feels uncomfortable. Kind of like going to a used car dealership. I tell the volunteer I'm not adopting a dog for life, as I would never return a pet under any circumstances, when I've only spent 5 minutes with the dog and you're the person doing all of the interacting. I feel uncomfortable and tell the volunteer I'm not sure about this dog. The volunteer seems irritated I didn't say yes to adopting after 5 minutes. At this point, I just want to leave as the adoption process here feels very uncomfortable. But the "match maker" finds me and asks me if I want to see another dog. I say sure and a new volunteer brings out another dog I didn't ask to see. Having learned from the last volunteer that I will only have 5 minutes to make an adoption decision and that the volunteer will do 100% of the interacting with the dog, I try to pet the dog and connect with him. The volunteer freaks out lecturing about how to interact with dogs and on and on. She was almost in tears and stormed off when I asked her to please calm down so we can work together to save a dog today. She lost her shit and stormed off yelling that she has better things to do with her free time. She's here for free and doesn't have time for this. At this point I'm looking around to see if there's a hidden camera and it's a prank. The "match maker" defended her saying that they all have it rough at this shelter. It's real hard on the volunteers. They can't change that you can only see 1-2 dogs per visit and will only have 5-15 minutes to decide if you are compatible with the pet all while under the controlling supervision of a volunteer. I thanked her for her time and left to the SPCA in Dublin. At the SPCA I walked around the kennels, by myself, and got a feel for the dogs. I got to spent 15 minutes with a guy I connected with, who go figure, happened to be a husky. 30 minutes later I walked out of the SPCA with a new family member and best friend. The process at the SPCA was night and day from the Oakland Animal Services. How many dogs get euthanized because of the pushy, arrogant and impatient volunteers at OAS? Leave your egos at the door. Your job is to facilitate an animal's adoption before they get put down. The OAS needs an overhaul. It was such a disorganized mess. I really left there feeling sad and confused. Unless OAS adopted every pet on the priority list last week, know that if even one animal was put down today (they put them down on Mondays), it was 100% the fault of the volunteers. It should never happen that someone comes to your shelter to adopt and leaves empty handed. You should have made sure I rescued one of your dogs. I'm glad I found my new best friend at the SPCA but if the volunteers at OAS did their job even just a little bit, I would have never left OAS without adopting one of their many dogs. read more

It's not everyday that you drive 6 hours from home in Orange County to see a Bully, but boy are we stoked that we did. We originally saw a post from a friend on Instagram that had us dialing and emailing OAS on New Years Eve Eve; the 30th. Received an email back from Martha that evening and we were trying to track down this sweet boy who our friend turned in that she found at the BART station. A few emails and calls later we were able to locate him and after he passed his dog/dog tests and was chipped and neutered, we could be the first family to see him on Jan 3rd! The kids and wife loved him and so did our 16 year old Pomeranian. Jaxon is now a member of the family and we love him so much. Martha made the process super easy , full communication from hundreds of miles away and next thing you know we were bringing our boy home. It was an easy and simple process and we are so happy we adopted! Thanks to Martha and the OAS team we can't thank you enough. read more

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I had a wonderful and easy time here. I even found a loyal companion! You can tell the people here really Care about the animals. They are so warm and welcoming and even though they were short staffed they made sure I knew I wasn't forgotten about when I waited a little bit. Pleasantly and surprisingly pleased with this place!! read more

I know from past experience that the employees That worked there truly cared for the animals. read more

This review is not for the shelter it is for their staff. I was interested in adopting a dog, and I called the shelter on a Monday to get some information because it wasn't neutered or spayed yet. I told the person who answered the phone I was very interested in a specific dog. I gave the location # and was told she was still available and to come as soon as the shelter opens on Thursday because small dogs go quickly. When Tuesday came I checked the site again. The dog was still there two hours later. I checked the site again because I was so in love with this dog and it was no longer showing available. So I'm wondering what happened? What changed in two hours because according to your website you're closed on Tuesday and Wednesdays so what happened to the dog?? I called the shelter hoping I can speak to someone and the person who answered the phone at first was pleasant and I told them why I was calling and I checked this morning however now they're not listed. Can you tell me what happened? Are they still available? She asked me for the animals name. I told her Fernanda suddenly this person became rude with attitude and barked at me "she's no longer available. She's been adopted!" I asked how is that possible, adoptions are not until Thursday? Is there a special adoption going on? and instead of answering a very simple question she barked again "the dog has been Adopted!" I said OK and she hangs up. For some people when it comes to animals, especially adopting from a shelter. There's more involved than just going out picking a dog and taking it home. There's emotions involved, especially when you see a dog and you really get an instant connection with them. Whomever this person is who answers the phones at the shelter. They need to get a refreshing course on customer service. Show the person who is calling empathy when you are give disappointing news. Show a little kindness, show a little concern for the people that you're talking to because you don't know the effects of someone you is being rude, heartless and with zero compassion can have on that person. read more

OAS has become an amazing local shelter. They do amazing out reach and have an incredible foster program that saves so many dogs. I am very impressed with how much they have improved over the last 7 years. read more

I love the services OAS provide. I am currently fostering a rabbit and the bunny lady I'm working with is amazing and so dedicated to her job. But they need more funding, staffing and volunteers to foster etc. The reason I docked a star is bc there needs to be an effective City solution to reporting and acting on dog and animal abuse, because you will get no where phoning nonemergency PD in Oakland. Also, dogs should not be considered property. Laws need to be changed. No one should be allowed to sell dogs, bc there's a dog crisis. I get that people need money, but this is not the way. UPDATE: I got through to Animal Control. There's a new number that you can call when you witness an animal abuse situation in Oakland, leave a message and someone will call you back asap (service until 9pm) (510) 535-4884 read more

OAS is an Amazing organization helping animals across Oakland. Fostering programs and other adoption opportunities abound. OAS rocks! I found a dog on my street, took him to OAS for chip scanning and evaluation. He's now my boy Jasper. read more

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Never going back. This is not a place to for a smooth adoption process or one that considers your emotional interests. I absolutely agree with the previous review from (Yes O). There is absolutely a great deal of discrimination and lack of emotional awareness. I finally found a cat that fit my needs and I was elated. Here's what I was told: *He may be a stray because of how friendly he is. *We will put him on the website if the original family doesn't claim him on Saturday because they want to give the family a chance to look for him. *If that's the case, we will put him on the website. *Come back at exactly 12pm on Thursday to adopt him because several other couples are interested. All the while, I'm being addressed as though I didn't know what I wanted and being pushed from not wanting him. They were consistent with having me adopt a "shy cat" when I KNEW I found who I wanted and needed. They even pushed the idea of being a foster parent. I thought it was cool but I felt like I was still being persuaded from pursing a cat a fell in love with. Moreso, they kept pushing us to come back in March because its mating season - habitually telling me to ignore my pursuits. The next day, I sent an email asking about him because the cat was on the website. They returned stating that they didn't know who I was talking about. I ignored it because I assumed it was another volunteer. I accept that fault because I DIDNT KNOW they they were going to move him. THEY NEVER MENTIONED IT. He went to Hop Along and THEN Marine Humane. So, here we are trying to chase him down and he was adopted earlier this week. Honestly, I'm emotionally hurt by it all. If I can summarize it, I'm annoyed and bamboozled because the push away from my desires was constant, they never disclosed anything about moving the cat away and the overall experience of choosing a cat wasn't inviting. I think they do would do a great job at holding space for the animals and getting them sheltered but they will choose where they feel who will benefit especially if they feel the cat should be in a Caucasian home. Maybe it's just the environemnt but you'd have a better experience going to Cat Town. read more

My dumb self left the door ajar overnight and my dumb child (aka dog) walked out the door and decided to have an adventure. Worst Christmas present ever. Thankfully, someone found her and brought her to OAS. OAS checked her microchip immediately and had her photo uploaded within 3-4 hours. That is awesome, since they're also trying to care of the dogs who are already at the shelter. Tip: Check to see if your pet has a microchip number that is 16 digits long. My vet gave me a faulty number (basically had too many numbers) and the scanner can only read up to 15 digits. If your pet has a 16 digit number, you will be SOL. Thank you so much OAS! read more

The folks here work so hard under severe limitations and a constant influx of animals as conditions in Oakland continue to deteriorate. Their budget has been cut by 25% since 2000 and will be further cut with the current city budget crisis. Yet they do everything they can to find homes for the animals in their care. Unlike private shelters, the do not have the luxury of refusing to take new animals even when they are full. Please consider fostering or volunteering with their dog program! read more

Great dog foster program. They're very accommodating with finding the right match, providing supplies and ensuring a great experience for you and the dog. Highly recommend it if you want to support this overburdened shelter by giving a dog a break and giving yourself a rewarding experience read more

Spent an hour and a half waiting to see a specific rabbit only to be told she had" just got adopted". Very unprofessional.

I saw the young dog named Lucinda on Mornings on 2 Weekend News program back in 2018 as part of their pets adoption segment. I knew I wanted the dog. I woke my wife and kids up first thing the next day to the shelter. We knew the dog was right for us is when my little one walked up to her and she allowed my toddler daughter to poke her face around without showing teeth. The adoption process was painless, but a lot of paperwork like showing you residency etc. we did have to wait for two weeks for her to be spayed and recover from kennel cough before we can pick her up. When I picked her up she had just recover from her surgery, so I was a bit surprised that the shelter release her so fast. She was still groggy in the car, but it was cute. It's been a few years now and we just love our Boingle (beagle/shorthair pointer mix). read more

Oakland Animal Services - The best dog in the world. It doesn't have a bad bone in her. - Animal Shelters Near Me - Oakland, California

I've been preparing to open my home to a dog and decided to go by Oakland Animal Services. I went early, and after chatting with the registration person for a few minutes, I was guided back to spend time with two dogs that were what we're looking for. I squatted down to let the dog smell me, get used to my presence, and within one minute the volunteer kept describing what was wrong with the dog. I wasn't sure if I could take on a dog with medical issues but wanted to sit with him to see if we would be a good fit. The volunteer basically told me that if I didn't fall in love immediately and was ready to adopt, I should just move on. I didn't get two minutes with the dog without her constantly talking about his issues. All I could do was look into his sweet little eyes. I would've like to have spent a few more moments with him. I really was contemplating whether or not I could give him the care he needed, but didn't get the chance. I adopted a special needs cat and his sister from OAS about six years ago and they're thriving in our home. When we adopted our cats, we got to sit with them. Spend quality time so as to make the best decision. OAS was way more chaotic than it was today but we still got time. When we went to pick up our cats, I was surprised over how rough the volunteer was with them. The special needs cat was already traumatized, but the volunteer then showed no care for that. It took me a long time to get our kitty to warm up. Now he and his sister are happy and healthy. Now we're ready to open up our home to a dog. I wanted to spend time with the second dog today but the volunteer rushed me out of there. I didn't even get 5 minutes once I met the first one. It took me a while when I got home to figure out what was bothering me. It was the experience with the volunteer. I disagree with her thoughts. I do believe we can fall in love with our fur babies immediately. I also firmly believe that it's important to weigh all the factors before adopting a pet. That creates success. I really pray these two dogs, and all the others can find really good, loving long-term homes. I genuinely hope that this volunteer won't scare them away. Some of the volunteers today were really nice, thoughtful in talking about the different dogs and their needs. But between my experience 6 years ago, and how the volunteer was today, I'm sure if I will adopt from OAS again. read more

Today we had to put our 16 girl down. To say it's hard is an understatement. Crystal helped us at the front, with what to expect and made the process incredibly easy. She was very empathetic and caring. We didn't catch the name of the doctor assisting us but she was also very kind and talked us through the process. I can't thank them enough for helping us through this very hard time for our family. They were amazing. read more

We got our pair of kittens from here! They were very busy but still made time to see us thru even past closing time here! They really love the pets here and we were able to see that while waiting and it was lovely to experience. The kind lady that helped us was patient and let us know everything about each group of kittens/cats we saw. In the end we chose the energetic pair and are very grateful for Oakland Animal services! There's so many sweet faces needing a second chance and new home!! Check them out! read more

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We love Oakland Animal Services!!! Adopted my black tuxedo cat from here 13 YEARS ago. Support your local shelter!!! read more

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So I worked In rescue for years. Initially helping with whelpings then focusing on behaviors in giant breed dogs. I've been to shelters and rescues from Sacramento to San Jose to Fresno and in between. When I say I was gobsmacked with Oakland Animal Services adoption process, I mean it. First, in no way is this to put down or say other shelters/rescues are doing it wrong. They do what they can with what they have. I just want to point out the absolutely brilliant process that OAS has created being animal centric. They have specific days and times that you get to come see the animals. (Due to covid you can't walk the shelter) No appointments necessary unless you see a dog online that is in foster care then you need to follow those instructions on the website to arrange a time to meet them. When you get there you sign up and fill out a form. (The entire process is in stations which is so efficient) You'll then be called in order and you will go sit with a staff member that will talk about what dogs you're interested in along with picking your brain regarding your family's lifestyle/environment. This! This is so important as a lot of times people want a dog because of the look or what they think the dog will do. By the staff member taking the time to find out what your household is like they can help match you with a dog that better suited you. For example, someone wants a lab because they're so pretty. But this same person works from home, doesn't have a yard and isn't a very active individual. A lab (for the most part) needs to have a place to run, play and be active. This dog would be better suited for a person who hikes, has a backyard they can toss a ball around with them in, or a person with land and maybe another dog so it can get that lab energy out daily. The goal is to find the right household for the dog as no one wants to see a dog be returned for any reason (even though it happens sometimes and it's unavoidable) Having the staff member sit with you helps find a better suited animal for you that you may have never even considered. I had the pleasure of having Scotty/Scottie as my OAS counselor. First of all, total rockstar! We went over the dogs I was interested in the dog binder. Also each group of dogs (small, large ex.) has specific staff members who deal with the dogs so they can give you more insight to the dog. Scotty/Scottie was also able to show me a couple other dogs that would also fit my family's needs and lifestyle that I would have never even thought of. Love this! They then pull the dog you want to meet and have you go to a private area to meet with the dog. You'll get to speak with a staff member who has had first hand experience with the dog. (If you're interested in more than one dog, they'll bring out one at a time for you to spend time with) At this point I was bawling at how beautiful this process was. The time, effort and care put into finding the dogs/cats home is astonishing! To be animal forward in regard to finding a new home is the hope but it doesn't get to always happen that way. So bravo to the person in charge of creating this new culture at OAS. This should be the standard across the board. This process is not quick and let's be honest- it shouldn't be. If you can spend a day at the car dealership with no qualms then spending several hours making sure you find the proper fur baby should be understandable. read more

I drove an hour and a half to adopt a specific dog. When they brought him out, he was really nothing like the description on the website but still I felt I could work with him. I brought my dog with so she could meet him but they refused to allow me to handle my dog during the introduction process. Since my dog is timid and fearful and was already getting anxious that she might be at the vet or a boarding kennel, had I given the leash to another handler she would have been so anxious and upset that she would have flipped out and not given the dog a moment's notice. Their refusal to have any flexibility in the adoption process resulted in a red line dog who is on the priority list to fail to get an absolutely wonderful home with a very experienced and compassionate dog handler. To top it off they were then rude to me. Shame on them. read more

Living in the east bay, my husband and I were looking for a shelter to adopt a new fur baby. Unfortunately with the pandemic a lot of local shelters and rescue organizations are only facilitating adoptions via appointment and during limited hours. I came across the Oakland Animal Services website and saw that they were open every Thurs, Fri, Sat & Sun between 12-3pm to speak with their staff and meet adoptable animals without an appointment needed. We stopped by on a Saturday afternoon and the parking lot was full. There was a 15-20 min wait to see the animals, the meet and greets are done outdoors and fees are paid at their front desk. They limit the number of animals you can see to two at a time so that people don't take forever to make a decision. If you want to see more than two animals, you can return to the back of the line and see more animals. Oakland Animal Services also fosters a lot of their animals with foster families, if you see a fostered animal on their website that you are interested in meeting you should make an appointment so that the foster family can bring the animal to the shelter. I am rating four stars because they are hard to reach over the phone. Their website says you can call between 11am-4pm however I only had luck calling right at 11am. Tried leaving voice messages to reschedule an appointment but no one got back to me. Probably after 12pm they get busy with processing adoptions or are short staffed. read more

We went there and tried to turn in a stray cat a few days ago. And the woman at the front said "we CAN'T accept cat here". I was confused and she didn't give me the reason. Maybe only dogs and other animals?? We went all the way to this place. But that woman declined and was told to go to a different shelter which can't accept stray cats. And this shelter is a public shelter. read more

Great experience adopting a dog. Patient, organized, caring, friendly/ a wonderful place to find your new best friend.