My sister found several nestlings strew across her patio last night in the rain after their birdhouse was apparently knocked over by an animal. She cared for them overnight and headed to Wildcare in San Rafael to drop them off in the morning. Even though Peninsula was way closer, they didn't open to 11am l, while Wildlife opened at 9am. After dropping them off, she got a call from some dude at Peninsula berating her for going to Wildcare instead of their facility. When she explained how she found them -- cold, drenched from a heavy rainstorm, and that two of them had already died, he replied "Well, sometimes birds die." Complete jerk. Don't risk taking rescued wildlife here. read more

Time of Death: June 7, 2026 at 6:22pm (Sunday) My cat, baby Bella died 8 days after her spayed appointment (5/29/26) at Peninsula Humane Society, San Mateo. Today, 6/7/26 noon, she started throwing up and I was able to get her a 2pm appt. with her primary vet. Few minutes after I left the clinic, I received a phone call saying that she needs to be taken a Pet ER or a specialty hospital. We rushed her to a pet hospital in SF... She was wrapped around my arms in the ICU until she took her last breath & until her last heart beat. read more

Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA - 6/7/2016 @5:46pm - Animal Shelters Near Me - San Mateo, California

On Wednesday, June 17th 2026 I made the fatal mistake of taking a beautiful American robin fledgling to Coyote Point Animal Shelter (after hours, and after being given wrong directions). It either fell out of a nest in my rafter or flew into the window after drinking water from my 3 fountains. I learned yesterday that it only had a dislocated shoulder and a swollen eye. After less than 1 day it was put down. I think it would have recovered with rehab/vet care that I would have paid for. I should have been given that option. Had I known this was going to happen, I would have treated it at home or taken it to the Avian Vet Hospital in Portola Valley. I never should have taken the lovely bird; I would highly recommend that you never take injured wildlife there. I talked to several individuals there discovering there are huge delays in transporting injured wildlife 5 minutes from CPAS to the PHS Burlingame. I was told otherwise when I called initially. DO NOT TAKE ANIMALS OR WILDLIFE TO PHS. read more

Okay, I am only angry with this place right now but I understand they are under staffed. It's just I have crows that visit me daily and follow me everywhere, even swooped down to attack a dog that knocked me down once. So, I had a close bond with these guys. Well last night while walking my dog I saw what looked like a jacket on the ground. It was one of the crows That visited me every day for the last 5 years . I thought he was dead but he wasn't. I called this place and their message said to call another number if u find injured, sick, or dying wild-life. I called 100 times and the line was busy every time. So I had to sit and watch my crow friend die and I did not know what to do. I know CPR for humans but not a crow. I felt helpless as I watched him blink at me a few times before he passed. What's the point of having an after hours wildlife number to call when u find an injured or sick animal if the line is just going to be Busy when u call?? Can't you guys get a multi line phone? Or have a 24hour wild life emergency number that actually works and has someone who can come out and try to save animals that aren't dead yet? Things happen to wildlife at night too. I think The guy could have been saved if you guys didn't have a busy line for 30minutes. I went out today around 4pm and only then were you guys picking him up his body. That was like 18hours after I attempted to contact you guys while he was still alive. So, I'm a little disappointed. Maybe I need to start my own wild life emergency after hours not for profit. Clearly this county doesn't think the life of animals are that worthy of working after 5pm. read more

I'm rating this based on the call I just had... I'm having to help surrender my mothers dogs due to her inability to care for them so I called the shelter to see what their procedures were, if any, because I've never surrendered a pet. Immediately upon answering the phone I'm greeted with a rushed attitude. After saying I'm bringing them in because she can't take care of them, I'm asked, with attitude, WHY? Why can't she take care of them? As if it really matters? So I told the woman that it's because financially we cannot and she immediately followed with "we can't take them in" So I said "okay" but before I could hang up, she asked what breed they were... Can you take them or not?? I told her and she started asking where we lived and if she could speak to my mom I told her no because my mom has a speech impediment and can't talk.. She then told me that if my mom doesn't come with me to surrender the dogs, they won't take them. And that they will more than likely be euthanized. All of this with coldness and attitude in her voice. I really wish I wouldn't gotten her name but I had already been crying all morning and just said okay and hung up. I understand that shelters may not have space. I get that. You do not need to be so cold hearted about it. Yeah it's your job but do you for a second think about the other person on the phone? The owner of the pet? This isn't an easy decision to be faced with as it is and to have someone speak to you with such carelessness hurts. I'm not even gonna bother stopping by because if I recognize the voice, I will have a problem. read more

If I could give this place zero stars I would. I've been here twice. Once when my baby girl passed due to a car accident and they brought her here. They were quick to tell me the fee and ask if I wanted her remains and how I want to pay. They didn't even offer to let me see her so I told them I wanted to see her and they allowed me too. I came here a second time because I found a stray baby kitten maybe a month old and I took her in. The lady at the front looked at the cat and said " ya we would euthanize this cat" so I asked why and they said because she looks to have a respiratory issue. I asked could they just treat her and they said " no we don't do that". Safe to say I left. They offered no help to this poor kitty and WANTED TO KILL her when this was very common in kittens and is treatable. WORST PLACE EVER!!! read more

What I'm seeing is there are more than one review across platforms where someone comes to your facility and claims someone else is an owner of a domestic animal and you're only concerned about who to bill. But my concern isn't even that- it is your inhumanity. I called because my mom was not understanding what was happening and why she was being threatened. When I called I was met with hostility that was unprofessional. I explained that English was not her first language and the person on the phone said "She understood just fine". If she had understood she would not call me in tears and ask me to call PHS and clarify the situation. That woman I spoke to lacked empathy to the nth degree. She accused my mom of breaking laws and causing the kitten harm. When the truth was the new owner had her for upwards of 5 days and let the kitten suffer to the point of no return. My mom had the litter mates and they too had a URI but they did not die because my mom was on top of their care. You wanted to force my mom's hand and pay PHS for euthanasia, or face animal cruelty charges. The kitty was homed to a San Mateo resident but when that person wanted to skirt their responsibility you wanted to find anyone else to pin it on. There are other reviews here that indicate this is your M.O. Your agency has a pattern- you also have a tainted reputation among feral cat trappers/caretakers in the Bay Area. Your practice is to force anyone in the public to pay for euthanasia. Your agency handled this poorly. The San Mateo resident was a neglectful owner and lied about ownership. read more

Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA - This is the SFACC officer who came to our home as a result of PHS claiming animal cruelty over something the new owner did. - Animal Shelters Near Me - San Mateo, California

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Today I made one of the hardest decisions I've made in years and that was to surrender my lizard. The moment I walked into the lobby the woman asked me with a rude tone if she could help me and when I said I wanted to surrender my pet with tears in my eyes, she just asked why and everyone sitting in the lobby is just staring at us. Anyways, I told her I had made every effort to keep my reptile, but was moving out of state and couldn't bring it along. She then said, "Oh, and that's why you think surrendering it is best?" I was speechless as she was belittling me and being a smart you know what.. I'm an adult and she is talking to me like I'm an awful person. This I've heard is called surrender shaming and it's honestly extremely rude and unprofessional. She even told me she will be scolding me and talking to me which she did and proceeded to say that just because I am moving out of state this is not a good reason to surrender a pet. I started crying in front of her and she made me feel worse than I was already feeling when I walked in there. I hope she gets reprimanded for behaving like that with people who are walking in to surrender their pets and are already feeling terrible about doing so. I wish I could've gotten her name but I just know she had a tattoo near her neck or ear area. She is terrible. read more

These guys are severely understaffed, which they tell you via signage. The process for seeing people should be a little more streamlined while being understaffed. They tell you it's a long, wait but unable to give an estimate. There is one person doing the majority of the check ins/answering questions. Maybe the other staff can be cross trained to not only do adoptions. I waited an hour to be told more in detail what I needed to do, when i told them what I needed from them when I walked in. If I had known that, I probably wouldn't have waited as long. After waiting an additional 30 minutes. I was helped and out of there in less than 5 minutes. Maybe break up the types of situations, knock out the "quick" patrons with the less trained people and the longer, more in-depth situations with the staff who is senior? They have to deal with a lot but from the looks of it, they are I need of help from upper management to step in. The staff is very helpful but they need assistance. read more

I really appreciate this Humane Society. They are taking such good care of my Service Dog Gabriel here. Please adopt an animal today to be your Service Dog too if you find that you are in need! read more

Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA - Peninsula Humane Society! - Animal Shelters Near Me - San Mateo, California

Despite the long wait, they really took care of my rabbit for his neutering. When I finally got my appt, it was 3 months in advance. Showed up between 7-8am for check-in, and picked him up between 4-5:30pm. They were very knowledgeable with taking care of rabbits esp the after-care. Even the way they held my rabbit was so good - I'm usually unable to carry him so I am impressed. Bunny parents - recommend this place 100% read more

Super random and spontaneous I arrived home and to my amazement there was a pigeon on the last steps. How odd I never seen a pigeon, as I got closer one could notice it couldn't fly like before. Tbh I went inside to take refuge then peeped thru the window . Okay so I got some bread in hopes to feed it . Took a shower thinking it would fly away and it was still there. Okay so after the thought this was all a bad joke reality sets in and I realized this inured pigeon intentions. The first thing that came to my mind was SPCA . I checked on Yelp and saw the hours posted closed at 1800. Regardless i put Polly the pigeon in a box and took it to this location To my amazement there is a after hours telephone. A live person came out and safely grabbed the bird. read more

Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA - After hours drop - Animal Shelters Near Me - San Mateo, California

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*this review is more so for the customer care I received* I came to claim my parents' missing cat and Alyssa (the staff member that assisted me) was such great help! She was very thorough and thoughtful and made the process a lot smoother and comforting. I'm glad to have received her assistance. read more

Staff was amazing, I highly recommended San Mateo Humane Society, My Armani had to be put down due to cancer. Thank You Armani for 17 plus beautiful years. read more

Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA - RIP Armani 2/27/24 - Animal Shelters Near Me - San Mateo, California

I am not leaving this humane society a good review but will give 5 stars for the purpose it serves. My feedback: I called today to inquire on the euthanasia process for surrendered pets -- I needed to know what exactly the entire process entails because it's vital information for a pet owner that is in the situation that require such services. Putting a pet down is a difficult choice for anyone. My cat is under circumstances that would be best to end her suffering therefore my responsibility is to find the best place for such services. The website sounds promising. I looked online and it sounded like this would be the right place to bring my cat. However, my mind changed shortly after calling. I won't bring my cat somewhere that lacks compassion. The initial phone call leaves either a good or bad impression on someone, and this one call just completely dissuaded me from bringing my cat here. I think they have too much of a high call volume and not enough staff to handle those calls. The cost of euthanasia here for reasonable compared to other clinics and the hours are great. I'm glad they are an open door shelter. That's all. read more

UPDATE AFTER REPLY FROM LISA I spoke with a manager already. Lisa is talking as if she were in the room, and she was not. The fact is: Donna never mentioned a word about my bunny being too sensitive for a spay. She was explaining all of the reasons WHY my bunny would be perfectly fine! It wasn't until I didn't like the way she was covering my bunny's mouth that she literally just snapped and said, "I can't do this." She was grasping my rabbit in a nervous way by covering her mouth. I have another rabbit and have been to the vet many times. Donna didn't even know how to properly pick up a bunny! These people are not experienced. & bring their problems to work with them. You really get what you pay for here I'm happy it happened because i would never want to leave my rabbit with Donna. Lisa's response is a complete lie. She was NOT there. Here is my initial review: I would give zero stars, I would. I was told to drop my rabbit off for a spaying. There was a long line, and the atmosphere was miserable. It looked like a zoo. The nurse practitioner (Donna) was extremely rude and unprofessional. At first, she was telling me all the reasons why the surgery would be safe. She was squishing my bunny's face, and I asked her to please not do that. She became extremely offended and said, "You know what, I'm not doing this." I said, "Why?" She said, "Your rabbit is too stressed out." Her tone was filthy. I left and called her manager (Katie Dinneen). This woman refused to listen and just made excuses for Donna's behavior I can understand if my bunny was too stressed out (which she WASN'T!) for the surgery.. BUT, Donna was acting like my bunny was perfect for it; up until I asked her to please not squish my bunny's face. This place is cheap for a reason. The people act less than mediocre. When you're not paying much, don't expect much when it comes to the experience of these people or their professionalism. The place looked like a zoo when I walked in. BEWARE & STAY AWAY! read more

Excellent customer service for owners and topnotch medical care for pets. They took fabulous care of my giant rabbit and Ive referred several friends with great confidence. Prices are really reasonable too! read more

Today was a most upsetting experience at the Peninsula Humane Society. My husband brought in our outdoor/indoor somewhat feral 17-year-old cat to be euthanized. He had become extremely thin, hasn't eaten for over a week and we were barely able to get him to drink anything. He had gotten to the point where he was just sleeping and peeing in his bed no longer able to use the litter box. We made the decision to bring him in and stop the slow decline, hoping but not knowing if he was in pain. Since our cat was an outdoor roamer, he had neighbors who would also feed him and look out for him. When my husband mentioned this, the people at the front desk determined our neighbors (not his owners) needed to be contacted before he could be accepted for euthanasian. What unacceptable and inhumane policy this is AND was! After trying for over an hour, (due to work) our neighbors were unavailable for a phone consult resulting in my husband having to bring our boy home to die and suffer through another night. Seeing our formerly strong feisty cat laying in a blanket unable to even lift his head is heart wrenching. The intake people seeing the same thing, righteously thought they were following rules and doing the right thing, but I can tell you they were not! He is our cat, and they should never have required my neighbors to give their consent. Something is wrong with this policy, and you need to review the painful impact it has on the pet owners who are trying to do the right thing. read more

Brought in a friendly cat that decided to stop by my apartment for a quick airbnb overnight experience. Front desk was so kind on the evening of Nov 5th, 2024 and checked the sweet kitty for a microchip right away. Luckily, the cat was chipped and they were able to connect me with the cat's owners in minutes. Their kindness and being readily available to support went a long way after I had pulled an all nighter taking care of our quick house guest. Kitty cat was reunited with his owners! read more

Who knew getting your cat spayed during a pandemic would be so difficult? Luckily, it was an easy process with Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA! Although it was a long-awaited scheduled appointment, I was patient and was able to get my 1 y.o. female cat the surgery with no issues. I called the clinic and an automated message prompted me to leave my name and number for them to return my call. I received a call back a week later and made the appointment over the phone. The clerk informed me that there was a long waitlist and the earliest appointment I could get was in two months. She also went over the requirements such as my cat's weight, vaccinations I had to provide paperwork for, as well as answered questions I had regarding pricing. Please be patient as staff is working diligently to get care for our animals :) On the day of the appointment, I arrived with my cat around 8am, filled out some paperwork and provided her vaccination records. The clerk then went over the services to be performed and their costs and I paid. After sitting in the waiting area for about 5min, one of the nurses came to take her. The pick-up time was between 4-5pm that same day and when I came back, the nurse brought her out and went over post-surgery care, as well as a sheet of paper to take home, which includes information about feeding, water, litter box, etc. My cat was still a little dizzy from the surgery so I let her relax for a few more minutes before our trip back home. Once we got home she was perfectly fine! Her stitches gradually healed over time and we didn't have any issues. Overall, I'm so glad I chose this clinic. The staff is friendly, professional, their services are impressive, and the clinic itself is sparkling clean. They also have some of the fairest pricing in the Bay Area. I contacted and researched multiple clinics in the surrounding areas, and this place came out on top. Thanks to the team at Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA, I have a happy and healthy cat! read more

Vet staff service was INCREDIBLE! I was helped by an individual named Randy at the facility off airport blvd. I came in devastated and stressed over my pet and Randy helped me with a calm and knowledgeable demeanor. It is rare to feel so heard and supported in all of the busy bustle today - thank you PHS for an excellent visitor experience with Randy! read more

So we called trying to get an appointment to get a cage to capture and then bring in some feral cats to have them treated for various diseases and probably spayed. They call us back and tell us we have to call between a 3 to 5 window on Mondays only and they take two appointments per week, and that's it. Now, remember this is funded by our tax dollars a 20 city consortium funds this Humane Society built them a new building and they still get private donations. Even worse is they handle animal control for us and Foster City by way of example they get $110,000 and we roughly have 100 incidences of picking up dead animals probably from the street car accidents that's roughly $1000 per animal. If you wanted a example of government waste and tax, dollar waste you couldn't go any further than this. Take time to read the comment below, which is more of an excuse. Poor service that lives in exclamation. The funny part is when I sat on various boards, I opposed to funding this particular effort, because they raise private money. Somehow the cities were controlled based on supervisors and Jackie spears to fund this place when they could've built their own building so they built two separate buildings we pay for them and then they charge the city each city over $100,000 per to participate in the pyramid scheme and just understand the economics it's literally $1000 per incident for a city for them to come out and pick up a dead bird. But let me share one last story, there was a snake in the parking lot were there a lot of kids so we called animal control and the Humane Society and their answer was take a picture of it. I thought this was kind of interesting so I called our city staff and explain the problem regardless we took a picture of it, sent it to him and he said oh yeah, that's a rattlesnake. You should capture it and release it into the wild For a city that pays over $100,000 a year for animal control from the same group now they want me to be Crocodile Dundee capture a snake and release it into the wild? Today's experience only confirms my biggest suspicion like most things in this area when funded by government money, they could care less about customer service, so yes, call them between their two hour window and if you're lucky enough to get an appointment listen to the message on the phone which is even more laughable read more

A hidden gem is the Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA ("PHS/SPCA"). We are fortunate to have this state-of-the-art animal shelter in San Mateo County. PHS/SPCA is much more than an animal shelter. It also offers: Pet Adoptions, Cruelty Investigations, and Educational Programs for all ages. On a Saturday in May, they hold their Annual Kitten Nursery Shower at the Burlingame Shelter. Children and adults can handle and view the kittens and tour the facility, enjoy refreshments, and have their faces painted. The PHS/SPCA also offers Low Cost Spaying and Neutering, Low Cost Vaccinations (by appointment only), Volunteer Work, Planned Giving & Community Engagement, Wildlife Care Center (you have to see this, it is like stepping into a wildlife preserve), Lost & Found, Animal Intake, Tom & Annette Lantos Center for Compassion (adoptions) - we were able to view a couple that were in the process of potentially adopting a beautiful dog - there was a huge area for them to get acquainted and play; and, the Forever Friends Legacy Society (Wills & Trusts). A big shout out to Lisa Van Buskirk, Senior Vice President, Development, Planned Giving & Community Engagement. For as long as I have been a San Mateo County resident, Lisa has worked at the PHS/SPCA. It takes a special person to devote their life to working with and for the betterment of animals. She has also been a great resource when I recently found a raccoon inside my condo as well as shown her support when I lost my beloved pets. read more

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Very friendly staff. Good for vet needs but is very hard to get spay/neuter appointment. read more

Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA - Further out by the water but the building and outside space is very serene. Parking lot has plentiful space. - Animal Shelters Near Me - San Mateo, California

I brought my little 7 month old pup in to get neutered. I scheduled the appointment in November. It's so hard to find a neuter/spay clinic around the area nowadays so plan ahead and make your appointments at least 2 months in advance! The drop off time was between 7-8:30. My husband I got there a little before 8 and there were probably 5 dogs ahead of us. We ended up waiting about an hour, which was way longer than we had expected. The cold temperatures made it worse since we were only allowed to stay outside due to their COVID policy of having a 2 person limit inside. Interacting with the staff prior to the appointment was also a bit difficult. You have to leave a voicemail for them to call you back. They also forgot to put our neuter appointment down on their calendar, so we thought we lost our appointment. I wish there was some confirmation email they could send out. Otherwise our pup's neuter was a success, and the prices here were really reasonable ($120 for neuter and microchipping). They didn't send us home with painkillers since they mentioned he shouldn't need it. Overall the experience was pretty good despite them being a bit slow. I would recommend coming here! read more

Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA - Pup about to get neutered - Animal Shelters Near Me - San Mateo, California

Thanks for all services! We found a little kitten (about 10--12 week)in my friend's back yard,she's a girl and petty soon she's in heat,so luckily we scheduled an spray appointment .she just got home and she looks good read more

Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA - Animal Shelters Near Me - San Mateo, California

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I found some abandoned kitties and took them to the local 24 hour animal clinic. They told me they brought the kitties to the peninsula humane society in San Mateo. I was interested in possibly adopting just one kitten so I came in a few weeks later to check up on them. The person that helped me told me they would be ready for adoption in about a month. He also wrote a note down in the kittens files saying I came in to check on them. A month passed and I called but they never seemed to answer their phone. Also, left a voice message but they took a few days to reply. They responded saying the kittens were not ready for adoption. Two weeks later I stopped by the office to check again. The worker gave me no information on when the kittens would be up for adoption. I called back again two weeks later only for them to tell me that the kittens have already been adopted and have gone to their new homes. While I am happy for the kittens I am very disappointed as my time and efforts were wasted. What was the point of leaving a note in the kittens' files that I stopped by? Workers did little to help and their system just seems very unorganized. Overall, a complete waste of my time waiting around in hopes I'd get to be reunited with the kitties. read more

Used to volunteer there, well managed facility and helpful staffs. Animals were under best care possible.

We are so lucky to have low cost spay and neuter clinic in San Mateo County! I recently had 4 cats fixed and although it was a little hard to get an appointment in the summer( it's kitten season after all) I was able to get the appointments that I needed at an affordable price. The receptionist (Shirley) was great even when people who are LATE get testy. The check in takes a little while but is efficiently handled and worth it for the price! Thanks Shirley, you're the best!!!! read more

I called a couple local clinics and the estimated cost to neuter my dog was $400-500. I called Petco and they recommended this place to me. The spay and neuter Mobile stops by several locations: East Palo Alto, Redwood City, San Bruno, Daly City and San Francisco. I lined up at the Redwood City location. They are here once a month on the second Thursday of every month. I arrived at 8:00am but everyone got there 6:45-7:30. I got super lucky and got the last spot. It seemed like they only take ~10 cats/dogs per day so I recommend getting there early. First they make you fill out an application then each animal is weighed and carefully assessed before dropping them off. All the animals are ready to pick up by 1:30-2pm. I recommend bringing a cone or inflatable dog collar when you pick your animal up so they don't scratch their wounds. The program is free but highly recommend donating since they are a non profit organization. I also got my dog microchipped for free! Thank you PHS and SPCA for making this affordable for the community! I can't thank you enough! read more

Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA - Schedule for 2019 - Animal Shelters Near Me - San Mateo, California

This is the best place for pet neutered or spayed. The pricesd are very cheap. The clinic is very nice and clean. The staffs are very friendly and helpful. I am really thankful for what they was done for my 2 cats. read more

I appreciate the work the Humane Society does. I adopted my 10 year old Coton de Tulear from the Santa Barbara Humane Society last July; he was taken away from his owner due to "mistreatment". Cotons are known for their sweet, playful nature, it's just heartbreaking that anyone would mistreat a easygoing, friendly dog. Even after the traumas my adopted dog endured, he's still a sweet little fluff ball; unfortunately, he's terrified of everyone, and it did take me 6 months to fully earn his trust. Thank goodness the Humane Society exists for these pups! Side note: I'm familiar with the NextDoor situation mentioned in a few recent and unfair negative reviews. I researched the person whose dog was re-adopted, and found her not to be credible. Her private message to me confirmed my conclusions. It's a sad illustration of how social media encourages a complete lack of critical thinking on the part of readers, and worse, a mob mentality that would drive them to disparage a valuable community asset based on misinformation. It very much reminds me of the situation at the White House over the elections. Many of those people have admitted they were reacting to what turned out to be lies, and regret their actions. I wish everybody would take the time to consider the situation logically and with verifiable input before deciding to go on a crusade. read more

We greatly appreciate the work done at this location of PHS. We've found numerous strays that have gone to PHS & were reunited with their families or adopted out to better homes. We've helped community members track down their lost pets at PHS or had them spayed/neutered. In one situation an escaped dog we kept finding loose, whose living situation wasn't good, was left at the shelter because the owners refused to claim him again. He was adopted on his first day available, before he was even posted on the website. Another neighbor's multiple dogs also ended up at PHS several times. This finally convinced the owner to have them neutered and microchipped. PHS helped them with behavior issues and when the dogs were found to be neglected, they oversaw the owners' getting the dogs' medical attention. Every time we've turned in a stray and we followed up, our calls were logged, and were updated on the animal's progress. We eventually adopted one stray and three special needs dogs, plus have fostered many other dogs from PHS. We love the new shelter at this location. It's what the staff and animals deserve. Important things to remember: - ****If you lose your pet and contact the shelter looking for it, please don't just rely on a phone call or hope that PHS will find your lost pet listing on social media.**** - ****You have to go in person and look, not rely on staff over the phone.**** - ****If an animal goes up for adoption it may get adopted before it shows up on social media, because adopters go in person to find a good match.**** - Due to Covid, shelter hours and procedures have changed. - If you want a spay/neuter appointment, note that many shelters aren't offering the service during Covid, but PHS is so their appointments are backlogged. Don't blame them - just plan ahead as much as you can if you want this lower cost option. - Due to county budgets, there aren't enough animal control officers covering the county, so if you want better services, contact your county supervisor and tell them. read more

Hats off to Shirley. She is outstanding as a receptionist for incoming animals. She is very professional in her job. She makes the clients comfortable while they wait for their turn. I appreciate that she was able to stop and talk to me even though she was very busy. She mentioned she had only been in this position for a few months and yet she did an exceptional job. Thank you for being there. And providing such great service. read more

What's the point of a humane society? To take animals who have been abandoned, rehabilitate, and re-home them? Not according to this place. From their website: "PHS/SPCA is truly an open admission shelter, not only accepting many pet animals who might be refused at other shelters, but also taking care of injured and orphaned native wildlife from San Francisco through San Mateo and the northern half of Santa Clara County." Ha! Today, we brought a cat found on the side of the 85/101 carpool exit. We were told "not our problem." Nice. Do you think people drive 60 miles North to drop off a cat at a humane society? Are you incentivizing dropping the lost/abandoned animal off wherever is most convenient? This is a disgrace and all the people working here should be ashamed. read more

Amazing that they're still open during the COVID pandemic when so many other shelters have stopped their spay/neuter services. I went in for cat neutering, and it was well worth the 2.5 month wait. Yes, I booked the appointment almost 3 months in advance, the first available appointment when I called a few weeks after adopting my kitten at seven weeks old. I actually wish I had called the day I brought my kitten home! They had very stringent sanitary guidelines and strongly enforced social distancing. I felt very well taken care of the entire time I was there. The caretakers seemed very compassionate towards animals, and I felt like my cat was in good hands. I dropped off my kitten around 8am and picked him up close to 5:30pm. Drop-off is between 7-8:30am and pick-up is 4-5:30pm. He was quite hyper afterwards, due to the anesthesia. The procedure went very smoothly, and the cost was relatively affordable ($50). Although their vaccination clinic is currently closed, they can also do vaccinations and/or microchipping the day of the spay/neuter surgery. They also offer nail clipping services if needed. Interestingly, they don't believe in providing cones to male cats as they think it does more harm than good. Also, they don't provide any pain medications or antibiotics. I believe you can request it, but again, they don't think it's necessary. My kitten didn't have any adverse reactions, but he was also quite young and able to bounce back. I ended up putting a cone on him at night while I was sleeping for one week, just for peace of mind. I wish they would have a live person pick up the phone, but I guess they receive so many phone calls that they can't answer every call. They were pretty good at returning calls within about 48 hours though. Sometimes I wonder if it would be more efficient to have people email them instead of call. read more

Our 10 1/2 rottie Kaep passed away l Sat 2/24 at 2:30 pm at home. He passed peacefully with us and his two sisters present. We cried and had our final moments with him. We took him to the peninsula humane society of San Mateo. The staff was so helpful in making the arrangements for a private cremation. The staff has so much compassion and very respectful of our feelings. We also will be receiving Pawprints of Kaep with his ashes. To the staff thank you and we appreciate all you have done to make this as comfortable for us!! RIP Kaep!! Our protector the sweetest rottie ever!! We will hold you in our hearts forever!! love Mommy Daddy Montana and Kali!! read more

I came here a few weeks ago in a really tough situation. The kitten I adopted less than two weeks earlier had become very sick and my vet recommend I take him back to the SPCA I got him from. Unfortunately he came from the Fresno shelter and with how sick he was I didn't want to drive him the three hours there (me being in Newark). I called all the other SPCA's near by and finally got to this place and spoke with Nicole who was amazing. She was very patient and helped me out a lot and was a bright ray of sunshine on a very dark day for me. The vet there diagnosed my kitten with FIP and we had to put him down immediately for his comfort. As devastating as it was for me, I just feel very grateful Nicole was there that day. She was very kind and sympathetic and I just can't thank her enough. read more

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Came here to get my dog neutered and had a relatively positive experience. The volunteers/employees were all very nice and helpful when we checked in. We did have to wait quite awhile outside in the cold though, because they were only allowing 2 parties in at a time. They have a drop-off time from 7-8:30 so I'd recommend getting there earlier to avoid waiting in line. Only other complaint is that you have to schedule months in advance and it's difficult to talk to anyone in person unless you leave a voicemail first. But it's hard to blame them when spay/neuter services are in such high demand right now and they offer at such affordable prices compared to a private vet or other clinics. read more

Beautiful facility. After researching 5+ Vets for a Spay, i was shocked to discover what is a $150 fee anywhere else, to cost $800 at almost every vet in the bay area. I'm so glad they have a facility like this that's affordable. I arrived at 7am and I was the 3rd person in line. Drop off and pick-up was smooth and my dog turned out fine. We purchased a cone and the pain killers, I would recommend you do the same. Getting an appt. was extremely difficult. Make sure you follow the instructions to get one. read more