Surrender appointment wait times are longer than usual
Like many organizations today, AHS is facing significant staffing challenges that impact our capacity to provide services and place additional stress on existing teams. As we work to fill open roles, we’re also making temporary adjustments to our appointment schedules based on our current staffing capacity. As of January 9th, the expected wait times for non-emergency appointments for each site are:
We appreciate your patience and understanding as we address these challenges and support our teams.
Animal Humane Society helps thousands of dogs, cats, and critters in need find loving homes each year. We take in every animal surrendered to us regardless of its health, age, breed, or behavior. Last year, more than 93% of the animals in our care were placed in homes, reunited with owners, or released to other animal welfare organizations.
We understand that parting ways with an animal can be especially difficult and were committed to working with you to ensure the best possible solution for you and your pet.
Surrender appointments last approximately 30-45 minutes and will include a health exam and behavior evaluation of your pet. During the appointment, staff will gather information about your pet and complete an initial exam and evaluation. Well then discuss your options so you can make the best decision for your pet.
Please note that Animal Humane Society is an open-admission organization that accepts all animals. As a result, animals deemed untreatable or unhealthy may not be candidates for adoption, and humane euthanasia may be considered in some cases.
To schedule a surrender appointment, call our Pet Helpline at 952-HELP-PET (952-435-7738).
| Species | Fee |
| Dogs and cats | $55 each, $90 for litters of two or more |
| Rabbits, ferrets, chinchillas, and hedgehogs | $30 each, $50 for litters of two or more |
| Guinea pigs, rodents, and birds* | $15 each, $20 for litters of two or more |
When a rescue takes your pet, you are still surrendering him, but you are surrendering him to a private group that will give the dog as much time as he needs to find a new home. It can be difficult to find a rescue with space, but this is certainly an avenue worth exploring. If your dog is purebred, look for a breed-specific organization as this may increase your chances of finding a quality rescue that will take your pet.
This should always be the first choice. Whatever is causing you to consider not keeping the pet, including behavior issues or financial problems, you may be able to find help. Shelters are a great place to find such resources as the shelter staffs goal is always to help the pet owners keep their pets. You can also view our Keep Your Pet guide here. It may not be possible, but responsible pet owners will try.
Surrendering a dog means that you are relinquishing ownership of the pet to a shelter or rescue. Some pet owners think that when they surrender their pet to a shelter that the pet will be loved and spoiled for as long as it takes to find them a home—the truth is often quite different. Depending on the facility, it can be hard to find space to properly care for the dog. When shelters run out of kennel space, sometimes even healthy adoptable dogs are put to sleep. Some shelters simply dont have the manpower to spend time with each dog, so they spend most of their time alone in a small cage. Of course, many shelters are wonderful places that do have the resources they need to provide a loving environment, but some do not. What is true at every shelter is that when you surrender a dog, what happens to him is completely out of your hands.
What does it mean to surrender your dog? Uncertainty. Instead, consider one of the other options above so your loving dog can go on being loved.
If youre willing to put in a little time and work, you can find a loving home for your dog yourself. This is a great option because you remain in control of where your dog ends up, youre able to choose the family, and youll have peace of mind knowing your dog is in a safe and loving home. Our program called Rehome can assist with the process by allowing you to create an online profile that will be seen by people looking for a pet. If keeping your pet isnt an option, this is the next best solution.
Once our animal is adopted we will never share information about that adoption nor can we provide previous owners with updates. We do this not to be mean or insensitive to previous owners but to protect the information and privacy of all parties involved.
The Humane Society of Macomb understands that giving up a pet can be a very hard decision and an emotional experience. We understand that circumstances can arise where adopters are not be able to keep the pet they originally adopted. It’s important to remember that this is a hard process not only for the families involved but the animals as well. That’s why the Humane Society of Macomb has our surrender policy in place to ensure the well-being and safety of our furever friends in the event that they are surrendered to the shelter. Below are some highlights from our surrender policy.
The Humane Society of Macomb can provide you with many alternatives to surrendering your pet. For example, if you need help with feeding or medical tips or how to take care of certain behaviors we are happy to help. Ultimately, we believe the best place for your pet is with you. We will do everything we can to help keep your furever friend in your home. In the event a pet is surrendered to the shelter we will then act as the sole responsible party and caretaker for the pet.
Surrendering an animal to the shelter means owners relinquish all rights of the pet to the Humane Society of Macomb. This means that we then assume the new role as the owner of that animal.
It is always with a heavy heart we accept a surrendered pet to our shelter. This means that for one reason or another the owner has had circumstances arise where they can’t keep the pet. Fortunately, it also means the owner has put their faith in our judgement and level of care for the animal.