Company Profile
Contra Costa County Animal Services Department
Company Overview
CCAS Mission Statement
Contra Costa County Animal Services Department is committed to protecting the health, safety and well-being of all people and animals in our community through enforcement of state and local laws, providing compassionate care for every animal regardless of its temperament or condition, and reducing the number of animals that enter our County shelter.
We will shelter homeless, abandoned and lost animals, work to keep and place animals in safe, caring homes, and provide education and services to enhance the lives of people, their animal companions, and to strengthen the human-animal bond.
How We Accomplish Our Mission
Contra Costa County Animal Services Department will accomplish our mission by:
Protecting the citizens of Contra Costa County from animal related diseases and from animal injury.
Preventing animal cruelty, abuse and neglect.
Providing humane care and treatment of all animals in accordance with the Association of Shelter Veterinarians Guidelines and following the Five Freedoms.
Striving to decrease our shelter intake, increase our live release rates and to reserve euthanasia for animals that have serious medical conditions with great suffering, or behavior issues that pose a threat to the public's health and safety and the animal's well-being.
Keeping animals in their homes by providing resources and active counseling for owners looking to surrender their family companions.
Increasing licensing and micro-chipping efforts to assist owners in reuniting with their lost pets.
Providing spay/neuter services to reduce pet overpopulation.
Educating the public about responsible pet ownership, including preventative medicine, spay/neuter, and vaccinations.
Providing high-quality customer service and treating all individuals with respect, professional courtesy, and integrity.
Creating collaborative partnerships that further our mission and increase our ability to serve the people and animals of Contra Costa County.
Company History
The Animal Services Department has a long history in Contra Costa County, dating back to the 1950’s. Originally a function of the Sheriff’s Department, in 1959, animal control officers were re-assigned from the
Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Department to the County Department of Agriculture, where Animal Services became its own division. At the time, the department consisted of five employees and focused primarily on
animal and rabies control. The County operated only one shelter at that time, a medium-sized facility located in Martinez, roughly one block from the current shelter.
In 1985, Contra Costa Animal Services became its own County department, due to an increased demand for animal services as a result of the population boom at the time. In 2005, the County commissioned the
construction of the current Martinez shelter, a beautiful two-acre state-of-the-art shelter complex and six-stall barn. Within a year, the County built the Pinole shelter to provide West County residents with better access to our department and animals looking to reunite with their families or
finding new homes.
Today, Contra Costa Animal Services is comprised of two shelters and nearly 80 employees, including: field officers, medical and shelter staff, student workers and administration. The department’s operations are also supported by over 200 committed volunteers who play a variety of critical roles that contribute to the enrichment, wellbeing and placement of our shelter residents. The department serves a population of over one million people (compared to 298,000 in 1959) and sees approximately 11,000 animals pass through our doors each year, with nearly 84% of animals currently leaving the shelter alive.