Sorry, you need to enable JavaScript to visit this website.

San Jacinto Animal Shelter Closing on July 13

July 2, 2020

Some Services Will Remain After Closure

The San Jacinto Valley Animal Campus is scheduled to close on July 13. The shelter, located at 581 S. Grand Ave., will no longer house animals after that date and is closed to the public.

All remaining pets at the shelter will be relocated to the county’s Western Riverside County/City Animal Shelter in Jurupa Valley. Adoptions and pet reunions continue and those interested can still view available and lost animals online at www.rcdas.org.

The shelter will still be considered for use during emergency situations, such as evacuees’ pets during wildfires.

The decision to close the shelter is a result of a $1.3 million budget cut to Riverside County Animal Services for the 2020-21 fiscal year. That cut, roughly 10 percent of Animal Services’ usual budget allocation, in addition to prior staffing shortages, led to the tough decision to close the facility, Animal Services Director Julie Bank said.

“Every county department faced budget cuts and difficult decisions,” Bank said. “We didn’t want to close the San Jacinto shelter, but the budget pinch means we will be eliminating positions. We cannot operate that shelter after staffing levels continue to be eliminated.”

Riverside County is projecting a $100 million shortfall after the coronavirus pandemic’s lockdowns forced businesses to close and large-scale events were canceled. County departments faced 10-percent cuts in funding.

Bank said the public’s help is needed more than ever. “We need the community’s support by being extra vigilant in keeping their pets safe at home,” she said.

Animal control officers will continue to respond to unincorporated areas near San Jacinto. Animals found in unincorporated Riverside County areas near the San Jacinto shelter (such as Lakeview, Nuevo and Sage) will be transported to the Western Riverside County/City Animal Shelter in Jurupa Valley.

Animals picked up in such areas as Aguanga, Anza, Mountain Center and Pinyon Pines will be transported to the county’s Coachella Valley Animal Campus in Thousand Palms. Animals found in the city of Banning – one of the county’s contract cities for animal control and sheltering services – will also head to the Thousand Palms shelter.

Note: The Ramona Humane Society handles animal control for the cities of Hemet and San Jacinto. Also, Animal Friends of the Valleys handles animal control for the city of Menifee. Review our comprehensive list of where stray pets go here: Surrounding Shelters