Palo Alto animal shelter and lost pets

Palo Alto's animal services can confuse newcomers because two organizations share the work. The Police Department's Animal Control Division sends officers to strays, bites, injured animals and cruelty cases. A nonprofit, Pets In Need, runs the city's shelter on East Bayshore Road near the Baylands, where lost pets end up and where people adopt. On top of that, the county line along San Francisquito Creek means a dog lost in Palo Alto can be found in Menlo Park or East Palo Alto, where a different agency is in charge.

This guide covers the shelter, how to find a lost pet or report a found one, the dog licensing change in 2025, wildlife questions and where neighbors on the San Mateo County side turn. For license fees, leash rules and emergency vets, see our main pets guide.

The shelter and who runs it

The city's Animal Control page says that since February 2019 Pets In Need has operated the City of Palo Alto Animal Shelter at 3281 East Bayshore Road. Before that, the city ran its own shelter for more than a century.

The shelter and Animal Control serve three cities: Palo Alto, Los Altos and Los Altos Hills. The city says officers and the shelter accept stray or surrendered animals only from those three. If you find an animal elsewhere, take it to the shelter for that city.

Adopting and surrendering

Pets In Need handles adoptions, owner surrenders, spay and neuter and vaccine clinics, cat trap rentals and feral cat management at the shelter. Its low-cost vaccine clinic at the Palo Alto shelter runs on Wednesdays from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. Pets In Need also runs a second shelter at 871 5th Avenue in Redwood City, (650) 367-1405. Call before bringing in an owned pet to surrender, since the shelter may need to schedule intake. Our pet adoption guide compares shelters and rescues around Palo Alto. For checkups and shots at other times, see our list of veterinarians. If you want to help without adopting, our volunteering guide lists Pets In Need among local animal groups.

If your pet is lost

Time matters. Many lost pets turn up close to home, so start nearby and widen the search each day.

1. Search your block right away. Walk the street calling your pet's name. Check garages, sheds and under decks. Frightened cats often hide quietly close to home.
2. Check the shelter listings. Pets In Need posts lost and found reports through 24PetConnect, an online database of shelter animals. Look every day, since new animals come in constantly.
3. Call and visit the shelter. Photos online can be misleading. If you think you see your pet, go in during open hours.
4. Check the other side of the creek. If you live in north Palo Alto, also check the Peninsula Humane Society's Coyote Point Shelter in San Mateo, which handles lost and found for San Mateo County.
5. Tell your neighbors. Post on your neighborhood email list with a clear photo. Our neighborhood associations guide explains how to find yours.
6. Update the microchip. Make sure the registry has your current phone number.
7. Put up flyers. A large photo, the pet's name and your phone number are enough.

Beware of anyone who asks for money before returning a pet or who wants payment sent by gift card or wire. Meet in a public place if someone says they have found your animal.

If you find an animal

• Check for a tag. A Palo Alto license tag or an ID tag is the fastest way home. Most vets and shelters can scan for a microchip.
• Call dispatch at (650) 329-2413 if the animal is injured, aggressive or you cannot hold it safely.
• Bring it to the shelter during open hours if it is a Palo Alto, Los Altos or Los Altos Hills animal.
• Report it even if you keep the animal for a few days, so its owner can find it through the shelter's listings.

Keeping a found pet without reporting it can stop a frantic owner from ever finding it. Shelters also hold animals for a set period before adoption, which protects owners.

Dog licensing: what changed

Dogs in Palo Alto must be licensed. The city's page says that beginning in March 2025 the city resumed issuing and enforcing dog licenses itself. Before that, Pets In Need processed them. Key points now:

• Licenses can be bought only online or by mail, not in person at the shelter.
• A current rabies certificate is required.
• Proof of spay or neuter lowers the fee a lot: the city's schedule shows $20 for an altered dog against $76 for an unaltered dog for one year (see our pets guide).
• Mail applications go to Palo Alto Animal Control at 3281 East Bayshore Road.
• Cats do not need a license in Palo Alto, Los Altos or Los Altos Hills.

Our pets guide lists the fiscal year 2027 fees and the steps to apply. A current tag on the collar is the cheapest insurance against a long shelter search.

Wildlife questions

Palo Alto sits between the bay marshes and the foothills, so wildlife calls are common. The city's guidance:

• Sick or injured wildlife. Call dispatch at (650) 329-2413. After hours, the city suggests taking a boxed animal to MedVet in Mountain View if you can do so safely.
• Healthy or nuisance wildlife. Animal Control officers do not respond. The city points residents to Santa Clara County Vector Control at (800) 675-1155 or a private pest control company.
• Coyotes. The city does not trap coyotes. Keep cats indoors, feed pets inside and keep small dogs close on walks near open space.
• Mountain lions. Sightings go to local police, the city naturalist or the California Department of Fish and Wildlife depending on where and what you saw. Call 911 if one threatens people.
• Moving animals. Relocating wildlife without a permit is illegal in California.

Baby birds and fawns are often not orphaned. Watch from a distance before stepping in. Call a wildlife rehabilitation center for advice. The Peninsula Humane Society runs a Wildlife Care Center at 24103 Congress Springs Road in Saratoga, open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. every day including holidays, plus wildlife intake at its Burlingame center. Its main line is (650) 340-7022. Our Baylands guide explains why dogs must stay out of the marsh during nesting season.

Neighbors in San Mateo County

Menlo Park, East Palo Alto and the rest of San Mateo County use a different system. Menlo Park's city site says San Mateo County contracts with the Peninsula Humane Society and SPCA, a private nonprofit, for animal control countywide. Its contact page lists:

The main number is (650) 340-7022. Animal rescue, at-large animals and cruelty calls go to (650) 340-8200. The lost and found extension is 339 and the non-emergency wildlife extension is 414. Both shelters close on major holidays. Residents of Menlo Park and East Palo Alto who find or lose a pet should start there, then check Palo Alto's shelter too.

Mountain View and the rest of Santa Clara County outside the three cities Palo Alto serves have their own arrangements. Check your city's website for its shelter.

Frequently asked questions