---WHO WE ARE----------
We are not employees of Hillsborough County Pet Resource Center (HC-PRC) and have no control over their policies. We are a small group of volunteers who created this page to help the cats and kittens at HC-PRC gain exposure for adoption and rescue. We will do our best to keep the information as up to date as possible because we understand the emotional connections made with the precious lives on our page. Since most of us work full time jobs, most updates will be made at night. IMPORTANT: The information provided about each cat on our page is collected from shelter reports and personal interactions. Specific information like age, sex, breed, temperament and health CANNOT be guaranteed. The shelter is a stressful environment for animals and the behavior displayed during meet and greets with us and potential adopters may not be representative of behavior outside the shelter. Additionally, because of the time investment required to maintain this page, we only get to spend a few minutes with each animal, which is not enough time for all potential behaviors to be observed. Please take this into consideration before deciding to adopt.
---ABOUT THE SHELTER----------
Hillsborough County Pet Resource Center
440 N Falkenburg Rd
Tampa, FL 33619
(813) 744-5660
Open Monday-Saturday 10am-5pm
By appointment. http://www.hillsboroughcounty.org/animalservices
Full list of adoptable animals currently at HC-PRC: https://public-solutions.hillsboroughcounty.org/enterprise/f?p=236:PETS:0:
http://www.petharbor.com/results.asp?searchtype=ADOPT&start=4&miles=20&shelterlist=%27HLLS%27&zip=&where=type_CAT&rows=10&samaritans=1&imgres=detail&grid=1
HC-PRC is a county kill shelter that takes in approx. 900 cats and 800 dogs per month. Strays are given a 5-day hold period to allow owners a chance to reclaim their lost pet. During the hold period, adoption applications and rescue holds are accepted on most animals, but be aware it is possible an owner will reclaim. Owner surrenders are given from 0-10 days depending on the reason for surrender. Once the hold period is up, an animal may be held for adoption screening, transferred to a qualified rescue, or euthanized. When the shelter is overcrowded, it is possible that owner surrenders will be euthanized immediately, as soon as the owner leaves the building! Please do not call HC-PRC and complain about animals being euthanized. It is the COMMUNITY that fills the shelter. By law, they must take every animal brought to them or picked up by the Animal Control Officers. The staff and volunteers work very hard to save as many as possible. HC-PRC has active volunteer and foster programs, hosts the First Saturday adoption events for families, participates in off site adoption events, runs adoption pricing specials, and is always working to improve the save rate. If it upsets you how many animals are euthanized at this shelter, take action. Volunteer to foster a shelter animal, become a volunteer, work with a local rescue, educate people about the importance of spay/neuter, or share the animals on this page to get them as much exposure as possible. Negative or profane posts will not be tolerated and repeat offenders will be banned from our page.
---RESCUE INFO----------
HC-PRC is VERY rescue friendly! The pull fee includes spay/neuter, vaccines, FIV/FeLV testing, microchip and county registration. Email the rescue coordinator at RescuePets@HillsboroughCounty.org for information on how to become a HC-PRC rescue partner. To place a rescue hold, email RescuePets@HillsboroughCounty.org. If the animal is already on the euthanasia list, you must send the hold email BEFORE 9AM with the words DO NOT EUTH and the Animal ID # in the subject line. Please also send a copy of your email to UrgentCatsofTampaBay@gmail.com so we know who is still in danger.
---FOSTER INFO----------
Foster parents are desperately needed, especially during kitten season (Spring thru Summer) when the shelter often takes in over 1,000 cats/kittens per month! Foster parents provide a life-saving service to allow underage kittens to grow so they can go back to the shelter for adoption once they reach 2 lbs. To become a foster parent for HC-PRC, email the foster coordinator at FosterPets@HillsboroughCounty.org. Out of county fosters welcome! Medical care for fosters is provided for free by the shelter. If you would prefer to foster through a rescue, contact one of the many wonderful local rescues in the Tampa Bay Area to get set up to foster. Different rescues provide varying degrees of support for their fosters in terms of food, litter and medical care (contact the rescue for details). Please don't contact a rescue at the last minute expecting to save the animals currently on the euth list. It will probably be too late then. The time to sign up is right now - when something can be done to save them.
---ADOPTION INFO AND FEES----------
To adopt from HC-PRC, you must email : Petinfo@hillsboroughcounty.org
Animals that have met time and health requirements are called Ready To Go (RTG). This means they can go home immediately and have been fully vetted and microchipped. All adopted animals are still required to be taken to a vet within 72 hrs of being picked up from the shelter. It is possible for animals to harbor unknown diseases, and a short quarantine period before introducing to your resident animals is recommended. The most common post-adoption observation in cats is upper respiratory infection (URI), often brought on by the stress of being in the shelter and spread by people touching the animals without washing their hands in between. Fee for RTG cats/kittens: $20
Fee for non-RTG cats/kittens: $50
Fee if released intact: $70
Adoption fee includes spay/neuter, deworming, flea treatment, up-to-date vaccines, microchip with lifetime registration, FIV/FeLV testing and county license. If a cat on our page captures your heart and you would like to make sure they are not euthanized but are not ready to permanently add to your feline family, consider the shelter’s Adopt-To-Rehome program. You will adopt the kitty with the intention of rehoming and can attend on-site adoption events at the shelter every month to help get exposure to find your foster a loving forever home.
---LONG DISTANCE ADOPTIONS----------
UCTB’s position on long distance adoptions is that they should be considered with caution. We do not personally arrange any adoptions, and the shelter requires adopters to come in person. Bare minimum, anyone pulling or adopting-to-rehome for a long distance adopter needs to arrange a home check as well as check vet references. The person picking up the cat at the shelter is responsible for the cat’s safety and well being. While we know there are many great long distance adopters who can offer wonderful homes, it is impossible to sort out the good from the bad without doing the proper checks (this requires more than a conversation on Facebook or even on the phone). Last but not least, if for ANY reason the adoption doesn’t work out (home check doesn’t pass, adopter backs out, cat gets sick, etc.), the person who picked up the cat needs to have a long-term plan in place. Pulling for a long distance adopter without a local back-up plan is irresponsible. We appreciate the Village’s support in ensuring these cats go to loving homes.
---PLEDGES----------
Pledges are for 501c3 non-profit rescues who are also current HC-PRC rescue partners. UCTB will post pledge pay-to information once the cat is safely out of the building. Unauthorized paypal posts will be deleted and repeat offenders will be banned. This policy will be strictly enforced to help protect the welfare of the cats.
---PAGE RULES----------
Please keep in mind we are not Animal Control and don't have the resources to investigate claims of neglect. If you feel a cat or any animal is being neglected, you should report it to your local Animal Control. We will use our best judgement when making the tough decision to ban someone and sometimes we may get it wrong. We are human. Regardless of whether you agree with us, we hope you will continue to help the animals at HC-PRC. The animals did not create any drama and should not be the ones to suffer for it. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts to all our supporters and all the tireless rescue workers who give up so much of themselves to save lives. The following activities are those which we look at when deciding whether to ban someone from our page:
1. Repeatedly calling us and our page murderers and other horrible names after it's made clear that we don't work for the shelter.
2. Repeatedly attacking other posters after being warned to stop.
3. Repeatedly pledging on a cat and then not following through with payment to the 501c3 rescue that pulled the cat. Pledge amounts are meaningless if the rescues can't trust them.
4. Saying you will send an email to save a cat and then not following through, either by not picking up the cat or not sending the email at all. That is the same thing as sticking the needle in the cat's vein.
5. Putting a cat in an unsafe situation, either by pulling without a solid plan on where the cat will stay long-term (and then, for example, demanding we take the cat from you or offering it on Craigslist for free) or pawning the cat off on an unfit or unstable foster just to get them out of the shelter. This is the so-called "get them out at any cost" mentality that leads to terrible suffering for the cats involved. As much as it breaks our hearts to see cats lose their lives in the shelter, there ARE fates worse than humane euthanasia. If the shelter confirms to us that your name is on the cat, then you are responsible for the cat.
