City of Buffalo Animal Shelter in critical need of adoptive & foster homes

Submitted by the City of Buffalo Office of the Mayor

The City of Buffalo Animal Shelter is urgently calling on the community to help as the shelter faces a critical capacity crisis. With no open dog kennels available, some new arrivals are now being housed in temporary overflow crates. The shelter currently has 48 adoptable dogs and 20 adoptable cats waiting for homes, with additional animals expected to become available for adoption in the coming days. 

More animals are entering the City of Buffalo Animal Shelter than are leaving through adoption, rescue placement, or return to owner. As the city’s municipal animal shelter, the facility is required to take in stray dogs found within city limits. Unlike private rescue organizations, the City of Buffalo Animal Shelter is an open-intake shelter and cannot pause or limit stray animal intake when capacity is full. 

“Our shelter team, volunteers, fosters and rescue partners are doing everything they can, but we need the community’s help right now,” said Jen Butera, director of the City of Buffalo Animal Shelter. “Every adoption matters. When you adopt one pet, you are truly saving two lives – the animal you bring home and the next animal who now has a safe place to go.” 

The City of Buffalo is encouraging Western New Yorkers to consider adopting a shelter pet, fostering through a local rescue partner, or helping spread the word about adoptable animals currently in need of homes. 

Adopting from the City of Buffalo Animal Shelter directly helps relieve overcrowding and creates lifesaving kennel space for incoming stray and homeless pets. Community members who are unable to adopt can still make an impact by fostering through rescue partners, volunteering, or sharing adoptable pets on social media. 

Adoption is also an accessible way for Buffalo residents to make a lifesaving impact. The City of Buffalo Animal Shelter offers affordable adoption fees – $220 or less for dogs, $130 or less for cats – helping more families open their homes to pets in need while ensuring animals leave the shelter ready for their next chapter. Adoption fees include the following: 

√ Age-appropriate vaccinations

√ Spay/neuter surgery

√ Free first veterinary visit

√ Discount coupons for local businesses

√ Lifetime microchip registration

√ Starter bag of Science Diet food

√ $100 dog training voucher

√ FIV/FeLV testing for cats

Community members interested in fostering a shelter pet are encouraged to message the City of Buffalo Animal Shelter on its social media channels, where volunteers can help connect them with local rescue groups. 

If you have lost a pet within Buffalo city limits, please visit the shelter during open hours to look for your animal in person. The City of Buffalo Animal Shelter is located at 380 Oak St., Buffalo. To view adoptable pets, learn more about fostering, or apply to adopt, visit the City of Buffalo Animal Shelter’s social media pages or website (friendsofcbas.org), or stop by during open adoption hours.