CHIEF ANIMAL CONTROL OFFICER

 Jimmy Gonzalez

Assistant ACOMike Tubens                    

Office Staff 

Melissa Kuian

Norah Cousins

Kennel Staff

Rafael Velez

Jesus Ruiz

Ricardo Ayala

THE HISTORY OF THE DOG CATCHER

The Animal Control Division was established in 1935
when there was a Dog Warden, but in 1991 it was renamed Animal Control due to the arrival of the rabies virus which had been steadily moving up the East Coast. An Animal Control Officer is charged with catching stray or loose dogs, cats, and sometimes other animals, and bringing them to a shelter where the animals are held for a certain time before being returned to their owners, put up for adoption or euthanized. (Any dog impounded at the Bridgeport Animal Control Facility will be advertised in the lost and found section of the Connecticut Post. Seven(7) days from the advertisement date, the dog will go up for adoption.) Animal control officers are also responsible for investigating incidents of human contact with both wild and domestic animals, such as bites. They usually work with Health Departments to ensure the health of humans injured by animals. The term "Dogcatcher" does have its place in history! There are variations of the title,"I wouldn't vote for him for dogcatcher" or "He couldn't run for dogcatcher in this country"  refers to an individual so poorly regarded that the individual in question is not fit to be elected to even a trivial position of public trust. But in fact the role of the Animal Control Officer has changed over the past few decades. Gone are the days of the big bad "dog catcher". Today's ACO focuses more on educating the public on proper animal care, and rescuing animals from dangerous or abusive situations.

Animal Control's Fees
Redemption / Impound Fee: $15.00
No dog shall be redeemed without:
~State Identification Card or Driver's License
~Proof of License of Dog
----If the dog being redeemed is not currently licensed,
the owner has 14 days to license the dog or will receive a ticket.


Advertising Fee: $5.00
This one time fee is to cover the cost of running an ad in the Connecticut Post's Found Animal Section.
If the animal os redeemed before the ad is run, than there will be NO CHARGE.


Quarantine Fee: $210.00
$15.00 x 14 days=$210.00
This fee covers the total cost of having an animal quarantined at
Bridgeport Animal Control for the full fourteen days.
After the fourteen days of Quarantine, a daily charge of $15.00 will be charged.

Adopting a friend

To be considered, you MUST fill out an application.
Any application that is incomplete or contains false information will be disqualified.
Understand that an Animal Control Officer, by state law (State Statute 22-232),
is given the authority to adopt to whomever he or she sees fit.

Connecticut Residents: $50.00
*Includes an Animal Population Control Program Certificate.

Certificate is good towards:
One spay or neuter
Two vaccinations
*Certificate only good towards services mentioned above
(Note: certificate does not pay for all of services mentioned above,
only a certain amount.
The veterinarian may charge you additional fees for other services rendered.

Out-Of-State Adopters: $5.00
*This fee does not include the certificate.

Forms of Payment Accepted: CASH or CHECK (along with a picture ID)

Renters: Need a NOTARIZED STATEMENT from your landlord,
which clearly states that you are allowed to have a pet at your residence.
The statement must bear the Notary Seal in order to be valid.
You may also bring a copy of your lease as long as it also clearly states you may have a pet where you reside.

Homeowners: Need to show proof they own their home (i.e. tax bill, mortgage statement, title…).
If you are living with your parents or other family members that own the house,
they must accompany you to the shelter and bring their tax bill,
mortgage statement or title of the residence in question.

Applicants may call the day before the available date of the animal
applied for to check the status of such dog/cat.

For those that do not know....we have the answers!!

Did we move?

Yes! We did move to 236 Evergreen St. since June of this year. We no longer do business at 525 Asylum St. (So stop dropping off animals there!!)

Are we a "NO KILL SHELTER?"

No! we are a municipality so we feel that if there are animal owners that no longer can take care of their animals we would rather take them as owner releases, than put owners in a very tough situation where they are unsure what to do with their animal. We strongly feel that not taking in unwanted pets promotes abandonement. Since we have been located at this address we have not yet had to euthanize animals for space!

How many animal can we hold?

We can hold 80 dogs and temporarily 25 cats ( We will soon hold 52 cats). We are the biggest "municipal" shelter in the state.

About how many animals do we take in?

Incredibly last year we almost took in 2000 animals for the 2007-2008 fiscal year.

Do we take in volunteers?

We currently do not. We are trying to get enough city employees on staff before we plan on getting volunteers.

Could we come to your school and speak to students?

                 OH Yeah! We love kids and we love coming out and speaking about the responsibilities               of owning a pet and we also talk about the importance of dog and cat safety. 

(We have actually gone out and spoken to seniors to.)

Do we take donations?

YES! Please click above on "DONATIONS"

How come when I call I don't get a person but an answering machine?

We strongly believe that citizens that take the time to come in take priority to those that call in and there is only "1" person at the other end of that phone and by now you should understand that we are the busiest shelter in the state. So our shelter continuosly has visitors from 10am to 3:30pm. On an average day we can have anywhere from 20 to 100 visitors. But if you decide to call please leave a message we do try to listen to all messages. Please listen to the answering machine. Almost 90% of the questions asked by phone are answered on our message and please DO NOT CALL US WITH EMERGENCIES!! CALL 576-7671!!!

Do we adopt many animals?

Thankfully YES! On average we adopt out anywhere from 1 to 15 animals in a day but sadly we take in 1 to 15 animals in a day!!

Do we only have Pitbulls?

          We have many of them but we also do get in many purebreds that will sit here for weeks because people assume all we have is pits.  Please note***   Before you write off all pits as bad dogs come in and let us convince you that they are not.

Why do we not have any signs around the neighborhood letting people know where we are?

We are currently working with the city to place a sign at the bottom of Rt 25 exit 4 ramp. To place a sign on North Ave you have to go through the state. We are currently going back and forth with them on this matter.

Why are we closed on Saturdays?

Our hours were recently forced to change because of recent city lay-offs.

PLEASE NOTE*  In case of emergency we sometimes may have to close. Our first priority is to bring in sick or injured animals so there may be times that because of lack of staff that we have to close. We will leave a sign out letting you know when we should be back.

Have you licensed your dog this year yet?

~If your dog is 6 months of age or older, you are required to have a
current rabies vaccination from your veterinarian and obtain a dog license from your city or town of residence
within 30 days of purchasing a dog.

~A city license can be obtained at your local animal shelter or at the Town Clerk's office in your city or town.
The license year runs from July 1st to June 30th and should be renewed every year.

Fees:

Spayed/Neutered (fixed): $8.00
Not Spayed/Neutered: $19.00
*$1.00 fee attached for every month you are late.

"In case of a disaster if you don't license your dog,
we won't know they exist!"