The Los Angeles City Council Friday instructed the Department of Animal Services to report on the feasibility of procuring a new van for the transportation of animals to participate in more pet fair events, and to explore possibility of having nonprofits operate one or more of their six shelters.
In a 12-0 vote, the council approved two separate but related motions seeking to improve adoption rates for shelter animals and bolster the operations of its one or more of the six department-run animal shelters amid ongoing challenges with volunteer turnover, an increase in euthanasia rates, overcrowding, and animal care.
City Council members Eunisses Hernandez, John Lee and Hugo Soto-Martinez were absent during the vote.
The council instructed the Department of Animal Services to plan for the purchase of a $240,000 vehicle during the budget process for fiscal year 2027-28, using a bond sale initiative known as the Municipal Improvement Corporation of Los Angeles financing program.
Councilwoman Imelda Padilla, who introduced the proposal, said the van could be beneficial and expand opportunities for shelter animals to be adopted at pet fairs and community events, and connect them with residents.
“Los Angeles operates six animal shelters, but for many residents, the distance to a shelter can make an adoption difficult,” Padilla said. “Pet adoption fairs allow us to bring animals directly into the communities we serve, but the challenge is that animal services currently has limited transportation capacity and volunteers.”
Councilman Bob Blumenfield has proposed that the city explore possible public-private partnerships to enhance the operation of Los Angeles’ animal shelters.
On Friday, the council approved his plan, instructing city staff to report on the feasibility of issuing a request for information seeking a contractor to operate one or more of the shelters currently operated by the city. A second report will examine the feasibility and process for reassigning animal services staff to other city-operated shelters, if a contractor(s) is selected. The aim is to prevent job losses and focus city resources where they are needed to improve city-run shelter conditions.
“We operate one of the nation’s largest municipal shelter systems, handling almost 60,000 animals annually. Our six shelters are staffed with a limited number of staff, who have to rely on volunteers and end up doing way more than they should, which ends up increasing our liabilities,” Blumenfield said.
“We can do better. We just need to be creative,” Blumenfield added.
Blumenfield points to the Northeast Valley Animal Care Center as a success story of a public-private partnership.
That center, located in Mission Hills, was financed under the Proposition F (Fire and Animal Facilities) Bond Program in 2000. It opened in 2008, years later due to budget constraints and limited resources. Los Angeles could not initially open the facility to the public, and it functioned as a limited special operations shelter through 2011.
On Aug. 16, 2011, the city approved a contract with Best Friends Animal Society to operate the shelter. The nonprofit oversaw adoption, offered spay-neuter services and conducted community outreach and education programs. The arrangement resulted in a reduction of city costs and provided a range of services to northeast San Fernando Valley neighborhoods.
Paws for Life K9 Rescue has since taken over the contract. City Councilwoman Monica Rodriguez, who represents the Seventh Council District, where the Mission Hills shelter is located, says the partnership with Paws for Life is the “model.”
Overcrowding and deteriorating shelter conditions, among other challenges, are raising liability issues. In past years, volunteers have sued the city over violent animal attacks, resulting in million-dollar settlements.
Dogs in the shelter are often left in their kennels for weeks or months at a time without being walked, and some dogs are doubled or tripled up in small kennels. These conditions have led to increased stress among animals, often leading to negative outcomes and reducing their adoptions, advocates say.
On Aug. 11, the Los Angeles Times published a report that found the city’s animal shelters recorded a sharp increase in euthanizations of cats and kittens through the first six months of 2026, which city officials say is due to a rise in animals brought into the shelters.
Nearly 900 kittens were euthanized from January through June, an increase of about 600 in the first months of last year, representing a 43% increase; and euthanasia of casts older than eights weeks experienced a 32% increase compared to the same time last year with 1,142 killed through June, according the Times report.
Animal advocates have urged city officials to bolster funding for programs capturing stray cats, and providing animal sterilizations in order to reduce shelter intake, and ultimately lower euthanasia rates.