Orange County Animal Services — Local services in Oak Ridge

Overall a good adopting experience, although some quirky caveats with how dogs are adopted out. My boyfriend and I went in on a Monday to browse for a new addition to our family. The volunteer who helped us (Kelly D) was truly phenomenal. She was extremely friendly, willing to help, knowledgeable about the dogs we were looking at, and patient while we rapid-fired questions at her about the adoption process. We looked at 4 dogs total, 3 being our personal picks and 1 being a recommendation from Kelly. All were so sweet! They also waive adoption fees for first responders , including 911 dispatchers. That is great! Now for the "complaints." First, the stray dogs that come in are mixed in with the rest of the adoptable dogs, however you cannot adopt a stray until their 2 weeks "hold" is over. They even let you pay for the adoption fee for the dog, and you still have to wait 2 weeks just in case the dog is claimed by their original owner. Then why is the public allowed to play and interact with these dogs? We were actually going to adopt a dog that we fell in love with, but decided against it because an animal control officer saw us with her outside and told us the owner was coming to get her later that day (and he did, we followed up)... yet we were still allowed to play with her and even pay to adopt her! And then if you do decide to wait the 2 weeks, then they have the schedule the spay/neuter operation after that... so you're talking 3 weeks to get your dog. Place these dogs in the isolation building for their 2 week hold, it isn't fair to the dog or the public to be advertised as available when they really aren't. Second, gone are the days where you go home with your shelter dog the same day. The dog we ended up adopting was an owner surrender the same day, was spayed and had all her shots. We still weren't allowed to pick her up for up to 5 days while the clinic next door "verified" that she was in fact spayed and vaccinated. I asked if they could expedite moving her to the top of the list since we had all her paperwork and they had records from the previous owner stating she was spayed; the answer was no. And finally, since I was already feeling a bit uneasy about adopting a dog but not being able to take her home, I asked if there was any reason we'd lose out on this dog. They said the owner who surrendered can come and get their pet back as long as the pet is still there and the owner provides proof of ownership... are you kidding me. I get people make mistakes but how is that allowed? And of course this can happen after you've already paid the fee and got your heart set on this animal. Anyway, other than those 3 odd quirks... the process was relatively easy. The volunteers really care about the animals and at the end of it all, picking up our dog was easy and we love our new dog, just go in educated and aware of this shelter's rules and...

A Betrayal to Life: Do Not Trust the Orange County Animal Services. Two days ago, we found a healthy, vocal baby raccoon lying alone on hot pavement near our office. We waited until nearly 5 p.m. for the mother to return but she never did. Concerned, we called Orange County Animal Services. We were told they could help and that licensed wildlife rescuers were available. Trusting that, my husband brought the baby there with hope. But instead of being met with care, he was treated with coldness and suspicion, as if helping was something wrong. That baby, handed over in compassion, was euthanized shortly after. I told my husband to go back and bring the baby raccoon home, just for the night, we would care for him until a rescuer could take him. But after how he was received, he knew they would not cooperate. The shelter made it clear the situation would only escalate if he tried. The next morning, I found a licensed rescuer willing to help the baby raccoon in the shelter. I called repeatedly and left messages. Hours later, someone called back, not to coordinate rescue, but to say he was already gone. Euthanized. He was not sick. He was not injured. He needed time. And he never had a chance. We were never told there was no transport or after-hours care. If we had known, I would have driven him myself, anywhere. That truth was withheld, and a life was lost because of it. I feel deep pain, the same pain this baby must have felt from being treated like nothing. What happened was a betrayal of trust, a disrespect to this animal, and a disrespect to life itself. It goes against every instinct of compassion and every law of nature. Please, do not drop animals off at this place. Seek out licensed wildlife rehabbers, rescue groups, or compassionate individuals. There are people who will help, but this shelter is not one of them. I’ve uploaded a short video of the baby so you can see who he was. He mattered. He deserved better. We all do. If you want to understand who I am, you can search my name Gennysser, but this isn’t about me. It’s about telling the truth so others can make a different choice. Thankfully, platforms like Google Reviews give people a voice and help uncover truths that would otherwise...

I have no complaints for my own experience. I saw the dog I wanted online then went to his kennel and waited for assistance. I was there as soon as they opened so someone helped me immediately and within 15 mins I was interacting with the dog outside. This was the easiest adoption process ever! There wasn’t a bunch of probing questions that make you feel unqualified to adopt a pet. All i needed was my license and the fee which was only $11 for the month of May. My boy had quite a few health issues, heart worms to be one of them, but there was full disclosure and his treatment was sponsored. I did the paperwork on a Thursday then by that Sunday he was being neutered and I was told I could pick him up that afternoon. Once at the clinic to pick the dog up, they informed me of an abnormal health issue they discovered during surgery and explained everything I needed to do with his care. My only issue is with the clinic that is not related to the shelter but rather the one that sponsors the heart worm treatment. My dog had been in the shelter for almost a month already with the diagnosis and the clinic can’t see him until mid August. I wish there was an alternative for heart worm sponsorship so it could be treated before it gets worse. You have no clue what extent of damage the worms are doing until you get that exam so you may very well bring home a dog and love and care for them a few weeks before finding it hard to treat them. I did witness an incident similar to the reviews about people being rude in the office. I was fortunate enough not to have to interact with the lady who was being very short and snappy to this woman looking for a specific dog. My experience was quite and informative and I would adopt there again. They treated my dog for what they could then let me know multiple times it’s up to me to continue care and get him seen by a...