About Pre-select Animals

Pets available for ‘pre-select’ adoption are found pets on stray hold waiting for owners to reclaim them before they can go home with an adopter. Interested adopters are able to see / meet them and apply for adoption at the shelter, and may bring them home after the stray hold timeframe is over if they are not reclaimed by their previous owner. Because of this, it is important to note that pre-select adoptions are not a guarantee of adoption. 

Our goal is always to reunite lost pets with their owners. However, if that's not possible, we want to find them new homes quickly. Animal shelters can be stressful places, and long stays can negatively impact an animal's health and well-being.

Using pre-selection helps improve the chances of successful adoption and reduces the time animals spend in the shelter if they aren’t reclaimed. This practice, also known as Open Selection, is widely recognized as a best practice in animal sheltering.

While we've used pre-selection for in-person adoptions at our shelter, making these animals visible on our website is a new step that can increase positive outcomes for these pets and reduce the time they spend in the shelter.

For more information on pre-selection practices, explore resources from Maddie's Fund.