Dog & Kitty City Shelter
Dog & Kitty City Shelter

Our Values
The Humane Society of Dallas County has operated the Dog & Kitty City shelter for over 40 years.
Our purpose is to provide a safe and healthy environment for the abused and neglected animals of Dallas and to educate the Dallas community on responsible pet ownership.
We are a 501.c3 nonprofit organization and do not receive any tax support. We rely solely on private donations. Our service to the animals depends completely on the generosity of the community and on committed, dedicated volunteers.
Dog & Kitty City is a no-kill shelter.
We subscribe to a true no-kill philosophy—any animal coming into our care has a home for life. We do not screen requests, except to provide better information about rehoming—e.g., old animals do not do well in shelters and owners should do everything in their power to find alternate accommodations. We only refuse intake on the basis of no room.
Dog & Kitty City accepts the responsibility of spay / neuter, shots, and behavioral adjustment. It is one of the reasons we ask for a surrender fee—to help absorb the cost.
We spay or neuter all of our animals before adoption, according to the law, and to help decrease animal overpopulation.
We test cats for Feline Leukemia and FIV, and dogs for heartworm. Both are tested for parasites.
All necessary vaccinations, medications, and heartworm preventatives are given as required.
We also have “special needs” cats (with Feline Leukemia and FIV) available. They are extremely lovable cats who can live long and happy lives.
Rescuing and ministering to the indigent animal population.
Providing shelter, love, and medical care for all of our animals until they find a loving home.
Promoting responsible pet ownership.
Providing ongoing adoption support services to ensure a lifetime commitment from pet owners.
Eliminating animal cruelty through education.
Helping to reduce animal overpopulation by providing services such as low-cost spay / neuter.
Fostering a respect for all life.
Our Animal Intake Policy
Dog & Kitty City is a small shelter, with limited space for both dogs and cats. As a no-kill shelter, we do not euthanize harder to adopt animals to make room for new arrivals, but rather any animal coming into our care has a home for life. As such, many of our current pets are sanctuary animals.
Shelter overcrowding is an invitation for illness and disease due to stress and contagion that cannot be contained in tight quarters, so we must limit intake as best we can. Space constraints are a real problem, especially true in winter, when we must, by law, provide indoor space for every dog in inclement weather.
Whenever possible, we will support volunteer rescues, but it is not always feasible to take in these animals. If your request to surrender an animal is denied, please do not pressure the Shelter Director to change her mind. It hurts us all to turn a needy animal away, but we cannot save them all.
Intake requires the advance approval of the Shelter Director. Of course, some intake is involuntary, when people simply dump the animals at the shelter. We never refuse sanctuary to these throwaways.
Because small dogs (under 15 lbs fully grown) are easier to house, a small dog might take priority over a large pup, but our decision is not based on preconceived notions of “adoptability.” We always request a surrender fee to help defray basic animal care.
We have two alternate programs to supplement rescue efforts with our space restrictions: the HSDC Foster program and the Guest Foster program.
Our Team
Kathy Harlan
Jennifer Harry
Maurice La Verdure
Dr. Lindsey Merrill
Angie Speer, Brenna Hudson, Nicole Gaignat
Alexsey Dobberstine
Theresa Fonseca
Christine Fickling, Roger Townley, Javetta Williams, Andie Bey, Christopher Reyes, Maria Ayala
Theresa Fonseca
Theresa Fonseca