Downey California Animal Control's New Approach

The shelter last month began a program to accept donated pet toys that seeks to improve the health and demeanor of its pets and increase the animals' chances of being adopted.

"There is always tremendous stress placed on animals brought into the shelter because they are taken out of their environment and placed in an unfamiliar setting,' said Capt. Aaron Reyes, SEAACA's director of operations. "If they are well-adjusted, they have a much greater chance of getting adopted.'

The program, called Environmental Enrichment, officially began July 1 in an effort to curb the tremendous anxiety, stress and boredom many of the animals brought into SEAACA experience.

Reyes said many cats will not lay down to sleep and cower in the back of their cage if they are stressed, while dogs show more "standard signs' of stress.

"They won't be as social as they should be. They wear their feelings on their paw sleeve,' Reyes said.

He said the simplest toys can make the animals much more comfortable. Cats enjoy rolling toys, such as small plastic balls or other toys that can be hung from cage doors, while dogs tend to prefer heavy-duty toys such as the Kong rubber toy.

"Dogs love their toys,' Reyes said. "It's the cutest thing to see a big dog go lay down with his paw on a tennis ball he calls his own.'

Dan Morrison, executive director of SEAACA, said one of the purposes of the toys is to give the animals something they can own to "elevate their mood and enhance their appeal to adopters.'

"The toys will go home with the pet when its adopted if the new owner desires,' Morrison said.

Reyes said Environmental Enrichment hasn't taken off as fast as he'd hoped and more toys are needed.

"We need them in a bad way,' he said. "We can't afford (to buy more toys ourselves).'

At any given time, SEAACA has about 150 dogs and 75 cats, among other animals, in its shelter. Reyes said the summer months are the busy time and about 300 animals per week are brought in, with the majority being lost or stray animals.

"We always have the 'no vacancy' sign up,' he said.

The state mandates that pets are kept for a minimum of five days, but Reyes said SEAACA holds animals as long as they can if they are not claimed or adopted and are in good health and good temperament.

Reyes said adopting a pet is easy and doesn't take much time.

"The majority of the animals here are great pets,' he said. "They're social and well-kept. We're trying to bring out the best in them.'

The SEAACA care center is located at 9777 Seaaca St. in Downey, north of Imperial Highway. Anyone wishing to make a toy donation can drop them off at the shelter from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Saturday.