The Humane Society for Tacoma & Pierce County raised its base owner‑surrender fee to $400 last year, and local rescues and animal‑control officers say the higher price, combined with long waits for surrender appointments, is pushing some owners to dump their pets instead. Volunteers describe crates of kittens abandoned on roadsides and frantic calls from strangers asking if trainers will take animals they feel they can no longer afford to surrender. The shelter maintains that most owners pay far less than the base fee and says it has no data directly tying the price change to any increase in abandonment. The Humane Society says the backlog for surrender appointments is currently six to eight weeks.
The fee hike followed new five‑year service contracts that took effect in 2025 and shifted who subsidizes what, a change that local officials and shelter leaders say altered how surrenders are funded, as reported by The News Tribune. Public documents cited by reporters show the city budgeted roughly $6.8 million and the county about $6.7 million for those contracts over their terms. County spokespeople told the paper that subsidies for animal surrenders were reduced during contract renewal in an effort to control rising costs.
Inside the shelter’s rationale, an internal analysis concluded that $400 is roughly the average cost of three days of baseline care, and the Humane Society says most animals stay about nine days in its custody. In a post explaining the change, the organization also notes it offers reduced fees for income‑qualified owners and other criteria, bringing the average surrender fee actually paid down to about $130, with roughly one‑third of surrendering owners paying nothing, as detailed by The Humane Society for Tacoma & Pierce County. The shelter frames the updated fee structure as a way to keep its open‑admissions model afloat while prioritizing animals that have no other path to safety…