Community

BARC Hosts Rescue Rally, Providing Financial Incentive to Rescue Groups

March 13 2023

Thanks to the leadership of Mayor Sylvester Turner and District C Council Member Abbie Kamin, BARC is excited to host another “Rescue Rally” from Monday, March 13, through Sunday, March 26, 2023. Throughout these dates, BARC is offering sponsorship dollars to any rescue that pulls dogs from the BARC Animal Shelter.

During this upcoming Rescue Rally, all dogs that appear on our Code Orange or Red lists or receive an urgent plea will be eligible for a $200 financial incentive (a mom and litter of puppies will count as one).

"Post-pandemic, many of our rescue partners continue to face challenges as nationwide, adoption and foster rates remain unsteady. While locally adoptions are on the rise, we continue to see a drop in rescue pulls," Mayor Sylvester Turner said. "We are once again offering this financial incentive to both help our rescue partners carry the financial burden of taking dogs from our shelter and improving our dogs on our urgent pets list of receiving a positive outcome."

The event will cover all dogs transferred to rescues during the rally period until funding runs out. In addition to $10,000 committed by Mayor Turner, the rally will utilize more than $6,300 from District C Council funds.

"We're continuing to partner with BARC and our local rescue groups, including many that call District C home, to ensure rescue organizations have the resources they need to continue this important work with their volunteers," District C Council Member Abbie Kamin said. "Efforts like this make sure all animals have a safe place off the streets on the way to their forever homes."

Additional Information

Rescue groups must follow the BARC tagging process to tag and pull dogs into their program, and all tagged dogs must leave the shelter within 24 hours (regardless of their spay/neuter status). Any animal not picked up within 24 hours will be released from its hold. Moms with litters will count as one.
If you are not a currently approved rescue, please visit this website to get more details on the requirements to become an approved BARC rescue organization.

Reimbursement Details

Each rescue group must register with the city as a vendor to receive the reimbursement.
- Website: purchasing.houstontx.gov
- Contact: Vendor's Assistance Desk at houstonpurchasing@houstontx.gov or 832-393-8800
Each rescue group must submit a final invoice by noon on Friday, April 7, 2023, to BARC.Communications@houstontx.gov with the rescue’s name and contact information, along with a list of animals rescued during this time frame.

BARC is grateful to Mayor Turner and Council Member Kamin’s Office for making this rally event possible. If you have any questions, please contact BARC.Communications@houstontx.gov for more information.

About BARC

BARC, the City of Houston's Animal Shelter and Adoption Center, takes in more than 25,000 animals annually regardless of behavior, breed, or medical condition. BARC works each day to improve Houstonians and their pets' health and safety by pioneering programs such as low-cost and no-cost spay/neuter services, mobile adoptions, transfer/rescue partnerships, and community outreach.

BARC is open from noon - 5 p.m. every Tuesday - Sunday at 3300 Carr St. There are many other ways to get involved to help the life of a shelter pet, whether through fostering, volunteering, or donating. Visit houstontx.gov/barc/get_involved to learn how to get involved.

Source: City of Houston

« BACK TO NEWS