All paws on deck From the cover
Growing challenges
Current situation
With euthanasia rates and overcrowding continuing to spike, shelter o cials went before Houston City Council a year ago to discuss poten- tial options to raise funding to meet the shelter’s two goals—respond to more calls for service and conduct more adoptions and outreach. BARC Director Jarrad Mears shared a presen- tation with the council in March 2025 to discuss conducting a feasibility study to explore two di erent funding models. The two options included forming a public-non- pro t partnership or creating a local government corporation, or LGC. An LGC is a corporation created to act on behalf of one or more local governments to accomplish any governmental purpose of those local governments, according to the state’s transportation code. Organizations such as the Houston Zoo and Houston First are LGCs.
residents facing di cult decisions,” he said. “That trust is re ected in a signi cant rise in intake throughout the past several years.” BARC’s overall intake has increased by more than 28% since 2022, data shows. In calendar year 2025, the shelter’s total intake was 22,445—up from 20,875 in 2024. Stottlemyer said the most notable driver of increased intake has been expanded public access to the shelter, including Sunday open-intake days, which were implemented in early 2025 and led to a 51% rise in over-the-counter surrenders. The rapid increase in animal intake led shelter o cials to reduce the rescue notice period from 48 hours to 24 hours. Stottlemyer said the move was intended to help animals move through the shelter more quickly and encourage rescue partners to closely monitor BARC’s plea emails.
Houston o cials have started to lay the foundation to address the city’s longstanding stray animal crisis and the constant overcrowding at the BARC Animal Shelter that has led to nearly 4,000 animals being euthanized per year. Monthly and annual reports conducted by the animal shelter show that over 3,500 animals were euthanized in 2024 and 2025, reaching new heights after numbers were previously hovering around the 2,000-2,500 mark. Deputy Shelter Director Cory Stottlemyer said BARC’s 2025 data re ects a combination of factors that animal shelters across the country are experiencing, including continued economic pressures, the city’s rapid population growth and an increase in pet owners seeking support when the time and cost of care have become more challenging. “As the city of Houston’s open-intake animal shelter, BARC remains a trusted resource for
Animal control budget, per capita Despite BARC’s budget of nearly $16 million, Houston still receives the lowest per capita funding for its shelter compared to other Texas cities due to its higher population.
Euthanasia rates BARC saw fewer animals euthanized during the pandemic in 2020 and 2021. However, numbers began to rise to pre-pandemic levels in 2022.
From 2020 to 2025, rates increased 319%
Austin
$17.92
$14.44
San Antonio
$14.07 $13.83
Dallas El Paso
3,813
3,714 3,398
3,541
2,952
2,890
2,284
$11.84
Fort Worth
909 966
Houston
$6.75
NOTE: PER CAPITA MEANS ALLOCATING FUNDS PER PERSON, CALCULATED BY DIVIDING A TOTAL BUDGET BY THE POPULATION SIZE. SOURCES: CITY OF HOUSTON, CITY OF SAN ANTONIO, CITY OF DALLAS, CITY OF AUSTIN, CITY OF FORTH WORTH, CITY OF EL PASO COMMUNITY IMPACT
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024 2025
SOURCE: BARC ANIMAL SHELTER COMMUNITY IMPACT
What’s being done
Renovations for the existing animal shelter will begin in 2027. The new shelter remains under development.
Shelter facilities
and to hire two additional animal enforcement o cers. A month later, a $16 million contract was awarded to provide renovations to the existing facility. According to project details, renovations include: • Renovating the rst oor of the BARC dome • Updating equipment, furniture, and mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems • Replacing the 9,380-square-foot warehouse Stottlemyer said these e orts re ect the city’s ongoing commitment to addressing overcrowding, supporting residents and improving outcomes.
Voters approved a $47 million bond in 2022 to construct a new, nearly 61,000-square-foot shelter capable of holding an additional 150 kennels with new sta to help address the growing challenges. Yet, there is still no con rmed timeline or additional details available regarding the construction of the new facility, Stottlemeyr said. However, city o cials and animal shelter representatives have taken additional steps in the past year to continue progress toward addressing the shelter’s core issues. In September, City Council approved nearly $500,000 to provide cleaning services for the shelter
C O L L I N
Animal Shelter & Adoption Center
New shelter space
Wellness Center & Intake
Foster pickup
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