Adopting a Pet

To find your next companion, take a peek at some of our available animals.

Adopt with Santa Fe Animal Shelter

If you’re looking for a new companion, chances are that Santa Fe Animal Shelter has a dog, cat, kitten, puppy, ferret, rabbit, guinea pig, or other furry or feathered critter that will match your home and lifestyle. Matchmaking is an important part of our adoption process, and we pride ourselves on helping hopeful animal lovers find a compatible companion.

Adoption viewings are open to the public and no appointment is needed! Come meet your new companion Monday – Sunday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., with the last adoption at 5:30 p.m.

If you don’t see your new companion at our shelter, there are pets looking for new homes in your community. Check them out at Adopt a Pet and Home to Home!

If you’re not sure you’re ready to adopt right now, find out how to become a foster volunteer in the meantime!

Before You Adopt

Due to the nationwide veterinary care crisis, we strongly encourage you to contact veterinarians in your area to establish care before you bring your new pet home. All animals are spayed or neutered and microchipped before leaving and receive the required age-appropriate vaccines. Also, please consider reviewing some helpful materials on introducing your new pet into your home and managing some common behaviors.

Please be aware that some animals on the adoption pages may already be claimed. If you decide to adopt, please be completely prepared to take home your new pet the same day as we do not hold animals. All adoptions are done on a first come, first served basis.

One of the questions we often get asked by fosters and potential adopters is whether they can bring one or more of their own dogs to meet an adoptable shelter dog. The short answer is that we’d recommend against it, but we’d like to share the “why” behind this answer with you so that you and your new pet are set up for success!

Aside from the skills required to do so safely (i.e. carefully reading the behaviors presented by multiple dogs and understanding the subtle cues offered), meet-and-greets don’t actually offer real information because the home environment and shelter environment are so different. First, we’re putting a burden on your dog by asking them to show up to a stressful environment to meet another dog that is already at a high stress level. Now, even if both dogs are socialized enough to communicate effectively and things go well during the meet-and-greet, we create an impression that they’ll be OK in the home. But this is just that, an impression, and not necessarily a reality since there are so many variables to account for in the home, including home territory, resource guarding, etc. And if the dogs ignore each other during the meet-and-greet, it can be construed as positive when in reality that’s usually not a good sign because when dogs ignore each other, it typically means they’re not into each other. And, finally, if the dogs escalate during the meet-and-greet, we have no way to know if it’s due to the environment of the shelter or something else.

Dogs learn contextually. This means that any interaction occurring in the shelter does not necessarily translate to the home. Since transparency is so important to us, we will tell you the truth, which is that the only way to know if your resident dog and newly-adopted dog will get along is to bring them together in your home. We do have resources available to help you with new pet introductions, and if you have any concerns about how your adopted pet is doing in the home, we can offer support. If you have any more questions about dog-to-dog meet-and-greets, please give us a call at 505.983.4309 ext. 1610.

Get a headstart by submitting an adoption survey before you come in so we know what kind of pet you’re looking for:

  • Click HERE to submit a Dog Adoption Survey form before your visit.
  • Click HERE to submit a Cat Adoption Survey form before your visit.
  • If you’re interested in adopting a critter, our adoption counselors can answer any questions you may have during your visit.

For questions about adoptable animals or the adoption process, call one of our adoption counselors at 505.983.4309 ext. 1610, available by phone 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily. Due to a high volume of calls, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to return your call the same day. Thank you for your understanding!

Adoption Fees

  • Adult Cats $40
  • Senior Cats $15
  • Kittens $125*
  • Adult Dogs $50*
  • Senior Dogs $25*
  • Puppies $100*
  • Rabbits and ferrets $35
  • Guinea pigs and rats $15
  • Small rodents $5

*Excludes Shelter Heroes. Does not include required licensing fees. For your convenience, the required licenses for City and County residents are available at the Shelter as you adopt! 

Our companion animal adoption fees vary and are dependent on many factors including: age, size, behavior, medical condition, and public demand. We waive or reduce adoption fees for many animals in our shelter thanks to generous supporters and businesses who sponsor adoption fees. Other animals – those we call Shelter Heroes – often carry higher adoption fees, which help offset the cost of care and treatment of animals who have a more difficult time finding the right family.

Companions for Veterans: In honor of those who have served or are serving our country in the armed forces, we offer 50% off the adoption fee of all animals.*

Baby Boomer Buddies: Adoption fees are 50% off for adopters over the age of 65.*

Want to sponsor an animal’s adoption? Find out how here.

Adopting Hours

Adoption viewings are open to the public and no appointment is needed! Come meet your new companion Monday – Sunday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., with the last adoption at 5:30 p.m.

If you don’t see your new companion at our shelter, there are pets looking for new homes in your community. Check them out at Adopt a Pet and Home to Home!

If you’re not sure you’re ready to adopt right now, find out how to become a foster volunteer in the meantime!

After You Adopt

Santa Fe Animal Shelter has a comprehensive behavior and training library, including tips for finding a trainer and bringing home a new pet. We’ve also provided links to other libraries and training resources to help you and your pet build and maintain a loving bond.

Santa Fe Animal Shelter is proud to partner with GoodPup! Dogs learn best in familiar, comfortable environments with few distractions, so GoodPup training happens at home. Short, focused sessions allow your dog to concentrate, and guided daily practice quickly cements new skills. Meet with a top-rated, expert dog trainer each week, on 1-1 video calls, while learning essential skills that solve any unwanted dog behavior. Best of all, anyone who adopts a dog from Santa Fe Animal shelter will receive 1 free week of dog training, plus 10% off for life on future activity. In addition, GoodPup will make a donation to our shelter!

Maddie’s® Pet Assistant (MPA) is a free app developed by Maddie’s Fund® to provide you with support after you bring a dog or cat home. Whether you are a seasoned foster caregiver, or just adopted your first pet – the app will provide help and maybe even teach you a few new tricks.

Santa Fe Animal Shelter believes that every animal deserves the best care possible, regardless of circumstances. We have 2 veterinary facilities to provide our community with access to high quality care and a wide variety of services. We also have a Veterinary Resources List of veterinary services in the Santa Fe area.