For more than 50 years, the Placer SPCA has reunited lost pets with their owners, enabled struggling families and individuals to keep their pets when times are tough, and matched homeless pets with those searching for a companion. It began in 1973, when a group of community residents committed to animal welfare in the greater Placer area could no longer watch the suffering of homeless animals that were abandoned and left to fend for themselves, often succumbing to starvation, disease, and euthanasia. In search of a loving home for these animals, compassionate volunteers founded the Placer SPCA. In its early years, Placer SPCA operated without a shelter, working solely out of a small office in Auburn. Then managed entirely by volunteers, hundreds of homeless and abused animals were placed in foster homes until they found their permanent homes. Through the gift of a generous bequest, the current Placer SPCA Companion Animal Center in Roseville opened in 1995 and was expanded a few years later after another legacy gift.
Today, the Placer SPCA is the largest and most comprehensive animal welfare provider in Placer County. The Placer SPCA is critically needed in the community, and the organization houses, feeds, and cares for up to 4,000 homeless animals annually between our three locations: the Placer Companion Animal Center in Roseville, the Pet Adoption and Resource Center in Auburn, and the Pet Food Express Cat Adoption Center at the Fountains shopping center in Roseville. Working closely with the community, the Placer SPCA provides adoption counseling, spay/neuter assistance and education, pet lost and found, pet classes and workshops, collaborative rescue efforts, and volunteer opportunities. Contrary to common belief, the Placer SPCA is not affiliated with any other entity and does not receive donations from the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) or the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS). We do not receive government funding outside of contracted services. Our programs are funded solely through private donations, charitable foundations, corporate grants, fees for service, and a thrift store.
In 2018, the Placer SPCA opened Phase I of the brand-new Adoption & Education Center at 200 Tahoe Avenue in Roseville. This 20,000 square foot state-of-the-art facility serves as the organization's central adoption location, housing adoptable pets and adoption services, our education center, and administrative offices. The new campus features hospital quality in a home-like atmosphere, designed carefully with the research and recommendations by the UC Davis Koret Shelter Medicine Program in mind. The Placer SPCA's previous Companion Animal Care Center at 150 Corporation Yard Road is now being used for intake and veterinary services until Phases II and III of the new campus are funded and built.