As Tropical Storm Hilary approached, the Riverside County Department of Animal Services’ Thousand Palms shelter was overpopulated with lost and abandoned pets. Riverside County shuttered the San Jacinto shelter in July 2020 due to budget cuts, leaving the other three county shelters—in Thousand Palms, Blythe and Jurupa Valley—to pick up the slack.
On Sunday, Aug. 20, Hilary moved the conditions at the Coachella Valley Animal Campus from challenging to impossible: For almost two weeks, the shelter was unable to open due to heavy flooding at the intersection where Bob Hope Drive becomes Rio del Sol at Varner Road, which cut off all vehicle access to the shelter.
“If we get any more significant water at that corner of Bob Hope and Rio del Sol, I don’t know what’s going to happen to us,” said Jackie Schart, the Riverside County Department of Animal Services operations chief, to the Independent.
Flooding in the area is nothing new—but the chaos caused during the recent storm was new.
“I’ve worked for the county for 17 years, and I worked out here in Coachella Valley early in my career,” Schart said. “Before that area of Bob Hope was developed, we always had significant flooding at the corner of Varner and Rio del Sol. When they developed that area with the hotel, Starbucks, McDonald’s and all that, I assumed that a big part of the (construction) of that infrastructure was to take care of all of that flooding we had previously. It never lasted more than two or three days, but anytime there was rain, there’d be standing water in that intersection.”
The county’s Emergency Management Department didn’t get the required equipment and manpower to that location to restore vehicle access until Sept. 1—some 12 days later.
“The EMD was able to clear enough water that there was one lane passable on both sides, so they allowed the road to open, and that was good news,” Schart said. “… It’s been quite an adventure.”
The current priority for the Coachella Valley Animal Campus’ staff and volunteers is to decrease, as swiftly as possible, the overpopulation of the facility, which worsened due to the chaotic storm environment. The shelter normally houses 100 or so dogs at any given time, but immediately after Hilary blew away, there were at least 150 dogs.
“So we have about 50 more than usual,” Schart said. “For the last two years, we’ve been trending a little bit high, (because we’ve received) more large dogs. It seems that our desert communities readily adopt the small-breed dogs, so we’ve been having more challenges with the large breeds. Unfortunately for us, they take up a lot of space.
“That’s why we’re really trying to get to the owners. These dogs didn’t just appear. Somebody is looking for them. So we’re really, really urging owners not to be afraid of fees, because we’ve had some very generous donors and larger organizations that have donated toward paying redemption fees. We don’t want anybody to fear that getting their pet back would be too expensive.”
During the time the shelter was cut off from the community, Schart and her team held two off-site “pop-up” events in Palm Desert at the former Venus de Fido salon building. The first was an adoption event; the second was a wellness event where pet owners could bring their pets for inoculations and other healthcare support.
“We were donated briefly a building in Palm Desert (courtesy of the property’s owner, Linda Biggi),” Schart said. “At the adoption event, we did a total of 10 adoptions, which was less than a normal Saturday—but considering that we’d been trapped on our island for a whole week, 10 adoptions was huge! And there were people lining up outside of the wellness clinic at 8 a.m., and the event didn’t start until 10 a.m. That certainly shows that there’s both a need in our community and a want. We have great pet owners, and they just need some help with services, so we were happy we were able to provide that.”
Schart reiterated that people who lost their pets need to come to the shelter.
“Of course, we’re also encouraging adopters to come back and see us,” she said. “We really, really need the community’s help with adoptions and with redemptions right now.”
Even though the Coachella Valley Animal Campus is a county-run operation, Schart explained that they still need donations of money and items to do everything they need to do.
“The (operating) budget is handled by the county,” Schart said. “Where the donors really help is with private funding for targeted (project) goals. … We had some very generous donations of these fun splash pads that we put out in the play yard and are safe for dogs. It’s a big wet area where they can be outside and not burn their feet. Things like that are harder for us to buy out of our county budget. For instance, we’re trying to build a new play yard (with a shade structure) on the Coachella Valley campus, because we only have one play yard there. Any of the monetary donations that we have will go toward this shade structure, which, unfortunately, is quite a bit more expensive than I thought. We’ve been looking at Bagdouma Park (in Coachella) and some of the other parks that have those fabulous shade sails, and we’re working on some quotes. … We have to have more shade for our animals outside, and for our volunteers to be happy in the desert in the summer.”
Staffers are also looking to make life better for the cats at the shelter.
“We have a generous donor who has donated some funds for enrichment for cats,” she said. “We’re looking at ways to do something fun for the kitties. The dogs like the outdoor splash pad, but the cats would not. We’re looking at cat-enrichment activities that we can do inside, and maybe create some larger spaces for them in indoor playroom-type areas.”
To donate, go to rcdas.org and click the “donate now” button.
Schart said the shelter is always in need of linens, too.
“The items that we always accept graciously are any kind of towels or blankets,” Schart said. “That’s something we can never have too many of, because a lot of times, the dogs will play with them exuberantly, and sometimes, those items are not making it into the washing-machine area. I just don’t want the public to forget that any of those laundry items are huge for us always. … We never have enough towels, sheets or pillow cases. Anything like that is so helpful for us.”
Of course, residents can also volunteer their time and energy to help the animals and the staff at the RCASD shelters; if interested, apply at rcdas.org/support/volunteer. Schart said they’re working to make it as easy as possible for people to volunteer, including virtual orientation sessions and at-home opportunities.
“That has really helped a lot of our desert constituents who might be seniors or seasonal,” Schart said. “We have a volunteer coordinator at our campus who makes contact (with volunteers), and if needed, we can even do pick-ups and drop-offs for volunteers who don’t drive but still want to come spend a day with the animals. … Some folks volunteer, but they don’t come to the shelter. Some of them are making cat toys, or they’re making dog beds, or they’re just collecting (items) from their communities. They make a huge impact, because we’re able to pick up those items and use them for our pet residents.”
Regarding the overpopulation problem, some help is on the way: The Riverside County Board of Supervisors voted in June to resume funding for the San Jacinto shelter.
“Currently we’re hiring for that campus, and we’re training those new employees here at our Coachella Valley campus,” Schart said. “Tentatively, we’re hoping to re-open sometime between Halloween and Thanksgiving this year. That’s going to relieve a big burden for us in the desert, because a lot of dogs come to us currently from unincorporated Anza or up on the mountain in Idyllwild or Mountain Center.”
For more information, visit rcdas.org.
Riverside County Department of Animal Services by the Numbers
January-August 2023
- Pets adopted: 6,188
- Transferred to adoption partners or other agencies: 3,158
- Returned to owner: 1,603
- In a foster home: 2,081
- Treatable animals euthanized: 2,374
- Untreatably ill animals euthanized: 4,201
- Died in shelter: 273
