The Dog The Pound Picked Up
Food & Agr. Code 31108 — six business days for a stray dog, or four with evening or weekend hours
Six business days. The required holding period for an impounded stray dog is six business days, not counting the day of impoundment. It is four business days if the shelter offers owner redemption one weekday evening until at least 7 p.m. or one weekend day, or if a small shelter allows owners to reclaim by appointment.
Owner first. The dog is held for owner redemption during the first three days of the holding period, and is available for redemption or adoption for the rest of it.
The microchip. During the holding period, and before adoption or euthanasia, the shelter scans the dog for a microchip and makes reasonable efforts to contact the owner and say the dog is impounded and available for redemption.
Before euthanasia. A stray dog is released to a nonprofit rescue or adoption organization that asks for it before scheduled euthanasia. A business day is any day the shelter is open to the public for at least four hours, excluding state holidays.
Dangerous dog proceedings, bite quarantines, and local fee schedules are set out elsewhere and are not on this page. What a particular shelter's hours or fees are is a question for that shelter or a licensed California attorney.
Sources for this section (1)
- Food & Agr. Code 31108 — Holding period for stray dogs
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of September 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed California attorney.