Friends of Animal Services Rescue Stories

The Friends of Animal Services was formed for the express purpose of guaranteeing the people of Antioch a humane and comprehensive Animal Services program with an emphasis on a quality Animal Shelter and maximum responsible adoptions of animals. This includes assisting with the medical costs of at-risk animals who would otherwise be euthanized due to budgetary concerns.

With the generosity of your donations, we are able assist with the medical costs of animals who arrive at the shelter from abandoned or abusive situations and those who have injuries that the shelter is unable to treat due to budgetary limitations. We assist with various types of medical situations including: dental surgeries, tumor removal, amputations, internal surgeries, limb repairs and treatment for illnesses or other injuries. With our funding of medical care it enables them to be treated by a qualified veterinarian rather than be euthanized. By Donating to FOAS you ensure the medical care they need in order to be adoptable and find loving homes such as some of the animals featured below.

My Story: Yoga

On June 21, 2018, Antioch PD Officer, Lenderman received a call regarding a small kitten in distress. Upon his arrival, he found a 5 week old kitten who was wedged between 2 fence boards. The kitten had been there for at least a day, if not longer. The kitten was freed, but had very serious injuries to his back leg. Officer Lenderman quickly rushed the kitten to East Bay Veterinary Emergency where he was stabilized and treated. Unfortunately, he was stuck for so long that his rear leg was not salvageable. The recommendation from the Vet was to amputate the leg, a cost that Antioch Animal Services does not have in their budget.  Antioch Friends of Animal Services, without hesitation, agreed to fund the costs of this darling kittens surgery.

Little “Yoga” underwent surgery at Fix Our Ferals in Richmond on June 22nd where his leg was amputated. His surgery went very well. He had a slight heart murmur; therefore, the Vet performing the surgery kept him through the weekend to monitor him prior to sending him to his foster home for convalescence.

Yogi spent the next several weeks resting, healing and being very well cared for by his Foster. Yoga had no trouble at all adjusting to being a “tripawd” kitty. He was officially adopted by his Foster Mom on Saturday, August 18th during the annual Clear the Shelters Event. While he was too afraid to come out of the kennel, Friends of Animal Services Founder and President, Barbara Sobalvarro was on hand to greet the darling little kitten, now named Oliver, whose life was saved and who will now live a very productive life.

Animals with severe injuries such as Yoga and who require extensive medical care would likely not have such a happy outcome if it were not for the generous donors who enable Antioch Friends of Animal Services to fund such expensive surgeries for the homeless shelter animals at Antioch Animal Services.

If you would like to make a tax-deductible donation so that we can continue to fund medical care for the shelter animals, you can do so by sending your donation to Antioch Friends of Animal Services, PO Box 1242, Antioch, CA 94509-1242.

My Story: Cheyenne

Cheyenne was brought in to Antioch Animal Services as a found stray in November 2017. When she arrived, she was terribly frightened. In the kennel, she would growl and was labeled as “fear aggressive”. After a week, the visiting Veterinary Technician was able to get her out of the kennel to examine her and it was found that she an injured leg, thus she was in pain. She was sent to East Hills Veterinary Hospital for x-rays and it was revealed she had a complete break close to the femur that would require surgery to repair. Antioch Animal Services does not have the funds to cover the cost of such an expensive surgery. The options were bleak: splint the leg and administer pain meds for the duration of her stray hold and euthanize if no owner claims or reach out to Antioch Friends of Animal Services to fund her surgery. Fortunately for Cheyenne, the latter occurred, and Antioch FOAS agreed to fund Cheyenne’s surgery.

Cheyenne had a special plate and pins surgically implanted to attach the bone back to the femur. This hardware would remain in place for at least 6 weeks to anchor the bones while healing. A very kind Volunteer from Antioch Animal Services offered to foster Cheyenne during her recovery period.

In early March, Cheyenne returned to East Hills Veterinary Clinic for x-rays to check the progress on her healing. Unfortunately, the break was so close to the femur, her recovery is taking a bit longer than expected and she will continue to convalesce with her foster for a few more weeks before the plate and pins are surgically removed.

The cost for Cheyenne’s treatment is upwards of $5000.00; however, we do not put a price on the life of an adoptable companion animal that would otherwise be euthanized due to lack of funding. We are fortunate to be able to save lives thanks to the generosity of our donors.

We are pleased to announce that Cheyenne had all her hardware removed in April and after a few weeks of recovery, she was adopted into a loving forever home on May 12, 2018.

If you would like to help cover the costs of Cheyenne’s medical care, please mail your tax-deductible donation to Antioch Friends of Animal Services, PO Box 1242, Antioch, CA 94509-1242

My Story: Taurus

Taurus was brought in to Antioch Animal Services as a found stray on July 28, 2018. He was a darling little senior dog. Unfortunately, Taurus had very bad teeth, a common problem in elderly dogs. The shelter does not have the funding at this time to pay for dental care on adoptable dogs. The only option for dogs who have such severe dental issues is to go to a rescue who will provide dental care, hope for an adopter who is willing to pay for a dental or in some cases, euthanasia.

Unfortunately, no rescue was willing to take Taurus and no adopter had come for him who was willing to fund such an expensive surgery. The shelter reached out to Friends of Animal Services and we agreed to assist Taurus by having a dental performed.

Taurus was taken by one of our Volunteers to Banfield Pet Hospital – Antioch West on Deer Valley in Antioch on August 21st. Dr Stafford and his team did an amazing job cleaning his teeth and provided the shelter with a special medication to assist with clearing up his gingivitis. Taurus then spent the night recovering with one of our Volunteers and returned to the shelter the next day. Within no time, Taurus was adopted by a wonderful family. He is joined by his two human sisters and two fur-siblings.

Dental treatments such as the one performed on Taurus are quite expensive. We get several requests from the shelter to assist animals in need and we cannot do it without the generous donations from the community. If you would like to help cover the costs of Taurus’ medical care, or assist in the care of another shelter animal in need, please mail your tax-deductible donation to Antioch Friends of Animal Services, PO Box 1242, Antioch, CA 94509-1242.

My Story: Nemo

Nemo was found injured in the bushes in Antioch. When Animal Control Officers found him on October 2, 2024, he had a missing paw, that was scraped up and appeared to be either an old injury or a deformity. He also had a serious issue with his jaw and front teeth. Despite these issues, Nemo was just as friendly and loveable as could be. The shelter vet determined that his deformed paw would continue to create a problem and he needed to have the deformed leg surgically removed and also have his jaw issue address.

The shelter does not have the funding to pay for such extensive surgery such as an amputation, nor do they have the equipment to perform extensive dental surgery on adoptable dogs at the shelter. The only option for dogs who have such severe medical issues is to go to a rescue who will provide needed care, hope for an adopter who is willing to pay for needed care (highly unlikely) or to humanely euthanize the animal.

Unfortunately, no rescue was willing to take Nemo and no adopter had come for him who was willing to fund such an expensive surgery. The shelter reached out to Friends of Animal Services and we agreed to assist

Nemo was taken to our preferred Veterinarian Care Team at East Hills Veterinary Hospital, where his deformed leg was removed, a few of his teeth were surgically removed and repairs were made to his jaw. The surgery was very successful and East Hill’s Staff was quick to let us know what a wonderful patient Nemo was. After an overnight stay in the hospital, he was transferred back to Antioch Animal Services where he continued to heal and is now available for adoption.

Medical Care, including amputations or dental surgery such as what was  performed on Nemo, are quite expensive. We get several requests from the shelter to assist animals in need and we cannot do it without the generous donations from the community. If you would like to help cover the costs of Nemo’s medical care, or assist in the care of another shelter animal in need, you can do so by donation online at network for good or by mailing your tax-deductible donation to Antioch Friends of Animal Services, PO Box 1242, Antioch, CA 94509-1242.