Dogs and cats are now available for adoption at the fully renovated and updated Ellis County Animal Care Center in Waxahachie, Texas.
Located at 2570 Farm-to-Market Road 878, Waxahachie, Texas, the Ellis County Animal Care Center is open Wednesday through Saturday each week from noon to 4:00 p.m. for dog and cat adoptions.
The adoption fee for each pet covers a long list of added services that would add up to several hundred dollars if paid for individually, including:
- Spaying and neutering
- All age-appropriate vaccinations
- Heartworm testing for dogs six months or older
- F.I.V./F.e.L.V. testing for cats four months old or older
- Initial flea and tick preventative
- Initial heartworm preventative
- Microchipping
- 30 days of pet health insurance
- 14-day wellness exam
- One week of free, on-demand training via the Good Pup app
- A free leash or temporary cat carrier
The adoption fee is $75 for dogs and cats six months old or older, and $150 for kittens and puppies up to six months old.
Animals available for adoption may be viewed at the S.P.C.A. of Texas Find a Pet page.
For two decades, the shelter located at the address was operated by the now-disbanded Ellis County S.P.C.A. Although the Ellis County S.P.C.A. and the S.P.C.A. of Texas have similar names, the two organizations are fully independent and unaffiliated with each other or any other organization bearing the generic S.P.C.A. initials.
The Dallas-based S.P.C.A. of Texas began meeting with the board of directors of the Ellis County S.P.C.A. about a year before taking over the facility in an attempt to address reports of poor animal care conditions at the shelter. After working with the staff and the board to work on a solution, both parties came to a mutual agreement in June 2020 that the S.P.C.A. of Texas should acquire the facility and implement the needed changes.
The Ellis County Commissioners Court subsequently voted on July 16, 2020 to turn over the county’s state-mandated animal sheltering services to the S.P.C.A. of Texas, and thus the Ellis County Animal Care Center was launched.
Maura Davies, vice president of marketing and communications for the S.P.C.A. of Texas, says the facility has been “utterly made over” and designed to prioritize the mental and physical health of the animals that come under the care of the organization.
“Over the course of a few months, the S.P.C.A. of Texas renovated the facility floors, drywall, H.V.A.C, electrical system. We installed a complete new kennel system, the flooring, so every surface you can imagine was completely redone — every area was completely redone,” she says. “And there were actually several philanthropic foundations that helped to support the acquisition and the refurbishment. And those included the Better Together Fund, the Petco Foundation and the Waxahachie Foundation. And we are so thankful for all of these entities for investing in the future of animal life-saving in Ellis County to help us provide those improvements.”
Maura says visitors of the new facility may expect to see a brighter, cleaner and happier shelter and a staff that works to accommodate anyone who wants to come in to add a new member to the family.
“The SPCA of Texas’ goal in pursuing our mission is to maintain this facility with our mission in mind, which is to provide every animal exceptional care and a loving home,” she says.
The S.P.C.A. of Texas is a non-profit, 501(3)(c) organization founded in 1938 in Dallas, Texas and is regarded as the most comprehensive and longest-serving animal welfare agency in North Texas. The organization has an exceptional adoption and live-release rate of 96% and euthanizes animals only to prevent longtime suffering or hardship.
In addition to the Ellis County Animal Care Center, the organization operates the Jan Rees-Jones Animal Care Center, The Myron K. Martin Spay and Neuter and Wellness Clinic, The Mary Spencer Spay and Neuter and Wellness Clinic, all in Dallas, and the Equine and Livestock Center in McKinney.
Anyone who wants to support the work of the the S.P.C.A of Texas may make a monetary contribution, help buy items on the organization’s wish list, volunteer or provide any other form of support listed on the organization’s Ways to Give webpage.