Q: How long have you been in this industry?
A: 16 years
Q: What makes your business or practice unique?
A: C.A.R.E.4Paws is the only animal organization on the Central Coast that provides resources to families in need directly in the community. For example, we know that having access to veterinary care improves the lives of pets and their people.
Yet, for so many, gaining that access is difficult unless pet wellness services are brought directly to a family’s neighborhood. This is exactly what our Mobile Community Medicine & Spay/Neuter Outreach program does in Santa Barbara and SLO counties.
Since 2019, we have increased the number of mobile pet wellness services provided annually by more than 150%. In 2024 alone, we assisted 19,200 dogs and cats with services such as vaccines, flea treatment, spays/neuters, medical exams, bloodwork, mass removals, dental care, and treatment of skin, ear and eye problems.
Overall, C.A.R.E.4Paws keeps evolving to make sure we’re meeting the community’s needs. For instance, when the pandemic started, we began distributing several tons of pet food weekly, compared to two tons distributed total in a typical pre-pandemic year. Between the start of the pandemic through the spring of 2025, we have provided more than 6 million free pet meals.
C.A.R.E.4Paws also continues to expand our support for unhoused pet families along the Central Coast. We have created several critical partnerships over the last 12 months, including with Good Samaritan Shelter, 5Cities Homeless Coalition and Community Action Partnership (CAPSLO).
These three organizations provide services in the community and also operate transitional shelters that are now pet friendly—an important shift to support the unhoused, for whom pets are often a lifeline. Together with these partners, Street Dog Coalition and other collaborators, C.A.R.E.4Paws has stepped up our efforts to help pet families affected by riverbed clearings.
The fact that C.A.R.E.4Paws collaborates with so many other nonprofits and agencies—human- or pet-family related—makes us unique. We rely heavily on partnerships to expand our reach into communities that lack access to care.
The human-animal bond is so powerful, and we want to do all that we can to help preserve that bond. Thanks to C.A.R.E.4Paws’ boots-on-the-ground approach, we have a steady presence in the community, assisting pet families right where they live.
Q: What training, education and experience do you and your staff have? Do you hold any professional certifications?
A: We have a highly trained veterinary team that runs our Mobile Community Medicine & Spay/Neuter Outreach operations.
Overall, having operated C.A.R.E.4Paws for 16 years, our team has gained tremendous experience in the animal welfare industry and when it comes to working with pet families in need.
Still, we are adamant about always evolving our practices and protocols to better serve the community, and we encourage and pay for continued education for our staff.
Q: What is your level of expertise regarding pet health and behavior?
A: Our team has worked in the community since 2009 to help thousands of animals with a variety of services, including vaccine clinics, spaying and neutering, medical care, distribution of pet food, behavioral training and general support that keeps pet families strong and together through life’s challenges.
Q: How do you manage behavioral problems?
A: As part of our Companion Pet Assistance program, we offer free or low-cost dog behavioral training for low-income pet families to make sure dogs don’t end up in a shelter due to behavioral issues that owners cannot manage on their own. We also provide dog training tools and tips during many of our pet wellness clinic events.
Q: Are you currently accepting new clients?
A: C.A.R.E.4Paws is always here for pet families in need and continuously assists community members through all of our programs. Through our Mobile Community Medicine & Spay/Neuter Outreach program, we host regular walk-in Pet Wellness Clinics that are open to anyone in need of assistance of vaccines, flea treatment and other basic pet care.
When it comes to spays/neuters and medical care (reserved for families in need and by appointment), we get dozens of calls and emails every day so our schedule fills up fast. Still, we try our best to get pets booked as quickly as possible.
Our Pet Resource Centers are always open for those needing assistance with pet food and supplies. It’s important to note that C.A.R.E.4Paws isn’t designed to be someone’s regular or permanent veterinarian or pet-care provider.
Our goal is to support pet families going through a tough time. With that said, we do know that tough times can last for years and we absolutely do not want an animal to suffer if we can help the pet family through one of our programs.
Q: Can you name a few common reasons animals end up in your shelter?
A: Many pets end up homeless due to lack of resources to provide proper pet care, because of behavioral issues that are hard to manage, or due to pet overpopulation, issues that C.A.R.E.4Paws addresses with our free and low-cost services.
Lack of pet-friendly housing is another, huge problem that contributes to animals ending up in shelters. After COVID, we’ve also seen an influx of animals from other counties, and some of these animals are being relinquished to our shelters.
Sometimes pet families need help temporarily as they are going through a transition, whether it’s hospitalization, a move or rehab, for example. C.A.R.E.4Paws tries to assist whenever possible, but we need more funding and foster families to be able to help on a greater scale.
It is too large of an issue for one organization to tackle, especially as we don’t have a space to house animals. Our community as a whole needs to work together to come up with solutions that keep more pets out of shelters and with the people who love them.
Q: How do you help make your client feel at ease leaving their pet in your care?
A: We have a very kind and compassionate staff and volunteer team, and that goes a long way when it comes to making clients feel comfortable leaving their pets with us. It’s also important to let people know what to expect through the process and from the services they receive.
Q: Are you a nonprofit? Do you accept donations?
A: C.A.R.E.4Paws is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and we do accept donations.
Q: How do you keep the public informed about your business or service(s)?
A: We have an informative website and very active Facebook and Instagram pages. We also partner with dozens of other agencies and local businesses that help spread the word to those in need. For special events, we place ads, post flyers and send press releases to the media.
Q: What is the typical cost of your service(s) or product(s)? Do you offer any payment plans or discounts?
A: Our mobile clinic services are offered at very low-cost for low-income pet families. We also provide free clinic services for those who cannot afford to pay anything. Services through our other programs are typically offered for free.
Q: What are your hours of operation?
A: Since we don’t have a brick-and-mortar facility with regular opening hours, our organization operates a bit differently.
In terms of our mobile clinic services, our mobile units are in service four to five times per week throughout Santa Barbara County and three times a month in San Luis Obispo County.
Our clinic schedule is listed here. Pet families in need of help with clinic services can contact us through our clinic services page.
Community members with inquiries about other pet-care can email info@care4paws.org or call 805-968-2273.
